Will the Bollywood brigade be involved in your campaign?
No such plans as yet, it is all being planned. I am sure they will come. People who have joined the Congress, people who are secular minded, they will be there. They are welcome to come. In a campaign one must involve everyone, you must rope in as many people as possible.

There is this whole focus on the Congress party's nominations for youth. You, Sachin Pilot, Rahul Gandhi, Jyotiraditya Scindia. Is there any kind of networking among you guys?
In fact Sonia Gandhi held a meeting about a month ago, maybe more, of young leaders around the country. 10 to 15 people attended the meeting, Pilot, Scindia and I were there. That gave us all a platform to meet each other, to share views, someone had a rural perspective, I shared an urban perspective, so it's happening. We definitely got to meet each other, we've got to understand what each of us stands for, and we are understanding how to think our campaign together.

Is Rahul Gandhi part of this exercise too?
His candidature has just been announced so it will take time, but I think it is definitely part of the Congress strategy.

Do you know him? What do you think of him?
Yes, I have met him. I was very impressed with him. He will make a very fine candidate for several reasons. He understands the old and new India, will mobilise a lot of the young crowd. Today in my meetings I find the youth are really excited that Rahul Gandhi has decided to join politics. It is creating a very positive buzz.

Also see: Battle in The Desert

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