Nafisa Ali at the Congress office on Saturday. Picture by Pradip Sanyal

If Mamata Banerjee can sell herself as the guardian of the grassroots, what is stopping Nafisa Ali?

No number of perfectly groomed eyebrows raised in disbelief can shift this woman’s 1,001-watt smile, despite little faith — even within the party — that the socialite-activist-actress-swimming champ-beauty queen will be able to scratch Mamata on home turf.

Nafisa Ali will be riding the Congress ticket from Calcutta South, taking on none other than the Trinamul chief herself. But when Delhi’s Page Three dahling paid a formal visit to the Calcutta Congress office on Saturday afternoon, it was clear that her armour is in place. Wiping her brow with a red corner of her spotless white (not too new) Bengal cotton sari, Ali was quick to make a stand on her much-discussed rusty Bengali. While admitting that “fluency chole gechhe” when it comes to the language, her “DNA analysis is Bengali”, she insists. Having grown up in Calcutta, she stressed: “My heart is Bengali and every drop of my blood is Bengali”.

Ali, considered a political greenhorn despite years pledged in allegiance to the party, is quick to pay respect to her daunting opponent. “I used to call Mamata ‘bon’,” said Ali. But that was only till her rival “flip-flopped” in her ideological position. “If she hadn’t given strength to the NDA alliance it wouldn’t have come to power,” said the activist who has tried to make a mark in riot-torn Gujarat. “She compromised on her ethics to stay in power… That is frightening.” Mamata’s alliance with BJP looks set to become Ali’s refrain: “We need to stop Mamata from bringing communal elements into Bengal,” she said. The two cases brought against her by the Gujarat government are what she cites as catalyst for the plunge into the political ring.

But Calcutta, she confesses, was not her choice of constituency. “In all sincerity, I live in Delhi, and I wanted to fight from there. But this is politics, and people stand from all different places.” A long discussion with Pranab Mukherjee is what it took to convince her to stand, though she is still “waiting for an official announcement” to start campaigning.

But promises — in a mix of Bengali and English — have already been made. “I have come back to work towards a progressive Bengal… Calcutta has been left behind while other metros are growing in strength. Bengal doesn’t deserve to be left behind.” Then, on to the larger issues: “I want to fight for progress, women, employment, and the good health of the people.” Back to: “Why should Hyderabad be the IT capital of the country? If young people become involved in this, why shouldn’t Calcutta become the IT city?” And the final word: “If in one year I don’t perform, I would rather resign”.

The woman regarded as being part of the popular-for-being-popular-set is not trying to hide her antecedents. “I don’t want people to forget my glamourous image. My whole life is open, for everyone to see. But I am not a glamourous person. I don’t wear fancy clothes. I am a grassroots level worker,” clarifies Ali, who counts amongst her achievements extensive work with HIV/AIDS.

The one thing voters can be sure of: even if Nafisa Ali goes down without a political trace, she will do so with a smile firmly in place.