Then and now: Narendra Modi, Sonia Gandhi, LK Advani, AB Vajpayee and more (2024)

New Delhi,ISSUE DATE: Dec 25, 2017 | UPDATED: Jul 16, 2018 14:31 IST

L.K. Advani, Atal Bihari Vajpayee & Bhairon Singh Shekhawat

His time never came, it seems, even though his Rath Yatra altered the course of India's history. In this picture from Pratibha Advani's archives, circa 1951, Advani stands behind Vajpayee and Shekhawat. Vajpayee went on to become india's prime minister, and Shekhawat was Rajasthan chief minister three times, as well as the vice-president of the country.

Narendra Modi

In the 1970s, Narendra Modi became a full-time pracharak for the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, first in Gujarat and later in Delhi. In the past four decades, Modi has risen to tower over every other politician within his party and outside by building a robust brand for himself, inured to every insult and criticism.

Sonia Gandhi

From the reclusive Gandhi bahu and reluctant politician to leading the Congress to both victory and defeat and working to make way for her son as the party boss, Sonia Gandhi has transformed herself from an ordinary Italian to a powerful Indian. She can no longer be ruffled by questions about her nationality and has grown accustomed to being complimented on her style. As the longest serving Congress president, Sonia has surprised everyone with her endurance and restraint.

Arun Jaitley

In 1974, Arun Jaitley, then an ABVP leader, became president of the Delhi University students' union. But it was only after the Emergency that the lawyer turned politician too. A part of the ruling triumvirate today, the current finance minister is the driving force behind the Goods & Services Tax.

Nitish Kumar

In the 1970s, a young Nitish participated in the Bihar movement led by socialist leader Jayaprakash Narayan. He has now held the reins of the state for 4,000 days and counting, with the BJP, without it, and back again. The very mahagathbandhan he got into with Lalu Prasad and the Congress to hand the BJP a spectacular defeat in 2015 became too knotty for him to handle. Hence his exit, this July.

Ambika Soni

Groomed by Indira Gandhi, Ambika made her political debut in the '70s and she stood out as the spirited woman who shared the dais with Sanjay Gandhi. Talks of her resignation and tussles within the Punjab Congress have ensured she continues to be in the news.

Lalu Prasad Yadav

President of the Patna University Students' Union, Lalu was arrested during JP's Bihar Andolan. The young radical became India's youngest MP at 29 and went on to forge a social revolution in Bihar. As CM, he was the man who halted Advani's rath yatra in 1991. The fodder scam put brakes on his own political journey, but the RJD supremo soldiers on, with or without a mahagathbandhan.

Sitaram Yechury

He and Prakash Karat cut their political teeth at Delhi's Jawaharlal Nehru University where Yechury was elected president of the Students' Federation of India in 1976. Now the current general secretary of the Communist Party of India (CPI-M), he continues to steer the Left's fast depleting legacy, reduced as it is to ruling just one state.

Digvijaya Singh

His first wife, Asha Singh died in 2013 after which the Congress veteran and Madhya Pradesh strongman married journalist Amrita Rai in 2015. Now sidelined by the Congress leadership, Singh is on a 3,300-km Narmada Yatra attracting the attention of the party workers as well as the media.

Mamata Banerjee

Her defeat of veteran Communist leader Somnath Chatterjee in Jadavpur in the 1984 Lok Sabha poll was perhaps a precursor to the 2011 assembly election. In that year, Trinamool Congress overturned 34 years of Left rule and Mamata became CM. A force to reckon with in the country's politics today, could it be Didi for PM in 2019?

Jyotiraditya Scindia

In the picture above from 1980, Jyotiraditya Scindia has his hand on his father Madhavrao Scindia's shoulder-unaware of how soon he would have to inherit the mantle. The young royal is part of Rahul Gandhi's team for the future, and the face of the Congress in Madhya Pradesh.

Sushma Swaraj

Her political career began with the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad, the youth wing of the BJP. By 1977, at age 25, Sushma Swaraj had become the youngest Cabinet minister in Haryana. A top elocutionist in school, the current external affairs minister has carried the oratory to her politics.

Mirwaiz Umar Farooq

Following the assassination of his father Maulvi Farooq, Umar Farooq was anointed Mirwaiz at the young age of 17 in 1990. The separatist leader has been placed under house arrest following protests against the US recognising Jerusalem as Israel's capital. In June, Gautam Gambhir had slammed him for his happy tweet after Pakistan won a match against India.

M. Karunanidhi

Six decades in politics, five terms as the chief minister, and a successful career as a writer. Few can rival Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader Muthuvel Karunanidhi's achievements. This rare photo reveals the eyes behind his trademark dark glasses. It was only this November, at age 93, that he changed his spectacles after 46 years.

Kumar Mangalam Birla

Kumar Mangalam is a fourth generation member of the Birla family. For more than 150 years, the Birla family has been a major player in Indian business. Along with the Tatas, they have historically been one of the leading industrial houses with close political ties dating back to the Independence struggle.

Amitabh Bachchan

From the angry young man of the '70s to the host of Kaun Banega Crorepati, Amitabh Bachchan is a one-man industry. Now 75, the Big B continues to lend his baritone voice to a variety of campaigns, be it for Gujarat tourism or the current one against tuberculosis.

A.R. Rahman

He took the music world by storm in 1992 with music for the Tamil film Roja. Since then, awards and accolades, including the Padma Shri and the Oscar, have steadily come his way. Rahman has composed music for lyrics in several languages, but the Mozart of Madras admits he forgets the words during concerts.

Lata Mangeshkar

For someone who began working at the age of 13, Lata Mangeshkar has had a long and illustrious seven-decade-long career in music. Having sung thousands of songs in Hindi and other regional languages, she is truly a 'Bharat Ratna'. Lata, who turned 88 this year, has lent her voice to actresses across three generations-from Madhubala to Madhuri Dixit Nene.

Sunil Gavaskar

The original Little Master broke most records during his time at the crease, first to 10,000 runs, first to 30 centuries. But more importantly, he was the first to make Indians believe their team could be world beaters. And Sunny led from the front, first man at the crease, braving the heat.

Imran Khan

The fastest bowler in the world, arguably the best allrounder in the 1980s, the golden age of allrounders, the man who led Pakistan to a World Cup win at 40, and the man who now feels he's the one to lead the nation at a turbulent time in its history.