Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi rang in Friendship Day on Sunday with a post that had little to do with politics and everything to do with charm. Sharing a cheerful photograph on Instagram, Gandhi struck the now-famous finger heart pose, thumb and index finger crossed into a tiny heart, and captioned it, “Still a student, still learning something new every day. Today’s lesson: it’s Friendship Day and this is a heart. Happy Friendship Day, everyone. Lots of love!”
The gesture originated in South Korea, where K-pop idols and K-drama actors popularised it as a compact, cuter alternative to the traditional two-handed heart sign. Over the years it has travelled well beyond fan culture, showing up at concerts, birthday selfies and casual social media posts, and is now widely understood as a quick, affectionate way of saying “I appreciate you” or “I love you.”
Gandhi’s post fit right into that spirit, pairing the gesture with his familiar “student” framing, a phrase he has used before to describe his own approach to learning and public life. The photograph quickly drew reactions online, with users noting how naturally the veteran politician had picked up a trend more often associated with Gen Z fan culture.
