Advani with Mohan Babu: enemy's enemyAfter him, the deluge. In 1983, N.T. Rama Rao, NTR to fans and followers, led his Telugu Desam Party (TDP), then less than a year old, to a mammoth victory in the Andhra Pradesh Assembly elections. It was filmdom's most spectacular conquest of the political theatre. NTR died in 1996, but he has spawned a generation of cine-artistes with political ambitions.In the TDP itself, Sharada - three national awards for best actress behind her - and Jayaprada - now a Rajya Sabha MP - shine on. The Congress is less lucky. Its Jamuna and Krishna are spent forces, at least politically.Yet, as the 1998 elections approach, the traffic between the worlds of glamour and guile promises to intensify. In particular, the BJP-led "third front" stands to gain. Like Shatrughan Sinha in Mumbai, Mohan Babu was a villain who made a successful transition to playing hero. Like Sinha, Mohan Babu is now in the BJP's camp.On her part, Vijayashanthi has already made a switch from pin-up girl to politician. Nicknamed the "angry young woman of the Telugu screen", she is expected to be the BJP's counter to Jayaprada. While she has not actually joined the party, she has begun meeting party leaders and touring with them.Naidu too is banking on film stars for his publicity campaign. Further, Dasari Narayana Rao, actor and filmmaker, is traversing the periphery of politics. He has postponed plans to launch the Telugu Talli Party (TTP) but is, nevertheless, keeping poll pundits guessing about the immediate future.All in all, it is the BJP which is basking currently under the arc-lights. It hopes to benefit from an alliance with Mohan Babu's Forum Against Corruption and is still wooing Dasari, reluctant as he may be. Such has been the impact of the BJP's star appeal that even the NTR-TDP, which is headed by NTR's widow Lakshmi Parvati and polled 10 per cent of the vote in the Lok Sabha polls of 1996, is willing to play second fiddle to the saffron party.And N. Chandrababu Naidu, chief minister and president of the original tdp, is worried. He seems certain that his government's performance will take his party to victory but is leaving nothing to chance. His solution? A publicity campaign involving - you guessed it - film stars. Naidu is courting the film industry assiduously. He has even made Murali Mohan, a well-known actor, chairman of the Andhra Pradesh State Film Development Corporation. .preferred-source-banner{ margin-top: 10px; margin-bottom:10px;}While Vijayashanthi (top) is the BJP's star catch, Dasari is planning his own partyNaidu's apprehensions are not without reason. If it keeps the right film company, a rainbow coalition of the BJP, Samata Party and NTR-TDP could jeopardise the traditionally bipolar contest between the Congress and the tdp. The BJP's third front may win few but it could spoil much, sucking up crucial votes."Our effort is to bring everyone under one banner in a grand alliance to capitalise fully on the anti-Chandrababu Naidu factor," explains Bandaru Dattatreya, president of the BJP's state unit. Whether it gathers votes or not, the BJP-Mohan Babu and Vijayashanthi in tow - is certain to gather crowds.However, the "grand alliance" is a strange one. Some of the partners are not even on talking terms. For instance, Mohan Babu had a strange pre-condition before tying up with the BJP: he refused to appear at joint rallies with Parvati. The animosity runs deep. This, despite Parvati's marriage to NTR having been announced during the celebrations surrounding Major Chandrakanth, a blockbuster starring NTR and Mohan Babu.Today, Mohan Babu considers the Parvati chapter closed. As he says, "NTR was my guru in politics and Dasari is the same for me in films." So, having sought to don NTR's mantle in politics, he is striving to win over Dasari for the BJP. The courtship has not borne fruit as Dasari has decided to push back to the summer his formal entry into public life.Mohan Babu sees himself as a sort of popular conscience-keeper: "The future of the state lies in voting out the corrupt Naidu ministry and my task is to convince the voters on this." In a sense, he has modelled himself on Rajnikanth, who played a similar anti-Jayalalitha role in the Tamil Nadu polls of 1996.Dasari is a bit of a loose cannon, refusing to let any established party's label stick to him. His most recent inspiration to enter politics came after the phenomenal success of hisOsai Ramulamma. The film features - wonder, wonder-Vijayashanthi as a Dalit woman who is raped and victimised but eventually fights back. Dasari hopes some of the goodwill generated by his films on gender justice and social inequities will rub off on his political career."The TDP and the Congress represent the interests of the influential Kamma and Reddy castes," he says, "the plan of the TTP is to secure political power for the numerically strong Backward Castes, SCs, STs and the minorities." Votes or no votes, the BJP with its new stars is sure to gather crowds. Dasari belongs to the Kapu caste, which is seen to have been outraced by the powerful Kammas and Reddys. His long-term project is population-based reservation for various castes and sub-castes in Parliament and the state assemblies. Clearly, he is not looking to just a cameo role in politics.Dasari is therefore biding his time. The TTP was to be inaugurated in Hyderabad on January 8 - the function has now been postponed to May 4, Dasari's birthday. In recent weeks, his rallies in Karimnagar, Godavarikhani and Suryapet in the Telengana region have received good response. To translate this groundswell of support into a vote bank requires hard work.Some reckon Dasari will be ready to take the plunge by the next assembly elections in 1999. So instead of spreading his meagre resources thin and mindlessly contesting all 42 seats, he is coming round to the idea of supporting "those ready to expose the misdeeds of the TDP Government". Shorn of verbiage, this means the BJP and its friends, as well as any group seeking a separate Telengana state. To think they call film scripts complicated.Published By: AtMigration Published On: Jan 12, 1998--- ENDS ---
