“I inherited my father's responsibilities, not privileges… …but what I learnt from him was how to interact with people and deal with their problems effectively and efficiently”

When his father Biju Patnaik died in 1997, Naveen gave up his jet-setting life and shifted base from Delhi to Odisha to take on his political mantle. As chief minister since 2000, he has brought about an economic and social transformation of the state

- RAJ CHENGAPPA

NAVEEN PATNAIK, 74

Before he joined politics in 1997, Naveen Patnaik was known more for the parties he hosted than for party work. Pappu, as Naveen was nicknamed, was then part of Delhi’s elite jet-set gang. He showed no inclination towards taking on the mantle of his father, Biju Patnaik, who was known for his derring-do, both as a skilled pilot (he ran an airline) and in politics where he was twice the chief minister of Odisha.

Naveen was the youngest of three siblings, and his sister, Gita, an author of repute, recalls that he was a sophisticate with great interest in art and culture. He had opened a boutique, ‘Pyschedelhi’, in the national capital and his clientele included the Beatles. Naveen lived in his father’s sprawling bungalow on Aurangzeb Road in Lutyens’ Delhi, where he penned several coffee-table books. It included one on Indian royalty that he had researched with Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, who not only travelled with him but also helped edit the book. When in Europe, he schmoozed around with the glitterati that included Mick Jagger and the British aristocracy. He had no interest in politics, but Gita recalls that Naveen always exhibited a deep sense of social justice.