Billionaire businessman Anthony Von Mandl of Mission Hill Winery played gracious host to Swarup and  a diverse group of business people, politicians, community leaders, city and police officials and of course creative-arts community-media people, including DESIBUZZCanada Editor-Founder R. Paul Dhillon.

VANCOUVER – The world renowned BC-based Mission Hill Winery hosted a beautiful high-powered breakfast reception and Dialogue for India’s High Commissioner Vikas Swarup, the celebrity author of the book Q & A on which the Oscar winning film Slumdog Millionaire was based.

Billionaire businessman Anthony Von Mandl of Mission Hill Winery played gracious host to Swarup and  a diverse group of business people, politicians, community leaders, city and police officials and of course creative-arts community-media people, including DESIBUZZCanada Editor-Founder R. Paul Dhillon.

As usual at Mission Hill events, the Honourable Justice Wally Oppal introduced the elites in the crowd that included MP Randeep Sarai, new Indian Consul General in Vancouver Abhilasha Joshi, Cranberry millionaire and Ocean Spray head Peter Dhillon, VPD Deputy Chief Steve Rai and former BC Premier Mike Harcourt among many others.

They all got a treat from veteran diplomat and author-intellectual High Commissioner Swarup, who perhaps gave one of the most enlightening and convincing case for India as a rising economic and political power I’ve ever seen any Indian government official give in a speech in Canada.

Swarup’s obviously very bright but his gift of story-telling, as Anthony Von Mandl so rightly said in his concluding Thanks to his chief guest, is what sets him apart and we are so glad that he chose Canada as his current Diplomatic posting as we will be enriched by his Knowledge and insight and his oozing love of Canada and especially BC which he just adores.

Swarup ended his speech with a funny but enlightening tale of Sherlock and Watson’s trip to the countryside where the famous detective duo awaken in the middle of the night and find themselves staring at the Stars.

Sherlock says to Watson what do you make of this and Watson deduces that it’s a Starry night and from the stars he tells Sherlock what time it is, what the weather be like tomorrow and so on.

And then Watson asks Sherlock what does he think of all this situation and Sherlock replies: “Someone stole our tent, you idiot.”

Moral of the story is that we need to be practical along with having high and mighty knowledge to deduce everything!

A great high powered breakfast with food for thought!

Keep it rocking Oracle – Let the Birdi fly High!