The Canadian Parvasi - Issue 90

The International News Weekly INDIA
April 26, 2019 | Toronto 10
India elections: Stars foretell a rosy picture but with tinted glasses!
Continued from page 01
In the past, some top
stars like ‘Tragedy King’
Dilip Kumar, ‘Pride of
Actors’ Shivaji Ganesan,
Vyjyanthimala and Nargis
played lacklustre roles in
politics as members of the
Rajya Sabha. On the other
hand, actress and Rajya
Sabha member Shabana
Azmi, also a formidable social
activist, has refused to
be sucked into the muddle
of politics.
Though powerful influencers
are few and far
between, celebrities who
refused to toe the party
line and continued holding
strong individual
views on political issues
were ‘Evergreen Hero’ Dev
Anand and playback singer
Kishore Kumar. Both
dared to speak against the
Emergency (1975-77) imposed
by the Congress government.
Just as Bollywood actors
have transited from
films to politics, Tamil
Nadu is no stranger to
on-screen heroes transforming
into successful
politicians. The big names
include M K Karunanidhi
and Jayalalitha, both
of who shaped the state’s
politics for over three decades.
Kamal Hassan, south
mega star, who launched
his political party Makkal
Needhi Maiam (People’s
Justice Centre) early last
year, is drawing huge
crowds. The masses are
ecstatic and going into a
frenzy seeing the mustachioed
megastar step onto
the stage. Although not
contesting, he has fielded
candidates and is campaigning
for them.
The phenomenon of actors
entering politics has
also been true to Karnataka
and Andhra Pradesh.
N T Rama Rao served as
chief minister of Andhra
Pradesh between 1983-1994.
Cine stars M G Ramachandran
and Chiranjeevi, who
had an electrifying presence
in Telugu films, were
other successful actorsturned
politicians.
It was the Atal Bihari
Vajpayee regime (1999-
2004) that provided a stellar
show with the entry of
Bollywood villains-turnedheroes
Shatrughan Sinha
and Vinod Khanna joining
the BJP. Both were elevated
to the post of ministers
in the Council of Ministers.
Hema Malini too first
campaigned for BJP candidate
Vinod Khanna in 1999
and officially joined the
party in 2004. She served
as an MP in Rajya Sabha
and in the 2014 LS elections
defeated Chaudhary
Charan Singh’s grandson
and Rashtriya Lok Dal
candidate Jayant Chaudhary
from Mathura, Uttar
Pradesh. She is re-contesting
from Mathura.
With an increase in
celebrity activism, BJP is
once again aimed at pursuing
film stars after a similar
experiment paid off in
2014 on fielding Bhojpuri
actor and singer Manoj Tiwari
Bengali singer Babul
Supriyo, and actors Paresh
Rawal (not contesting) and
Kirron Kher.
A new lease of life has
been added to the polls
with Bollywood stars Sunny
Deol and Moushumi
Chatterjee, Bhojpuri singers
and actors Ravi Kishen
and Dinesh Lal Yadav
Nirahua, the bhangra pop
and Sufiana singer Hans
Raj Hans, and a name synonymous
with salons and
hair styling Jawed Habib
joining the BJP.
Those siding with the
Congress include, television
actor and Bigg Boss
11 winner Shilpa Shinde
and model and Bigg Boss
11 contestant Arshi Khan.
Even as colour and gaiety
is added to the great
tamasha that Indian politics
has become, Professor
Shyam Saran admits that
celebrity presence does influence
voters.
However, he adds, “It’s
also a big responsibility on
their part. Getting noticed
is only the first step towards
jump-starting their
political career. Citizens
can no way benefit from a
celebrity-turned-politician
if the person has nothing
substantial to bring to the
table.”
The art of wooing wellknown
faces from the Indian
cinema began with the
Congress in the 1980s. Bollywood
actor Sunil Dutt
set a precedent how reel
life hero can be loved and
admired in real life. Unlike
some actors, for him, politics
was not a fallback career
option. He established
a connect with the electorate
and went on to become
member of the Lok Sabha
five times.
Similarly, ‘Angry
Young Man’ Amitabh
Bachchan entered politics
around the same time to
support his friend Rajiv
Gandhi, then prime minister
of India.
He contested on Congress
ticket and won from
the Allahabad (now Prayagraj)
constituency. But
disgusted with the cesspool
politics, quit midway
through his term in Parliament.
Elected from Mumbai
North in 2004, Govinda
faced lot of criticism the
very next year for his inaccessibility
by people of
his constituency during
the Mumbai floods. He too
quit midterm and returned
to films.
The heart-throb of millions,
‘He-Man’ Dharmendra
won the 2004 General
Elections on a BJP ticket
from Bikaner in Rajasthan.
Soon, he realised that
politics was not his cup of
lassi (butter milk, a popular
drink among the Punjabi
community). Locals
inserted an advertisement
in a newspaper inquiring
about their ‘missing’ politician,
who never visited
the constituency after winning!
‘Kaka’ Rajesh Khanna,
the first superstar of Bollywood,
who starred in 15
consecutive hit films (1969
to 1971), still an unbroken
record, campaigned for the
Congress at the behest of
Rajiv Gandhi in 1984. He
fought the election from
New Delhi constituency,
losing to BJP’s L K Advani
by a narrow margin, but
in a by-election in 1992,
defeated fellow actor Shatrughan
Sinha. By the time
his tenure came to an end,
Khanna had lost interest
in active politics. He continued
to campaign for the
party until 2012 Punjab Assembly
elections.
As celebrity campaigners
are gung-ho for political
parties, the tempo of
the election beat has gone
up many notches in this
sweltering heat.