Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay, author of Narendra Modi: The Man, The Times, is a self-ma de man.

He dropped out of college to pursue a career in the media. Since early 1 980s he has worked and written for several newspapers and magazines like The Eco nomic Times, The Hindustan Times, Outlook and The Statesman. He currently presents a weekly show A Page From History on Lok Sabha television which debates history and issues. He is also the author of The Demolition: India At The Crossroads published in 1994. When he took up the task to write on the G ujarat chief minister, Modi initially gave him the rare access but later withdre w. Nilanjan's authorised biography of the man of the moment turned into an unaut horised one. In an e-mail chat with rediff.com's Sheela Bhatt, Mukhopadhyay talks about Modi' s vision, his psyche and his future that seems to be intricately linked with the future of India. Click NEXT to read the fascinating and insightful interview... Image: Gujarat Chief Minister on the lawns of his palatial home in Gandhinagar

Has your understanding of Narendra Modi changed after you finished writing the b ook? What was it in the beginning and how has it changed as you wrote the book? A better way of putting it would be to say that my understanding of Narendra Mod i has evolved from the point I first thought of writing his biography to the poi nt that I completed writing it. My understanding of the man has continued even t hereafter. The rigorous research I put in, the amount of time that I spent interacting with him and people who knew him, and the quantum of thought that went into the exer cise, also enabled me to begin looking at things while standing in the shoes on Modi. One part of my mind developed the ability to think like Modi. By the time I comp leted writing the book, I developed a better appreciation of those attributes of Modi that first drew me to him. I also began to be jolted by those characterist ics of Modi with which I had disagreed even before embarking on writing the biog raphy. My question was what was your idea of the man when you thought of writing this b ook and what's your view on him, now? I had no contact with Modi from the time he became chief minister. My image of t he man was drawn from media write ups, television commentators and seminarists. The image was that of a villainous character from the world of Hindi films. I was not even sure if Modi would agree to meet me. My understanding of the man and his politics has not changed in the course of the writing of the book. I rem ain opposed to Hindu nationalist politics and did not agree with Modi when he to ld me that the minority community has to accept various Mahapurushs of this land -- meaning the majority -- as their own if they wished to be considered as Indi ans. But Modi is also a more of a flesh and blood person for me in the end. He chose to speak to me, then he decided to stop speaking to me. After the book was over, he again decided to speak but I am not sure how long he will continue doing so.

He has his own calculations and I do not want to speculate. But this makes it clear that Modi is an extremely calculative person. He was alw ays like this but has greater advantage now as the state machinery is available for him to know what his adversaries are up to. I hardly had any personal view o f Modi before I began writing the book. Now I can talk for hours on the man. Click NEXT to read further...

Image: Modi contemplates on the banks of the Ganga in his younger days

Is real Modi any different than his image in mind of the Indian people? Every person who is in public life has two personalities and Modi is no differen t. There is one persona which is for public projection and the other is the real ity within. But in Modi's case the gap between the two personalities is not so w ide. It is only within very closed groups that Modi is more amiable than in publ ic where he always projects a no-nonsense image. When you met Modi, during the writing of the book, was he concerned about the fi nal outcome in your book? Did he answer all your questions? What kind of questio ns did he try to avoid? Since Modi gave me access despite the biography being an unauthorised one, where the manuscript would not be shared with him. I had asked him very early if he h ad any expectations from the book. He had said he had none but hoped his image w ould not be damaged. I had said that the book would not get into character assassination and dissecti on but that the right to critically evaluate his policies and programmes would r emain mine. He answered most questions except those pertaining to the 2002 riots guiding me to use his statements made to various commissions and official inqui ries. Can you decode the Modi mystique for our readers? Like most political leaders, he is in this field because of political ambition a nd the desire to acquire power. But since politics is different from business, t he emphasis cannot be only on acquisition of power. How Modi has struck the bala nce between his primary goal and policies, programmes and actions which help him realise his ambitions, is the basic thrust of the book. Image: Modi with Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 2001 Give us choti choti baate bade aadmi ki. Many. For instance, he has always spent time, energy and resources on personal g rooming. His food habits remain simple and he is happy with himself. He is a vor acious collector of knowledge but remains steadfast in his views. Do you think he, indeed, gave a silent nod to the communal rioters after the God hra incident? The matter is still sub-judice and has been inquired by judicial commissions and

investigation teams assisted by well-equipped and professionally-trained office rs. Circumstantial evidence suggested that Modi did not act with the kind of pro mptness and sternness that was needed. There is also a consensus in the view tha t the events of 2002 benefited Modi politically and he became what he is today b ecause of the fallout of the Godhra carnage. Click NEXT to read further... Image: Modi with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh team in the 1980s 'Modi does not have friends because he does not need them How will you draw his psychological profile? Is he an autocrat? Is he insecure l ike most leaders are? He definitely is impatient with the views of others. In his personal planetary s pace, he is the main character and everybody else has to move in orbits that are determined by him. Modi has always been ambitious and like most leaders competi ng for preeminence, he remains insecure even after having reached a pinnacle. Of course he is an autocrat and does not like anyone having different views. He seeks suggestions from his subordinates only when he wants it. He does not like unsolicited views. His dislikes it most if people think they have become very bi g. He wants to dwarf everyone around him. Modi does not have friends because he does not need them. He has companions but they all have different roles in his life. If they stop being of use, he can cas t them away without batting an eyelid. Modi himself is the centre of his existen ce. No one can claim that they know every aspect of his life. He is probably one of the most ge because he wants to be seen he will never dilute this. How despotic satraps when looking tchers like me. opaque personalities and projects a very hard ima as the alpha male. That is his political USP and he scales this down when interacting with equally for allies is going to be fascinating for Modi wa

What was the turning point in Modi's life? The most important turning point in his life was when he decided to go away from home as a teenager and make a career that was different from his family occupat ion. Look at where his brothers have remained -- petty trade or small-time servi ce. This huge difference between his background and what he has become is becaus e of the bold step he took after school. Click NEXT to read further... What is this 'meet myself programme' of Modi when he goes into hiding? You can read about this in the book. This is when he had the time to 'disappear' incognito in the wilderness for several days for internal introspection. I thin k he draws a lot of strength from within when he is all by himself. Is he a successful administrator? Really? He is an efficient manager -- a very good team leader and this has resulted in G ujarat being among the better administered states in India during his tenure.

Is he really Mr Clean? I did not find evidence of Modi amassing personal wealth. Click NEXT to read further... Image: Modi when he was a RSS pracharak Image: Modi during the ekta yatra in early 1990s 'I did not find evidence of Modi amassing personal wealth' 'He has pre-fixed views on religious minorities What are his views on Indian Muslims and other minorities? He has pre-fixed views on the issue of religious minorities and believes that mi norities need to adhere with the beliefs and value systems of the majority commu nity. Modi says that the idea that Gujarat has become more communal in the cours e of his tenure is a wrong idea spread by people who are opposed to the state an d its people. Kindly give us two favourite anecdotes that you came across while collecting inf ormation for the book? When he was not chief minister, I often interacted with Modi in the 1990s. There was a time (he had been banished from Gujarat then) when he displayed child-lik e enthusiasm at a new digital diary I had acquired. That was the first time I sa w the human trait of his personality from such close quarters. The other anecdote was during my research when I was shown a picture of Modi sta nding up like a common person and getting his measurements taken for a kurta. We decided not use the picture because it would be a violation of his personal spa ce. http://www.rediff.com/news/slide-show/slide-show-1-modi-is-considered-either-a-m ass-murderer-or-a-messiah/20130412.htm#1 Do you think Modi is, what we call, 'prime ministerial material'? That is for the people of India to say and express in the elections. As far as I am concerned, I exercise my right to disagree with him and reiterate what I hav e already said that Modi pursues divisive policies and if he becomes prime minis ter he will promote an idea of India that will be at variance with mine. Do you think he has started feeling that in 2014 he may be a resident of 7, Race Course Road? That is his ambition and he believes that he has a strong chance of becoming pri me minister. Do you think if at all he becomes prime minister he will change face of India? H ow? Of course he will change the face of India. My only problem is that the new face will not be to my liking.

Click NEXT to read further... 'Modi is not very religious'

Who is Modi's icon? Is he religious? Modi says that has been greatly influenced by Swami Vivekananda. He spent a lot time at the Ramkrishna Mission when he went away from home as a youngster. He is not religious in the ritualistic way though he fasts twice a year during Navrat ras. I have written about this in detail in the book. Do have a look at this fas cinating aspect of his persona. What are his likes and dislikes? On an impertinent note, I will say Modi likes people agreeing with him and disli kes if they do not. What is he afraid of? What makes him nervous? Modi fears losing power and the spectre of defeat and political isolation makes him nervous. But he is a hard fighter and does not give up in moments of adversi ty. Who are the members of Modi's core group? Who is his advisor or advisors? Modi devolves specific tasks to different people. Barring him, no one has a comp lete knowledge and vision of what he is doing. Can you explain what makes him so charismatic? In a sentence -- the belief in his abilities, the confidence he exudes and the p ower he exhibits. People like a strong-willed and decisive political leader like they once plugged for Indira Gandhi. Click NEXT to read further... Image: Modi performs a puja at a temple town of Ambaj How much does he spend on himself? Like, on his kurtas, watches and travel? He would be spending a huge amount on himself for his clothes, his watches, his pens, and spectacle frames but he also gets a lot of these as gifts from admirer s and designers who obviously must not be billing him for the goods provided. Modi always liked to look nice and spent much more time in grooming that his pee rs in the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh. Others mostly had that just-out-of-bed lo ok, but Modi was always the immaculate dresser. He initially wore white trousers and short white kurtas. His clothing evolved with time and the name of Modi kurta was given after he bec ame chief minister. He giggles like a child when talking about this -- mind you he does not blush, so there is no embarrassment. He probably feels very nice -after all a boy born in a nondescript lower-middle-class family who grew up in a n overgrown village, has made it purely on his own and has clothes named after h im. Wow!

If anyone says she or he will not like this -- then they are obviously not being truthful. Modi's favourite texture is linen and it does not come cheap. I do no t know how much his clothes cost but the few items I bought from Jade Blue where most of his kurta pyajamas are made, were among the most expensive clothes I ha ve ever bought. But they are good and we do not regret that. When he was balding a few years ago , Modi got hair transplants done. His beard is rarely shabby but he also has a c onsistently rugged look. Modi knows that he has a good fan following among women and does everything to cultivate them. Click NEXT to read further... Image: Modi reviews preperations for 2013 Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors Summi t Image: Modi addresses his supporters during a rally in Dahod district

Does Modi love anybody in his personal life? Did he share anything about his lov e life? He loves himself. He shares work tasks with most and has a little private space which he does not want anyone to intrude. I did not probe that because it is aga inst my ethos. I have written about his marriage but that is pure research -- pu t together from what is available in the public domain. I have written why I made no effort to meet his wife. I do not think it would ha ve served the purpose of writing a politically insightful and good biography. Can you help us know Modi's weaknesses and strengths that will make or ruin his chances to become the top leader of the country? Modi has often been in too much of a hurry and he is currently displaying this t rait. It could go against him and prevent from realising his ambition. In the ru n up to the next election, he has to calibrate his initiatives and assertion to ensure that he reaches the crescendo at the precise moment of necessity and befo re. What surprised you the most about Modi? The fact that despite having written so critically of him in the past, he allowe d me to write the biography, gave access to himself, agreed with the manuscript not being shown before publication and made no effort to prevent it despite know ing that several parts of it would be critical of him. Lastly, tell us what's exclusive in this book to spend Rs 495 on it? Everything is exclusive. But most importantly, my vision and approach to the boo k -- that is, I began the book with no pre-conceived notion in my mind. At the e nd Modi will be a living character in the midst of each reader of the book. It w

ill be money well spent -- that much I can guarantee. Agreeing or disagreeing with my views is g the book, I was clear that it will not an -- even me -- have views on him. Some him. But there is no Indian who can say a different matter. When I began writin be an opinion piece on Modi. Every Indi like and love him others hate or detest they are indifferent to him.

Modi is considered either a mass murderer or a messiah. I tried to find the trut h in between and I have succeeded. This is a book which a lot of people on eithe r side with or dislike. But there will be more numbers of people who will get to know Modi because my book does not come any with ideological baggage. Click NEXT to read further...