On Jan 31st, 2026, the “Stuttgart meets Mumbai” Wine Festival welcomed about 1,500 guests from India and Germany, celebrating Indo-German collaboration for over 20 years. Andreas Lapp, Honorary Consul of the Republic of India for Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate and former CEO of the German family-owned company LAPP Group, founded the fruitful city partnership between Mumbai and Stuttgart via “Stuttgart meets Mumbai” Wine Festival in 2004.
February 3, 2026
On Jan 31st, 2026, the “Stuttgart meets Mumbai” Wine Festival welcomed about 1,500 guests from India and Germany, politics and business, in Mumbai for the 22nd time. This year, the event took place under very special circumstances as India and Europe have grown closer together economically in recent days.
After almost 20 years of on-and-off negotiations, the free trade agreement between the EU and India was finally signed on Jan 27. Only a few days later, an event opened its doors that has been championing economic collaboration between India and Europe’s largest economy for even longer:
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Andreas Lapp, Honorary Consul of the Republic of India for Baden-Württemberg and Rhineland-Palatinate and former CEO of the German family-owned company LAPP Group, founded the “Stuttgart meets Mumbai” Wine Festival in 2004. His vision is to create a forum to celebrate the fruitful city partnership between Mumbai and Stuttgart established in 1968. Since 2015, Maharashtra and the federal state of Baden-Württemberg have maintained a state partnership.
Commenting on this partnership, Andreas Lapp said, “Promoting German-Indian friendship is a matter close to my heart, both in terms of cultural exchange and economic cooperation. Together, our two countries have great opportunities, and I know from my own experience that the best contacts can be made during informal encounters with good conversation. ‘’
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He adds, ‘‘The fact that our partnership has now been sealed at the highest level with the EU-India trade agreement brings me particular joy. With Germany being India’s largest EU trade partner by far, this agreement promises a significant boost to both our economies.”
