25 March 2012 Last updated at 13:19 GMT Mr Colangelo told the BBC his capture had been an ordeal
An Italian man who was taken hostage by Maoist rebels in India almost two weeks ago has been released.
Claudio Colangelo told the BBC his capture had been an ordeal, but that he was treated well and that he hoped his companion, Paolo Bosusco, would also be released soon. It was the first kidnap of foreigners by Maoists in Orissa state.
The rebels have demanded an end to military operations against them and the release of jailed Maoists.
On Saturday, the Maoists abducted a local politician in the eastern Indian state, adding to tensions in the state.
Mr Colangelo said he had been treated well, but being in captivity was difficult:
"The weather, too hot; the food, it wasn't the Italian food of course [laughs], and the fact that I was not free; and thinking about my family because I knew I was well, but my family didn't know about it; so I was worried for them, not for me," he told the BBC.
Paulo Bosusco, 54, and Mr Colangelo, 61, were seized while trekking in a tribal area of Orissa state, one of several regions of India where Maoist rebels are active.
Main states where Maoist groups operate The Orissa government recently imposed severe restrictions on the movement of tourists inside areas inhabited by tribes people.
Mr Bosusco runs an adventure tourism agency in Orissa while Mr Colangelo was visiting from Italy.
The abduction came at a time of strained relations between Italy and India.
They have been involved in a diplomatic dispute since Indian police arrested two Italian marines a month ago in the southern port of Kochi. The pair are accused of killing two Indian fishermen.
The Maoists have a strong presence in many eastern states, and have been described by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as the country's biggest security threat.
The rebels say they are fighting for a communist state and for the rights of tribal people and the rural poor.
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