The boy, who shot to fame after taking a selfie with US President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the Howdy Modi event in Houston is a native of Uttara Kannada district. 13-year-old Satvik Hegde was waiting along with other artistes and Indian-origin children to welcome Modi and Trump. The boy suddenly requested President Trump to pose for a selfie and both the leaders obliged.
Listening to the boy, Trump stepped back to pose for the selfie by Satvik. On the occasion, both the leaders put hands on one another and posed for the selfie with the boy. The selfie was tweeted by The White House’s twitter handle and it soon went viral.
Satvik’s father Prabhakar Hegde works in an IT company and mother Medha Hegde is a teacher at San Antonio in Texas. He is a 9th standard student at Louis D Brandeis High School at San Antonio. Prabhakar hails from Tolagaragadde in Sirsi taluk while Medha is from Karkisaval of Siddapur taluk. Prabhakar-Medha couple has been living in the US for the past 17 years and Satvik was born there itself.
Speaking to TNIE, Ganesh Hegde, elder brother Medha, said his family knew that he would be there to perform Suryanamaskara and yoga at the Howdy Modi programme. The entire family, including Satvik’s grandfather and grandmother, were watching the live programme on television.
“We noticed a young boy, who looked like Satvik, taking a selfie with Modi and Trump. But it was not clearly visible during the live telecast and we did not have any clue that it was Satvik who took the selfie. After the function, Satvik sent photos through WhatsApp and there was no end to our happiness,” he said. The boy, without a miss, takes part in Kannada and culture programmes in Texas. He also actively participates in yoga and other events.
