Tesla CEO Elon Musk is known for his viral (and often weird) tweets. But a recent tweet that he shared about the Taj Mahal has been going viral in India.
Musk, who recently announced he had taken over Twitter, took to the microblogging site on Monday to recall his 2007 India trip when he visited the Taj Mahal. The millionaire entrepreneur was full of praises for the 17th-century mausoleum located in Agra in India’s Uttar Pradesh which he referred to as the truly a ‘wonder of the world. - a reference to the fact that Taj Mahal is often considered one of the seven man-made wonders of the world. It was commissioned by the Mughal Emperor Shah Jahan in 1652 in memory of his late empress Mumtaz Mahal. The magnificent structure is said to have taken 22 years to finish.
The SpaceX chief was responding to a tweet by an account named ‘History Defined’ that regularly tweets about historical facts and photos. Their latest post was about the colourful carved frescoes that adorn the walls, minarets and gateways of the Agra fort. Responding to the tweet, Musk said, “It is amazing. I visited in 2007 and also saw the Taj Mahal, which truly is a wonder of the world”.
Much like everything else Musk tweets, the post went viral and has since led to speculation on the internet about whether Musk is planning an India trip. Many urged the entrepreneur to come to visit India while others speculated that the tweet could mean a trip is already in the offing.
Vijay Shekhar Sharma of PayTm also seemed to take a friendly pot shot at Musk, who has repeatedly been urged by Indians to launch the Tesla cars here. "It will be an incredible challenge for Tesla to build FSD for India. We are known to be the most unruly road users. That said, when are you coming here to deliver first @Tesla here at The Taj?" Sharma tweeted in response to Musk’s Taj tweet.
Some even jokingly warned him against trying to buy it.
The tweet also led to an appreciation of Indian architecture. Many, however, tried to give the tweets a communal colour by accusing Mughals of being invaders and instead urged Musk to visit other, lesser-known Indian temples and structures. Nevertheless, the post was flooded with appreciation for The Taj Mahal which not only remains a popular destination for international travellers but also rakes in lakhs in revenue through tourism for the Indian economy. In 2017-18, it earned Rs 58.76,04,981 in revenue through tickets.
This is not the first-time that tweets made by Musk have led to speculation and tweet-storms on Twitter about his India visit. Fans and the Indian auto sector have long been waiting for the entry of Tesla cars in India. In January 2021, Musk confirmed on Twitter that Tesla will soon be launched in India. The announcement was made soon after the setting up of a subsidiary local R&D unit in Bengaluru.
