The new Bengal tiger
There are two primary reasons for the Left Front's sweeping victory in the West Bengal assembly election this year: The lack of an organised and recognisable Opposition, and the charisma and popularity of state Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharya.
The pied piper of dreams of a resurgent state, Bhattacharya is a political icon.
A Bengali to the core, always clad in a dhoti and kurta, he is often described as the dynamic face of a new Bengal, a messiah of the masses.
A rediff.com guide to Brand Buddhadeb -- the man at the helm of the seventh consecutive Communist government in West Bengal.
Text: Indrani Roy Mitra | Photograph: AFP/Getty Images
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