The photo of America’s newly elected Vice President JD Vance and his wife Usha Vance with her Indian family has gone viral on social media. In the picture, Mr Vance can be seen wearing a blue T-shirt and jeans and carrying his son on his shoulders. His wife, dressed in a yellow-brown dress, can be seen on the left holding their daughter. Along with the couple, around 21 members of the family can be seen enjoying at a party in the backyard of a house.
Silicon Valley-based venture capitalist Asha Jadeja Motwane shared the undated photo and captioned it: “JD Vance at Thanksgiving. Reminds me of a big fat Indian wedding.”
JD Vance at Thanksgiving -). Reminds me of a big fat Indian wedding… pic.twitter.com/vzEjODMRZt
—Asha Jadeja Motwani???? (@ashajadeja325) 2 December 2024
As soon as the post went viral, reactions poured in from all quarters, with most of them praising the Ohio senator for his loving and adoring family.
One user said, “JD felt like a real family,” while another said: “So much respect for Vance here for spending time with his wife’s full Indian family. Adopting Indian culture for an outsider.” Can be hard, especially when it seems like the older generation had a great time.”
“His son is sitting on his shoulders in pure Indian style,” said a third.
However, some white supremacists once again launched racist attacks on the Republican leader and his wife for the photo. Far-right commentator Nick Fuentes, notorious for his absurd statements, posted the image and wrote: “If you support JD Vance you are either being paid by Peter Thiel or you are NGMI.”
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JD Vance’s love for India and Indian food
Speaking to popular podcast host Joe Rogan earlier this month, Mr Vance waxed lyrical about the appeal of Indian vegetarian cuisine and how his wife has influenced his food choices.
Mr. Vance said, “For any vegetarian, try cheese, rice and chickpeas. Skip the fake fake meats. If you want to adopt a vegetarian lifestyle, turn to Indian cuisine. It provides wonderful vegetarian options. Does.”
The Republican leader also recalled an initial attempt to impress Usha with a home-cooked vegetarian meal that did not go as planned. “I rolled a flat thing out of a crescent roll. I put raw broccoli on top of it. I drizzled ranch dressing, and I put them in the oven for 45 minutes.” The result, he said, was “disgusting”.
Usha Vance and JD met in 2014 while pursuing law degrees at Yale University. JD’s memoir describes Usha as his “Yale spirit guide”, who helped him navigate life at the elite university. The couple has three children.