A tryst with the youngest statesman

bangalore: for 40 young achievers, it were 90 seconds of special time with the man (tony blair) who is wholeheartedly described by one and all as ''the youngest world statesman'' and ''upcoming, dynamic world leader''. the ''young achievers'', identified by the confederation of indian industry, had a half-an-hour closed-door interaction with the british pm, with three of them on video-conference from london, bhubaneshwar and hyderabad.''it is definitely an honour to meet him. he is the head of a powerful nation,'' ace spinner anil kumble told the sunday times of india. most achievers echoed this feeling of awe. racing driver narain kartikeyan, who suggested to blair that formula one racing would be a good industry, said: ''he agreed. it's very encouraging that a man of his position is so willing to listen.'' kumble, kar, kartikeyan, hindi actor aamir khan, cricketer sadagopan ramesh, ibm md abraham thomas, odissi dancer surupa sen, mindtree research labs head sharmila saha were among those present to meet blair. lagaan star aamir khan set the ball rolling, describing to blair the ways and life of bollywood. ''i don't think i am an achiever. in fact my only achievement is having read all the harry potter novels to my children,'' he stated in a lighter vein.