Alas, we were right. Vajpayee seemed to lurch from one crisis to another. India Today recorded this turbulence, featuring Vajpayee alone on the cover on three occasions. Of the 270 pages set aside for national politics, 83 were devoted to him. Looking back it is amazing that he survived. Most of it was because he was a decent man, hard to dislike. He was also astute in avoiding confrontation. But he was difficult to understand. I.K. Gujral was a drawing room prime minister, keen to engage people in cosy discussions; Deve Gowda was street smart and Narasimha Rao a scholarly politician. Vajpayee, an artful orator, seemed to come alive only in front of large crowds. Otherwise he remained a loner, content in the close embrace of his family, uncomfortable in the bright lights of the media.

Yet he has spoken to us thrice this past year. The latest interview came last week when Editor Prabhu Chawla, who has known him for 30 years, had dinner at his house at 3 Race Course Road and subsequently spoke to him over two hours. Meanwhile Deputy Editor Swapan Dasgupta, aided by Associate Editor Harinder Baweja and Special Correspondent Javed Ansari, met a range of politicians to write a story on Vajpayee's year in power.

It is clear that Vajpayee realises the need to be more accessible. Yet instead of dealing directly with opinion makers he has surrounded himself with over-zealous spin doctors whose prescriptions have more hype than substance. Vajpayee should remember there's no alternative to the real thing.

(Aroon Purie)