It was President Obama’s first State Dinner.

And it was held in honor of visiting Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh earlier tonight.

The event, hosted at the White House, was attended by Hollywood-types, Washington power brokers, and members of the South Asian American community.

Among the guests: Stephen Spielberg, Arundhati Roy, Bobby Jindal, Katie Couric, Brian Williams, Deepak Chopra, and Sanjay Gupta (President Obama’s original choice, as you may remember, for Surgeon General).

Jennifer Hudson and A.R. Rahman offered musical performances.

“In India, some of life’s most precious moments are often celebrated under the cover of a beautiful tent. It’s a little like tonight. We have incredible food, the music, and are surrounded by great friends,” President Obama told the crowd of about 400.

“It’s been said that the most beautiful thing in the universe are the starry heavens above us and the feeling of duty within us. Mr. Prime Minister, today we worked to fulfill our duty to bring our countries closer together than ever before.”

The NY Post tells us the First Lady looked ’sensational’ in a gown designed by the India-born Naeem Khan:

The shimmering number was hand embroidered with thousands of tiny beads that Khan said took 40 people more than three weeks to create in his family’s plant in India.

And ABC made mention of accessories:

Michelle Obama wore a floor-length sparkling silver and gold strapless dress, by Indian-American designer Naeem Khan, for the dinner. She carried a chiffon shawl and wore a bunch of churis, the traditional Indian bangle bracelets.

Secretary of State Clinton arrived at 7:30pm, and was followed by other senior officials including Vice President Biden, and his wife Jill who was wearing a gown by Lebanese designer Reem Acra.

For the full transcript of both President Obama’s, and Prime Minister Singh’s toasts, follow this link.

*Photo: EPA

…Over the loss of Senator Ted Kennedy.

It feels like the end of an era; the end—as some reporters have been calling it—of Camelot.

President Obama delivered yesterday’s eulogy, and it was perfect: tender and infused with moments of great depth.

“We cannot know for certain how long we have here,” he told mourners assembled at Our Lady of Perpetual Help Basilica in Boston.

“We cannot foresee the trials or misfortunes that will test us along the way. We cannot know God’s plan for us.”

“What we can do is to live out our lives as best we can with purpose, and love, and joy.

We can use each day to show those who are closest to us how much we care about them, and treat others with the kindness and respect that we wish for ourselves.

We can learn from our mistakes and grow from our failures.

And we can strive at all costs to make a better world, so that someday, if we are blessed with the chance to look back on our time here, we can know that we spent it well; that we made a difference; that our fleeting presence had a lasting impact on the lives of other human beings.

This is how Ted Kennedy lived. This is his legacy.”

Indeed it is.

Senator Kennedy is survived by a large extended family, by his children and his wife—Vicki Reggie Kennedy, a Lebanese American lawyer and mother of two.

More: On Vicki and the late Ted Kennedy’s marriage; On Vicki as the “woman who saved Ted”

*Photo: Of the couple at the DNC (2008). Getty Images.

The two spoke to St. Xavier College students about the importance of education.

Read the full transcript of the conversation on this U.S. Department of State website.

Khan participated on behalf of the NGO Teach for India.

*Photo: Vivek Bendre (PTI) 

It’s official: Kal Penn (aka Kalpen Modi) has started his new government job.

Penn told reporters this was “an incredibly historic time,” and that he is “deeply honored” to be serving the country and the Administration:

When asked about his new job, Penn said, “The job is very different, as you can imagine. I’m wearing a suit … and a tie.”

Penn’s first day as Associate Director in the White House’s Office of Public Engagement involved “paper work, introductory meetings and setting up of emails.”

*Photo: AP (Charles Dharapak)

Our Commander in Chief can cook a mean keema and daal?

Wow.

But Jon Stewart may not be fully impressed.

Here he is last night, in a Daily Show segment he’s calling ‘That’s great. Now fix the economy:”

Iranian hip hop artist Shanin Najafi gives us this candid look at the election aftermath.

It’s Persian protest rap!

And it’s all kinds of awesome. Thanks YouTube: