During Chinese President Xi Jinping's recent visit to Trinidad and Tobago, he was given two gifts by the Trinidadian Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, one of which was a fairytale book titled "The Emperor, His Bride and The Dragon Robe." The author of the book, Lisa Sankar, is Trinidadian and she is married to a man from Henan Province in north-central China.

President Xi Jinping (R) is welcomed by Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago Kamla Persad-Bissessar before their talks in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago, June 1, 2013. [Xinhua]

It has been 13 years since Sankar settled down in Zhengzhou, the capital city of Henan Province. She and her husband Zhu Wei now work to introduce Chinese culture to the people of Trinidad and Tobago.

Sankar is now the CEO of Golden Mushroom (Zhengzhou) Cartoon Design & Cultural Company, Ltd., the first company from Trinidad and Tobago to establish itself in Zhengzhou. The company was founded two years ago and there are currently four companies from Trinidad and Tobago in China.

Sankar is not currently in Zhengzhou and Zhu explained that she returned home in late May on hearing the news that Chinese President Xi Jinping would visit Trinidad and Tobago. He explained that she wanted to take advantage of her knowledge about China to facilitate communication between the two countries. In addition to this, she wanted to lay the groundwork for the regional release of her animation series "Rainbow Pandas."

The sample clips of the series have been completed and Zhu revealed that a number of venture capital companies have expressed an interest in acquiring the animation series. The couple has yet to accept any such proposal.

"We have signed a letter of intent for cooperation with the largest English TV station in the Caribbean region that covers 15 Caribbean countries," Zhusaid. "It is estimated that roughly seven to eight episodes will be broadcast this year in the region."

Continuing to speak about his wife, Zhu explained how the couple met, beginning with Sankar's arrival in Beijing in 1996 as one of the first Trinidadian students to study in the country. One day, the school where Sankar was studying organized a screening of "The Butterfly Lovers," a Chinese legend about the tragic romance between two lovers and Sankar was among the students who went to the screening. By chance, Zhu's company was located close to where the screening took place, so he also went to watch the film after work.

The two young people subsequently met at the screening, and, as if decreed by fate, fell in love at first sight.