Why Agnimitra Paul is emerging as BJP’s Bengal dark horse CM contender

From designing costumes and personal wardrobes for Bollywood stars Sridevi, Mithun Chakraborty and Kay Kay Menon, to being the dark horse to become the next chief minister of West Bengal, firebrand leader Agnimitra Paul’s journey has been nothing short of extraordinary.

Right from her days designing clothes in films like Koi Mere Dil Se Pooche and Via Darjeeling, and for celebrities of Kolkata, Mumbai and several NRIs, Paul has been a name to reckon with in the fashion industry. She has designed for the Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2013 and a year before that, received a letter of appreciation from former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton who was gifted shawls and blankets designed by her.

And while she started her own fashion label “Inga” across many cities in India, Paul decided to take the plunge into politics and joined Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2019, hoping to redesign Bengal politics. And now, as the BJP celebrates its historic win in the state, her name is again being spoken of highly in the higher echelons of the party.

The Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) from Asansol Dakshin constituency first became chief of the party’s Mahila Morcha soon after she joined the BJP and is known to have organised self-defence training workshops for women in 23 districts. Thereafter, she entered the West Bengal assembly for the first time in 2021 after defeating Trinamool Congress (TMC) candidate Saayoni Ghosh.

In January this year, she was appointed vice-president of the BJP in West Bengal after serving as the general secretary. Defeating TMC’s Tapas Banerjee, Paul won in Asansol Dakshin with a margin of over 40,000 votes. According to BJP functionaries, Paul will be an ideal chief minister candidate if the party wants to replace Mamata Banerjee with a woman candidate of its own.

The 51-year-old is a daughter of Asansol, West Bengal, having studied in Loreto Convent, Asansol, and then moving to Kolkata post marriage. She started designing clothes and first shot to fame when she designed for Sridevi. Gradually, she made it to the top rung of designers in the city from her spacious studio in a heritage building next to Maddox Square, home to one of the biggest Durga Pujas in the state. She mostly designed exquisite ethnic wear and gave a new twist to Bengali ensembles like dhoti-punjabi. A career woman who prioritised her home as well, she has been a doting mother to her two sons.

People close to her say she is a helpful, humble and simple person. Paul has always harboured an interest in politics and said she would take the plunge when she felt she was ready. Glamorous and an excellent conversationalist, she was a regular on the Page 3 circuit. Despite being a part of the fashion industry, Paul was never seen doing late nights and friends said she preferred to just attend an event and get back home quickly to be with her family.

But with power comes responsibility and if she gets the nod from the BJP high command who are also looking into names like Mamata-slayer Suvendu Adhikari, state president Samik Bhattacharya and actress turned politician Roopa Ganguly, who played Draupadi in BR Chopra’s epic TV series Mahabharat, Paul will most certainly be involved in late-night meetings as she bids to give a new look to Bengal politics.