The fierce one casts a spell

He is a man for all seasons with a basketful of causes. And his colour is ultra-red. Making his debut on the subcontiment’s political stage, chairman of the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist) Prachanda turned out to be the “media magnate” at the HT Leadership Summit. His press conference, held barely minutes after the joint session with Neil Kinnock, turned out to be a full-house affair. But the media thirsted for more. The television crew chased him for bytes even after the interface. They just wanted him to carry on — talk, talk and talk. Substance and reason. “He was very straight forward and that was sheer delight,” a journalist later said, trying to explain the Maoist legend’s appeal.

Kinnock wins over newshounds

The baron, who worked his way up from the coal mines, loved the Indian media. Neil Kinnock’s opener was a word of praise for our homegrown newshounds. He said the journalists here appealed to him more than those in the UK or in the US. “What I liked the most is that you are ready to question ideas unhesitatingly,” he said. The Western media, on the other hand, fall for short 15-word “quick bytes”, Baron Kinnock said. The pens faltered, as even some of the hardcore ones blushed with pleasure and well, swelled a wee bit with pride.

‘Peacefare’, not war on terror

Peace is the mantra. During a discussion on the “war on terror”, Kinnock said more undue emphasis had been laid on warfare than “peacefare” while dealing with the situation in Iraq. He said the phrase “war on terror” was “very dramatic, even melodramatic.” He said the human element in restoring democracy in Iraq had been understated and had to be changed.

Refugee on Pakistan

With Pakistan High Commissioner Aziz Ahmed Khan in the audience, President Karzai said, to much laughter from the audience, that he is “always careful talking about Islamabad when I am in Delhi and about Delhi when I am in Islamabad”. He, however, paid tribute to Pakistan and its people for its generosity in providing Afghan refugees a home. Karzai himself said he had lived as a refugee in Pakistan for several years after completing his studies in India and during the occupation of his country. Accompanied by 21 journalists from Afghanistan, Karzai spoke about the vibrant and free media in his own country. With 300 newspapers, 30 radio stations and as many as six independent private channel, Karzai said: “I love all aspects of the free media, other than when they criticize me, which they do everyday.”

Saving ‘Rambo Bush’

The lawyer in Rudy Giuliani was clearly evident at his talk on leadership at the second day of the Summit. Preferring not to stand behind the podium, the former deputy attorney general walked around the stage, speaking without notes. Later, taking questions from the audience, Giuliani came out on top with his response to a question that referred to President George W. Bush as ‘Rambo Bush’. “Your description is flippant and insulting,” he said, silencing the titters in the audience. President Bush “put us on offence against terrorism…some of his achievements haven’t been as appreciated as they should have been”. He pointed out the US hasn't been attacked since 9/11 because of some of the changes that Bush had the “courage to bring about”.

Afghan cape of hope

The unaffected charm of President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan came through during his address at the Summit. In response to a question by art expert Sunita Kohli on his cape, he said it was a traditional Afghan dress with the silk produced in Afghanistan and the tailoring done in the country itself. Asked by her if he would consider exporting it, he said, “I would like to export it for as many Benarsis that we have brought from India”. On the possibility of reconstructing the Bamiyan Buddhas, Karzai said, “Part of me says, build it back, but will a cement structure do justice?”

King Khan reigns

Although he wasn’t present at the Summit, actor Shah Rukh Khan was very evident during the session with filmmaker Karan Johar and former cricket captain Sourav Ganguly. Moderator Vir Sanghvi set the ball rolling in his introductory remarks on Johar. With reference to the many times he has interviewed Johar, Sanghvi said, “In many ways we’re like an old married couple, even more than him and Shah Rukh Khan”. Johar later said Shah Rukh was the “best actor in the world, and not because he’s allegedly married to me”. Replying to a query on how he felt being linked with the actor he clarified: “He’s blissfully straight; a happily married man with two children and this didn't come out of any heavy petting.”

(Compiled by Jatin Gandhi and Namita Bhandare)