I think everybody — even among his most trenchant critics — will concede that Prime Minister (PM) Narendra Modi is an orator par excellence. Words, phrases, the apt quote, evocative vocabulary often enriched by local flavour is a gift he is born with. Some people say that he uses a teleprompter, but even if he does for certain occasions, the number of speeches he gives in one day itself, is proof enough that his talents as an orator transcend the aid of a teleprompter.
Earlier, the star speaker in the BJP, who could mesmerise audiences with his use of humour, irony, facts, poetry, and turn of phrase, was Atal Behari Vajpayee. I recall when he came to Cyprus as PM in 2002, where I was the high commissioner, his first programme was a speech to the Indian diaspora, numbering thousands of young professionals in the IT sector. Vajpayee was in frail health.
To come down from the Prime Ministerial plane, a hydraulic lift had to be used, since his knees were giving trouble. When we reached his suite, I reminded him that in the convention hall of the hotel, the Indian diaspora was waiting for him. I still remember his asking me: “ Will I be expected to address them?” I replied that they had been waiting for hours just for that.
He was visibly tired, but as we approached the venue, we could hear rousing slogans of “ ”, and Atal visibly perked up. He received an uproarious welcome, and then, notwithstanding his fatigue, spoke for 40 minutes, keeping the audience spell bound,.
