John Oliver explains Narendra Modi’s popularity, controversies, and more on Last Week Tonight

Ahead of President Donald Trump’s visit to India, Last Week Tonight with John Oliver offered a profile of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Last Week Tonight with John Oliver is, unsurprisingly, showing no signs of rust in its first two weeks of being back on the air. Episode two was no different as John Oliver and company offered an excellent profile of India’s Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the eve of his meeting with President Donald Trump.

The season seven premiere of Last Week Tonight tackled the Medicare for All issue that has become a top priority among Democratic candidates for president. Oliver immediately put himself in the middle of the political discussion and proved once again that Last Week Tonight has a real, tangible impact on the national conversation.

Part of why fans enjoy Last Week Tonight so much is that they never know what Oliver will discuss from week to week. Unlike the nightly late night shows that pull from the day’s headlines, Last Week Tonight is constantly researching and working on pieces they find interesting or of value to the public.

Those segments have always included profiles of various leaders from around the world. Who can forget last season’s look at Turkmenistan’s President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamdeov? Last night, Oliver and company looked at another world leader: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Modi is set to meet with President Donald Trump today so Oliver offered this introduction to the unaware:

Fans can count on Last Week Tonight to go in-depth on whatever issue the show covers while maintaining some of the best comedy writing found anywhere on television. Here, Oliver goes beyond the public persona of Modi and peeks behind the image that India’s prime minister presents when on the world stage.

Oliver, revisiting the topic of his first ever episode, recaps the hits and misses of Modi’s tenure. Everything from toilets to bank notes are covered as Oliver gets his audience up to speed on why Modi has become such a polarizing figure within India.

The segment focuses on Modi’s religious beliefs and how they inform his policies and decision as prime minister. Some of Last Week Tonight‘s viewers may not know much about tensions in India and the conflict between Hindus and Muslims. Oliver delivers a broad overview of the situation by expertly balancing humor and information like he has for years now.

Oliver wraps up by exploring how Modi’s efforts to marginalize, evict or imprison Muslims are causing the biggest backlash of his time in power. The actions of Modi and the response of the Indian people hardly suggest that the prime minister is the “father of India” as Oliver argues.

It’s hard not to see the parallels drawn by Last Week Tonight bookending the segment with references to President Trump. Oliver makes it clear that the world should draw inspiration from those Indians uniting against Prime Ministers Modi’s policies that are designed to divide.