“A Chai Tea Latte, please.”
Mahesh Muralidhar’s choice leaves me bemused as we place our order at Starbucks on Queen Street. The 43-year-old worked a gig at this central Auckland cafe while in college. He recalls his days as barista with such ardour, I expected a brew worthier of a coffee connoisseur, I guess. But Mahesh can be surprising that way.
He is one of the few candidates of Indian origin the National Party has fielded for the parliamentary elections this October. You would expect the politician in him to make the most of his lineage. But Mahesh is not the one to wear ethnicity on his sleeve.
“I am a modern Kiwi story,” he says, flashing a disarming smile, as I ask him how his Indian background sits with his diverse electorate in Auckland Central.
“I can remember a gentleman telling me when he heard me speak, and when I said my most formative years were in this city, and he said, ‘Yeah, you got me there!’.”
Mahesh is up against trailblazer incumbent Chloe Swarbrick from the Green Party. She bucked a Labour wave to score a historic win in 2020.
But Mahesh is already making waves as a serious challenger. Add to that National’s stellar performance in recent years - Nikki Kaye held the seat from 2008 to 2020 - and Auckland Central has the makings of an intriguing contest.
A successful tech entrepreneur, Mahesh was among the founding team of the popular graphic design platform Canva. His eyes light up as he tells me gleefully how he got Uber on board for one of his first start-ups in Australia, a job referral marketplace.
“I didn't have much money. So, all I could afford was a three-piece packet of Tim Tams. I went to the door [of their office] every day, and left these together with a sales proposal. And at the end of that week, they called me up and they said, ‘Okay, we will use your platform. But please stop coming and giving Tim Tams at the door’.”
Mahesh belongs to the southern Indian state of Kerala, but has been on the move since he was a teenager. He studied in Singapore and New Zealand; and worked in Japan and Australia before returning to Auckland to settle down, a city he calls home.
“I had a green card, I never took it. I have lived and worked abroad, but all along I was sure I would return to my home, New Zealand.”
Mahesh says the years he spent as a university student in Auckland Central, while also working two jobs, were the education he needed to understand the pulse of the area.
“Auckland Central is the gem of New Zealand. I'm biased, but I think economically it is a strong argument to make. If Auckland Central is not winning, New Zealand's not winning,” Mahesh points out, his lips pursed as he takes a pause.
“Two days ago, at Albert Street, I met one of the dairy owners attacked with a machete. It is frustrating we are not talking enough about it…Crime is up, we have a cost-of-living crisis.”
He is also talking about freeing up the city centre of traffic congestion and making it easier for people to travel in and out.
“People in central are really frustrated with all the road cones, the traffic rules…it takes 40 minutes to commute. When I grew up, it would take like 10 to 15 minutes.
The last two years, Mahesh has been mentoring start-up founders in Aotearoa, teaching college students and working with women in business.
“I think New Zealand needs incredible businesses and global businesses. And you need to start early on. I have an understanding of how to do that. And fortunately don't have income pressure.”
As Mahesh brews a hot contest in Auckland Central, his campaign is being keenly followed back home.
“My mom sends me messages every three, four days. Manu, please keep your feet on the ground, she keeps telling me. Stay humble,” Mahesh says.