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No starry campaign, yet
No starry campaign, yet, Amitabh Bachchan, NTR Jr and Balakrishna to campaign. Film stars’ flirtation with politics is not new. But so far it has not been successful in north India, as much as in the south
Film stars’ flirtation with politics is not new. But so far it has not been successful in north India, as much as in the south. People in the State and Tamil Nadu have voted matinee idols like NTR and MGR to power.
But in the north, big names like Amitabh Bachchan, Rajesh Khanna, Dharmendra and Govinda got into politics with great fanfare, but only to leave it halfway. Will the current celebrities manage to convert their star appeal for the long haul in the heat and dust of politics or fade out as quickly as they came?
Bollywood
A plethora of Bollywood stars are trying their luck in 2014. They include veterans like Shatrughan Sinha (Patna Sahib), Hema Malini (Mathura), Vinod Khanna (Gurdaspur), Kirron Kher (Chandigarh), Paresh Rawal (Ahmedabad East), who are contesting on the BJP ticket.
Congress is fielding Raj Babbar (Ghaziabad), Ravi Kishan (Jaunpur) and Nagma (Meerut) and AAP Gul Panag in Chandigarh. Director Mahesh Manjrekar (Mumbai North-West) is contesting as MNS nominee. Rakhi Sawant and Kamaal R Khan are in the fray as Independents.
There are no Bollywood star campaigners. Amitabh has tweeted that he won’t canvass for any party. Superstar Shahrukh is to follow suit. There was a controversy with poster of Aamir Khan supporting the AAP. However, he wrote to the Election Commission that he was not supporting the party. As promos of his show ‘Satyameva Jayate’ will focus on elections, it is likely to clear Aamir’s stand. Although Salman Khan met ‘Na Mo’, he is unlikely to canvass.
Tollywood
Modi fever has plagued the film stars in the State. During his visit to the city, stars, including Nagarjuna and Lakshmi Manchu, made a beeline to his hotel. Rumours have it that Brahmanandam is likely to meet him and join BJP. With Nagarjuna announcing that he will neither join any party nor campaign, it will be interesting which actor will be their star campaigner.
The TDP has always attracted star power. It has the likes of NTR Jr and Balakrishna to campaign. However, NTR Jr is miffed, with his father Harikrishna being sidelined.
He is unlikely to campaign. With his film ‘Legend’ running with a ‘hit’ talk, it is likely that Balakrishna will canvass. Comedians Ali and Venu Madhav may join him.
Galla Aruna Kumari and her son Galla Jayadev, who joined TDP recently, are related to superstar Mahesh Babu. The question is, will he canvass for them?
Congress is banking on ‘Mega Star’ K Chiranjeevi. It would be a tough task for him to bail out the party in Seemandhra, where it is not even finding candidates to field.
