Coffee, tea and Annie

23 October,2009 06:50 AM IST |   |  Tinaz Nooshian

They are among thousands of party workers, unseen, unheard, but necessary for a candidate's win


They are among thousands of party workers, unseen, unheard, but necessary for a candidate's win

Congress worker, Vinod L Nag
Politics demands thinking on your feet. So, when mobile phones weren't allowed in the counting centre, Congress worker Vinod L Nag hid his, under his shoe. Abuse doesn't go well with gizmos, Nag admits, going, "Tch... disconnect ho raha hai," just as he is spreading good cheer about Colaba MLA Annie Shekhar winning by 7,500 votes.

Chai paani: Congress worker Vinod L Nag, who closely worked with Colaba MLA Annie Shekhar, will be a busy man after yesterday's victory. Now, he plans to hand over the supervision of his family tea centre to his brother. pic/Nimesh Dave

Having worked closely with Mummy, as Shekhar is called, Nag is an old hand who's worked with the Congress for 35 years, starting off as an eager seven year-old sticking up party posters. Now, Petroleum Minister Murli Deora and MP son Milind are on his speed dial. Milind helped his son get into a south Mumbai school. Politics is about serving the people, but apni seva bhi ho jati hai, he admits candidly.

It's been a gruelling last month, with campaigning made a little easy by the faith that they'd make it to the finishing line. The Opposition raised the price hike issue, but progress doesn't come for free. "Pakaa pakaaya khana sabko khana hai.
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Congress paved the way for the development," he claims about a party he says doesn't resort to goonda-gardi. Hailing from UP, five generations of Nag's family have lived here. So what if they speak chaste Bhojpuri? "I live in a Gujaratiu00a0 building, my grandfather was born at St George Hospital. We run two shops in the city's oldest district. Who says we are outsiders?" he asks no one in particular.

This afternoon there's serious work to be done. "Haar se zyaada, jeet ke baad kaam hota hai," he says. Elections mean he dedicates most of his day to networking with residents of his ward, checking on what he calls basic "machhar-paani ki samasya".

Vimal Tea House, the 25 year-old chai centre his family runs in Bazaar Gate, will be supervised by his brother instead. What's the plan for today? you ask. A wave of disappointment clouds the wide grin marred by little else but gutka stains. A rule about not bursting crackers will take the thrill out of the vijayi juloos, Nag laments.

An elderly man hawking second-hand bermudas at a roadside stall outside Dwarkadas Lane shouts, "Aye Vinod, Annie aayi?" He raises his hand way above his head in a victorious wave, the smile back in place.
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Mumbai News Congress worker Vinod L Nag