"I am a fan of Lalu. I love his rare style," gushed the Bollywood "Dream Girl".
To which, Lalu Prasad retorted: "Unhe mohabbat ho gayee hain (She has fallen in love with me)."
Like she did in some of her films, Hema Malini could be said to be playing a double role.
On the one hand, she is one of the BJP's star campaigners in the ongoing campaign for the third and final round of polls Feb 23 and "exposing" 15 years of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) "misrule".
On the other, she doesn't hide her admiration for the Bihar strongman and his rustic ways.
"I watch his interviews on TV because he speaks very differently," she said.
And then comes her parting shot: this time the RJD would be unseated and the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance would rule Bihar.