New Delhi: A photograph released by Reliance Industries showing US Secretary of State Marco Rubio seated in conversation with its chairman Mukesh Ambani has drawn a wave of sarcastic reactions on X, with users invoking Elon Musk’s description of the Indian billionaire as the “real boss of India” and questioning the political significance of the meeting.The photograph, showing Rubio speaking with Ambani in an informal seating arrangement at Jamnagar, was shared on Wednesday (October 21) night as part of a suite of photos and a written statement by Reliance Industries Limited’s official X account.Rubio travelled to Mumbai and Jamnagar for his second trip to India this year, bypassing the Indian capital.After meeting external affairs minister S. Jaishankar and UAE foreign minister Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan in Mumbai on October 20, Rubio met Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani and Tata Sons chairman N. Chandrasekaran the following day before travelling to Jamnagar, home to Reliance Industries’ giant refinery complex, for an overnight stay.A number of tweets turned the photograph into a commentary on the relationship between India’s political leadership and its most powerful corporate groups. The responses ranged from jokes about Ambani being the country’s actual power centre to criticism of the Narendra Modi government and arguments that the meeting was a simple business engagement, reflecting current political interests of the Trump administration.Well-known parody account Rofl Gandhi 2.0 wrote, “Real Ye hai shayad (This is probably real)”, after he imposed the image of an effigy of Raavan looming in the floor-to-wall window. This was a reference to the earlier viral photo on X with users commenting that effigy resembled Prime Minister Narendra Modi.A substantial number of the tweets were referencing Elon Musk’s label for the Indian billionaire.Also read: Elon Musk Takes on Ambani, PM Modi In ‘Real Boss of India’ TweetsAn X user, Yatharth Mann simply labelled the Reliance chairman “Prime Minister Ambani”. Another X poster, Mohit Chauhan framed the image as an official photograph of Rubio with “India’s de facto Prime Minister, Mukesh Ambani”. Another user, Thala, wrote, “No middleman. This time they directly met with the real boss.”Rich Sharma, who described himself as a centrist in his bio, wrote, “It’s official now guys…that Ambani ji is the true PM of India, Modi is just a latkan.” Another account, Bittu, directly tagged Musk with the remark, “With the real boss of India.”Other tweets used the photograph to mock the style of political diplomacy associated with Modi. A Congress supporter, An Indian wrote, “No forceful hugs”, “No over acting Khi Khi Khi” and “No hand actions or fingers pointed for SM Vishwaguru drama”, before describing the meeting as a “Serious business meeting with utmost seriousness”. Another joked, “What do they want? Campa and Ice cream recipe?”Some posts made more explicit political comparisons. Another X user, Kshitij More suggested that Washington could be seeking to support Ambani as a competitor to the Adani group, which he alleged had received favours from the central government.Uttkarsh Singh called it a historic moment, writing that it was the first time Americans needed help from an Indian entrepreneur. A self-described Congress supporter wrote a caption making up Ambani’s hypothetical complaint to Rubio, “Ek baat Marco bhai, Modi na aavya pachhi dhandho barbaad thai gayo. (Marco bhai, ever since Modi stopped coming, business has gone to the dogs)”.Not all the reactions were mocking. Journalist Sheela Bhatt wrote, “Jamnagar on the global map! Mukesh bhai creating history. Venezuela oil deal on the table.”The photograph also prompted discussion on Reddit, where users offered explanations for the meeting alongside the jokes about Ambani’s political influence.Also read: Rubio’s Visit Is Another Missed Chance to Revive the Stalled F-414 Engine DealIn a discussion in r/Gujarat about Rubio’s visit, one user wrote, “Marco Rubio knows who is the real PM of India. Elon Musk took some time to understand it.” Another asked, “Is Ambani President of US?”.Other Reddit users focused on what the US delegation wanted from Reliance rather than the symbolism of the photograph. One comment connected the visit to the processing of Venezuelan crude, arguing that Reliance had the refining capacity to handle it.Another questioned why Rubio was not being criticised for alleged racism towards Indians while he was seeking commercial cooperation in India. A Gujarati comment, translated into English, said that people fell silent when money came into the picture.Musk had sparked the underlying controversy earlier this month by asking on X whether Ambani was the “real boss of India”, alleging that powerful business interests were trying to preserve their market dominance by obstructing Starlink’s commercial launch. He subsequently addressed Ambani sarcastically as “Prime Minister Ambani”, accusing him of preferring monopolistic exploitation and asking whether he would allow Starlink to compete.Congress leader Rahul Gandhi responded to Musk’s earlier comments by saying, “Welcome to India, Elon. Wait till you discover the other guy.” Musk replied, “Thank you, Rahul. This is indeed troubling.” Gandhi’s remark was widely interpreted as a reference to Gautam Adani, whom the Congress has repeatedly accused of benefiting from his proximity to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.