Akhilesh Yadav listens to Coldplay. Or at least we know that the Uttar Pradesh chief minister would rather listen to the British rock band than hear Arun Jaitley's Budget speech again.
As is the case with any Budget, the Union finance minister's plan drew mixed reactions from across the political spectrum. The oft-repeated cliches figured in most of these reactions. Yadav also resorted to this tactic, but with one notable difference – he revealed something about his taste in music. After Jaitley delivered his speech and addressed a press conference, Yadav took to Twitter to make his feelings known about the finance minister's plans for the next financial year.
The Hymn for the Weekend that Yadav referred to is a song from Coldplay's latest album, A Head Full of Dreams, which was released in December. The music video for the song was shot in Mumbai and drew criticism for perpetuating stereotypes about India and showing the country as a land of exotic cliches as contained stills of fire-eaters, dilapidated mansions, saffron flags. run-down cinema halls.
It's not clear whether Yadav shared this criticism or had simply tired of hearing the song (which was still better than the Budget). After Yadav's tweet, it appeared that the typical Samajwadi Party supporter wasn't particularly surprised by his taste in music, as his fans sang the usual songs of praise for their leader. But some did find more cause for admiration.
His detractors, however, latched on to the opportunity for criticism.