Crafting a New Look

Haji Mohammed Ayub, an 80-year-old mechanic who repairs broken-down sewing machines in the north Indian city of Lucknow, considers himself a devout Muslim. Squatting in a corner of the room cluttered with rusty sewing machines where he has worked for the past 60 years, Ayub's eyes light up as he recalls his trip to the holy city of Mecca in 1987. Yet, when asked for whom he's likely to vote in the next elections, Ayub says he's leaning toward a candidate many Muslims would strongly disapprove of: Atal Bihari Vajpayee, India's Hindu-nationalist Prime Minister. "It doesn't matter if a man is...