They call him Mr English and Mr Difficult Words. He enjoys every bit of the adulation and awe his command over language inspires. An avid cricket fan, Shashi Tharoor loves throwing a curveball wrapped in tough words and unheard-of expressions at his audience every once in a while, and he is loved for that.
Calling himself a fan of Shashi Tharoor, Dr. Tharoor acknowledged Wagle’s admiration with a nod of the head and a hand on his heart.
Tharoor commended it with his trademark wit: “Better used by a finance minister than a leader of the opposition,” said the Congress MP. “You defenestrated the former Prime Minister,” Tharoor said, evoking laughter from the Minister and the audience. Wagle and Tharoor then went into a masterclass on the oft-used German word “Schadenfreude”, which, Tharoor told the room, means “the feeling of joy or satisfaction you get when something bad happens to another person”. Tharoor was quick to point out that there is in fact an English word for “Schadenfreude”, which “even the English don’t use” While the Nepal Finance Minister said there probably is no word in English that aptly captures the same meaning. Swarnim Wagle said he has been trying to follow in his footsteps.
