He struggled to oppose something he did not really wish to oppose. But being a passionate speaker, he opposed the talk of Super Computers passionately. He knew he sounded on the losing side of the 20th century when India under Rajiv ji was preparing to welcome the 21st century and effectively articulating a youthful nation’s aspirations.

The crowds that normally cheered even his silence were cold to Vajpayee’s diatribe against Uncle Chips. He could see the onset of a drastic change in the way he had known India. A restless Advani decided to take charge of the narrative and resorted to the time-tested politics of polarisation, albeit in a more organised and better publicised manner.