French Connection

Ambassador of France to India, Alexandre Ziegler, talks to Sunetra Choudhury about finding a piece of home in the country

- Sunetra Choudhury

Of all the places in the world to compare Delhi to, Paris may be furthest from anyone’s mind. But for Ambassador Alexandre Ziegler, life in the sprawling, crowded capital city is a reminder of the home he left behind. “I love Delhi; it is very French,” he says, as if that is self-explanatory. From his living room in the heart of the scenic and orderly diplomatic enclave, it’s perhaps not too difficult to conjure up visions of a European environment. Outside, the city holds radically different worlds. But for the 49-year-old, the reminders of his own city come from the people he meets here and not its topography. “When you’re at a dinner in Delhi, you could well be in Paris—it’s the debates that you hear and the liveliness… whether you are with journalists, politicians or intellectuals,” he says. “You feel at home and feel the chemistry with its people pretty much immediately.”