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Stars battle netas in Karnataka

It's an odd but even contest in Mandya and Chikballapur in Karnataka; in both constituencies film stars are pitted against battle-scarred politicians.

M H Amaranath -- aka the actor Ambareesh -- takes on former mentor G Madegowda (Congress) for the Mandya seat; popular actress of yesteryear Jayanthi engages former Union minister R L Jalappa of the Congress and state Agriculture Minister C Byre Gowda of the Janata Dal in Chikballapur.

Braving the dust and heat, both film stars are truly sweating it out for their success. Hundreds of enthusiasts, mostly women, youth and children, wait for hours together to catch a glimpse of the stars they had never dreamt of seeing in their villages.

Both Ambareesh and Jayanthi have a tight schedule. They hop quickly from village to village, making the brief speeches they hope will suffice to make them win the election.

Of course, the crowd turns hysterical when the 'hero' and 'heroine' turn up. People jostle to shake their hands; some shove small books towards them seeking autographs.

Then, down to business -- a quick speech, and then back to their cars, to repeat the process at the next village. When the motorcade stops at each village, an announcer first informs the village of the star's arrival.

Within minutes, the village comes alive and the cars are surrounded by people. Crackers are burst to celebrate the star's arrival. In some places, young girls perform aarti and apply tilak to the forehead of the smiling artiste.

Ambareesh is sometimes accompanied by his actress wife Sumalatha; Jayanthi has her brother and some relatives at her side. Other actors like Jaggesh also lend glamour to the campaign, canvassing for their colleagues in some villages.

The politically volatile and sugarcane-rich Mandya is famous for fierce battles of the ballot and unpredictable results. Ambareesh is taking on his mentor, G Madegowda of the Congress. Madegowda, a battle-scared politician, had drawn the actor into the Congress with much fanfare.

But the star rebelled when the Congress high command refused him a ticket for the assembly election. He then joined the Janata Dal and contested the assembly by-election from Ramanagara, vacated by then prime minister H D Deve Gowda, but lost to the Congress nominee. Undaunted, the star is trying his luck again, this time in a Lok Sabha election.

Although Ambareesh's hectic campaign has seen him ahead in the race, Sonia Gandhi's recent meetings in the constituency and the death of Karnataka Mines Minister S D Jayaram have been setbacks. Jayaram was a great organiser for the Janata Dal.

Outwardly, Mandya appears to be a Janata Dal bastion, but with the unpredictable nature of its electorate, even a late wave in favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party could see its candidate M Srinivas in Parliament. As of now, Srinivas has little hope of getting the farmers on his side since he recently quit the Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha to join the BJP.

A Congress worker said Ambareesh is hobbled by Deve Gowda's unfulfilled promises to resolve the vexed Cauvery river dispute with Tamil Nadu. Madegowda, his party's candidate, this Congress activist claimed, had a better chance since he had fought Deve Gowda on the same issue.

But these complex arguments have not dented the actor's confidence. He harped on the fact that since he was a local, he could not betray them like the others, adding, "I will spread the name of Mandya throughout India."

The situation is similar in Chikballapur. Whenever Jayanthi, a star in over 300 films in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi and Kannada, addresses voters in their language, Telugu, she evokes a good response. "I am your daughter, I don't know politics, but my intention is to serve you all," is all the appeal she makes. If she wins, she claims she will give up acting in films.

She was clearly moved when a young girl who promised to vote for her, asked her for a bus that would run up to her village.

Both Ambareesh and Jayanthi have carefully avoided attacking their political opponents. A safe strategy, considering the goodwill they have.

Mandya go to the polls on Monday while the election in Chikkaballapur is slated for Sunday next, February 22.

UNI

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