L K Advani once told rediff that Vajpayee remonstrated with him after the former told the BJP convention in Mumbai in 1995 that the latter would be the party's candidate for prime minister in the 1996 general election.

"Aap ne mujhse poocha bhi nahin!" Vajpayee exclaimed.

"Kya aap maante agar hum ne aap se poocha hota," Advani replied.

Though rumours swirl about their crumbling relationship, the Advani-Vajpayee combo has endured, perhaps only natural in a relationship that goes back half a century. As Vajpayee told Goel he never forgets the day his party was handed a humiliating defeat in an election, after which Advani and he went to see a Hindi movie!