February 23, 1998

Jamshedpur  Bihar
Electorate: 11.4 lakh
Main Rival: A  Mahato (BJP)

A hen shoots across the road. "Chicken, chicken, chick- en," Russi Mody grumbles. "Let's eat." The man's had food on his mind for a while. It's 12.45 p.m., and he's been campaigning for three hours non-stop. At a roadside dhaba in dirt-poor Haldipokhar, he ignores the flies and tucks into alu gobi, roti, foul chicken curry and jalebi. My oh my, is this Russi Mody?

So it is. It's the comeback and personal statement all rolled into one. At 80, he's pushing 16-hour days, fighting to recapture some of the glory he had as the blustery boss of Tisco five years after he unceremoniously lost the job. "Hum andolan banayenga," he exhorts workers and tribals in his "tootu-footu" Hindi at crowded street-side meetings. "Aapki taklif meri hoyenga." Mody's logic for seeking office is Jamshedpur's resurrection. Many believe it's for his own. He beats on a drum, his election symbol. "He always blows his own trumpet," gripes a TISCO executive.

Either way, people are taking notice, despite talk of a BJP win. It's a corporate campaign: charts, former TISCO associates, Scotch. Mody is trying to use his years at TISCO (labour-friendly pr, rural development) as ammunition in these times of retrenchment and rising prices. "Uncle, you have to win," a tribal youth yells as Mody drives past. "See," he preens. "And people say how can someone who lives like a king relate to the poor?" If only seeing was believing.

-- Sudeep Chakravarti

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