Vadnagar, Gujarat: Cobbled narrow lanes. Old two-storey homes. An ancient temple. A lake in the heart of the town. And jobless youth who have little to do but sip sugary tea from porcelain saucers and stare at our cameras.
That's my impression of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's hometown - the dusty, sleepy temple town of Vadnagar in Mehsana district of north Gujarat.
Ironic, since the messiah of development politics had still not been able to implement his mantra in his own town.
A ring road that connects the entire town of 30,000 residents. Brand new streetlights whose gray-coloured poles still wear their plastic covers. A government polytechnic institute. New gardens. Water tanks. An industrial training centre to produce a skilled workforce. And an open air theatre on the banks of the Sharmistha lake in which Mr Modi used to swim every morning as a young boy before cycling to school.
Born on September 17, 1950 here in Vadnagar to Damodardas and Heeraben Modi, Narendra was the third of six children. From the Ganchi community - an OBC caste - Mr Modi's upbringing was in a lower middle class home in humble surroundings. He and his brother would sell tea along with their father in a bustling corner of the town near the railway station.
Legend goes that as a 12-year-old, young Narendra along with two other friends swam across the Sharmishtha one raining day during the monsoon to change the saffron flag atop a temple in the middle of the lake. His daring act, villagers still recall, overnight turned him into a hero.
"The life he joined didn't permit him to spend time with his family. It was then customary to focus only on the social work of the RSS. The rest was not important," Mr Shastri had explained.
Arvind Modi, his first cousin still lives in a small house in a narrow bylane of the town. Clothes hang on a line that swings across the main room of the house. Two khatiyaas placed in the room serve as the only place to sit. It's five years since I met him. Still, on the face of it - unlike other netas whose relatives have grown richer - Arvind's life has seen no change. Still no TV, no telephone. Not even a cycle.
Did he never seek any help from his cousin - after all he was the Chief Minister? "No. Why should I?" he explained, the pride of self-dependence beaming through his eyes. "We don't need his help. I am happy this way."
"Not at all," his wife intervenes. "How can we survive with this business? We need help. But we can't ask."
Arvind smilingly asks his wife not to "interfere". But his wife continues mumbling - audibly enough for us to catch her disappointment.
It's unclear if Mr Modi's larger family is unhappy with his aloofness. What's apparent though is that they all greatly respect him.
Mr Modi may have qualms and may never speak about it, but here in Vadnagar it is common knowledge that he did get married.
"Yes he did. But when he joined the RSS, he opted out. She's a teacher in Sabarkantha district now. As far as I know, they did not file for a divorce," Arvind clarifies, saying the couple never met again.
Contrary to expectations, the Modi cult here isn't as aggressive as in other parts of the state. But when it comes to defending him on the question of the communal riots of 2002, the village speaks in one voice.
"Hindus and Muslims live together here. Nobody from either communities is capable of stoking riots. This is not the upbringing of those in Vadnagar that has never seen a riot," Mr Modi's 80-year-old childhood teacher Hiraben explains, sitting on the porch outside her house. "These are allegations made by the Congress. Nothing more, nothing less."
Even as demands for an apology from Mr Modi - since he was the Chief Minister - have made headlines over the years, Vadnagar backs their boy with the old adage: innocent until proven guilty.
"Has any court found any evidence against him? If he is guilty then he should apologise. But since he is not, then why say sorry? If he apologises in these circumstances, then it will only give the impression that he is guilty," Arvind insists.
If the 2007 polls were a "referendum of my rule" as Mr Modi had famously said, then the 2012 elections is his gateway to Delhi. Mr Modi may deny it. But in his town, the choice between Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi is a foregone conclusion.
Ask locals and they refer to another legend. Years ago, Mr Modi's horoscope was shown to an astrologer who predicted that he would either turn an ascetic or go on to become an "emperor".
Perhaps only a story. But Vadnagar has only one slogan, one appeal: CM to PM, Narendrabhai we are waiting for 2014.
That's my impression of Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi's hometown - the dusty, sleepy temple town of Vadnagar in Mehsana district of north Gujarat.
Ironic, since the messiah of development politics had still not been able to implement his mantra in his own town.
A ring road that connects the entire town of 30,000 residents. Brand new streetlights whose gray-coloured poles still wear their plastic covers. A government polytechnic institute. New gardens. Water tanks. An industrial training centre to produce a skilled workforce. And an open air theatre on the banks of the Sharmistha lake in which Mr Modi used to swim every morning as a young boy before cycling to school.
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Born on September 17, 1950 here in Vadnagar to Damodardas and Heeraben Modi, Narendra was the third of six children. From the Ganchi community - an OBC caste - Mr Modi's upbringing was in a lower middle class home in humble surroundings. He and his brother would sell tea along with their father in a bustling corner of the town near the railway station.
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Legend goes that as a 12-year-old, young Narendra along with two other friends swam across the Sharmishtha one raining day during the monsoon to change the saffron flag atop a temple in the middle of the lake. His daring act, villagers still recall, overnight turned him into a hero.
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"The life he joined didn't permit him to spend time with his family. It was then customary to focus only on the social work of the RSS. The rest was not important," Mr Shastri had explained.
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Arvind Modi, his first cousin still lives in a small house in a narrow bylane of the town. Clothes hang on a line that swings across the main room of the house. Two khatiyaas placed in the room serve as the only place to sit. It's five years since I met him. Still, on the face of it - unlike other netas whose relatives have grown richer - Arvind's life has seen no change. Still no TV, no telephone. Not even a cycle.
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Did he never seek any help from his cousin - after all he was the Chief Minister? "No. Why should I?" he explained, the pride of self-dependence beaming through his eyes. "We don't need his help. I am happy this way."
"Not at all," his wife intervenes. "How can we survive with this business? We need help. But we can't ask."
Arvind smilingly asks his wife not to "interfere". But his wife continues mumbling - audibly enough for us to catch her disappointment.
It's unclear if Mr Modi's larger family is unhappy with his aloofness. What's apparent though is that they all greatly respect him.
Mr Modi may have qualms and may never speak about it, but here in Vadnagar it is common knowledge that he did get married.
"Yes he did. But when he joined the RSS, he opted out. She's a teacher in Sabarkantha district now. As far as I know, they did not file for a divorce," Arvind clarifies, saying the couple never met again.
Contrary to expectations, the Modi cult here isn't as aggressive as in other parts of the state. But when it comes to defending him on the question of the communal riots of 2002, the village speaks in one voice.
"Hindus and Muslims live together here. Nobody from either communities is capable of stoking riots. This is not the upbringing of those in Vadnagar that has never seen a riot," Mr Modi's 80-year-old childhood teacher Hiraben explains, sitting on the porch outside her house. "These are allegations made by the Congress. Nothing more, nothing less."
Even as demands for an apology from Mr Modi - since he was the Chief Minister - have made headlines over the years, Vadnagar backs their boy with the old adage: innocent until proven guilty.
"Has any court found any evidence against him? If he is guilty then he should apologise. But since he is not, then why say sorry? If he apologises in these circumstances, then it will only give the impression that he is guilty," Arvind insists.
If the 2007 polls were a "referendum of my rule" as Mr Modi had famously said, then the 2012 elections is his gateway to Delhi. Mr Modi may deny it. But in his town, the choice between Narendra Modi and Rahul Gandhi is a foregone conclusion.
Ask locals and they refer to another legend. Years ago, Mr Modi's horoscope was shown to an astrologer who predicted that he would either turn an ascetic or go on to become an "emperor".
Perhaps only a story. But Vadnagar has only one slogan, one appeal: CM to PM, Narendrabhai we are waiting for 2014.
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