Who is Hiroshi Suzuki? Japan’s envoy to India who loves street food, travels in Mumbai local

New Delhi: Indian street food has a global reputation and is appreciated by many celebrities from world leaders to Hollywood. Hiroshi Suzuki, the Japanese envoy to India and Bhutan, was the latest to enjoy the country’s diverse street food. A video of Japanese envoy Suzuki tasting Maharashtrian style street food in Pune has recently gone viral on social media. Suzuki, who once praised the hard work put in by the workers for the progress of the bullet train project, was seen traveling in a Mumbai local earlier this month.

Who is Hiroshi Suzuki?

Japan’s Ambassador to India Hiroshi Suzuki assumed office on 9 November 2022 and presented his credentials to President Murmu on 28 November. Prior to coming to India, he served as the Senior Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (G7 and G20 Sherpa) from 2020 – 2022. He was executive secretary to late Prime Minister Shinzo Abe Kishida for eight years between 2012 and 2020.

Education

Suzuki earned a BA degree in 1985 from the Faculty of Law of the University of Tokyo. In 1988 he completed his MA from the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy.

The envoy, who was in Pune for an event, tried the Vada Pav and Misal Pav. However, he had one small problem – that it was too spicy for him. He posted a video of himself eating street food on Twitter and wrote in the caption, “I love the street food of India…but little tikka less please!”

i love indian street food
…but a little commentary please!#Pune #Maharashtra #Vadapav pic.twitter.com/3GurNcwVyV– Hiroshi Suzuki, Ambassador of Japan (@HiroSuzukiAmbJP) June 9, 2023

The Japanese envoy also tried Pune’s popular misal pav on the suggestion of his Twitter followers, and posted a video of the delicious meal. She received a lot of praise from netizens for her post about trying Indian street food in Pune. Some of her social media followers encouraged her to try other recipes in the comments section, while others praised her openness to trying new foods.

Suzuki was in Mumbai, arriving like a regular Mumbaikar. He traveled in a local train in Mumbai and also posed for a photograph standing at the door of the train. Suzuki tweeted, ‘I am in Mumbai.

I am in Mumbai!! pic.twitter.com/qIp4VuiPj8– Hiroshi Suzuki, Ambassador of Japan (@HiroSuzukiAmbJP) June 1, 2023

In another tweet, he was seen in a white shirt priced at Rs 100 at a local market in Mumbai. He captioned the picture, “What a deal! Should I buy?”