'Nayaka' Stars in Kar-Nataka: Will Kichcha Sudeep Deliver a Hit for 'Mama' Bommai's BJP?

As Karnataka heads to polls on May 10, Kannada superstar Kichcha Sudeep will lend his star power to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state. Amid speculations of joining the party to getting a ticket from the BJP, Sudeep made it clear that he is supporting incumbent chief minister Basavaraj Bommai, whom he calls ‘mama’ (uncle) with respect.

“He is someone I adore, and have great affection and respect for. Bommai mama stood by me during my difficult times,” said Sudeep, addressing the media with the chief minister beside him.

This is not the first time that Sudeep has agreed to campaign for a candidate. In 2018, he took part in an election campaign in the Molakalmuru assembly segment for B Sriramulu. The actor belongs to the Nayaka caste, among the Scheduled Tribe (ST) in Karnataka. The Nayakas are concentrated in Chitradurga, Bellary and Raichur districts, and Sriramulu is considered one of the tallest leaders of the community.

The Congress, JDS and BJP have been trying to woo the actor, who is known to share cordial relations across party lines. Over the years, senior BJP, Congress and JDS leaders gave him an open invitation to join them, which they believe will give them a shot in their arm because of his immense popularity and the caste matrix.

CHOICE, THREAT & HASHTAG

This time, however, Sudeep has made his choice. He will be campaigning for Bommai, the BJP, and “anybody Bommai suggests he should campaign for.”

Bommai, too, chimed in when people asked about their relationship. “He has not joined any party. He is supporting me. I spoke to him and said that even if he does not join the party, he should campaign for us. He agreed to it. He will campaign for the party along with me,” Bommai said.

As the news spread, the 49-year-old actor’s office received a death threat. A first information report (FIR) was lodged at the Puttenahalli Police Station in Bengaluru against an unknown person. Upset with his decision, some of his fans launched a hashtag campaign on a microblogging site — #WedontwantKichchainpolitics. They requested him not to fall prey and become a pawn in politics and continue giving them superhit films.

‘OLD SCRIPT’

Film industry experts watching the developments say that such a move by a popular cinestar is not new. Film critic and senior journalist Muralidhar Khajane pointed out that there is an unwritten rule among actors in the Kannada industry of supporting a candidate and being a star campaigner, but not joining a party.

“We have seen it happen often that political parties approach film stars to help campaign for their candidates. Several popular actors have campaigned specifically for a candidate, but refused to seek votes for a specific political party,” Khajane told News18.

Khajane gave the example of Geetha Shivarajkumar, daughter-in-law of Kannada thespian Dr Rajkumar and daughter of former Karnataka chief minister Bangarappa. She contested the 2014 Lok Sabha elections from the Shimoga constituency on a JDS ticket against senior BJP leader BS Yediyurappa. Her husband Shivarajkumar actively campaigned for her in the constituency, even though the Rajkumar family maintained a safe distance from politics.

“Shivarajkumar was campaigning for his wife. Just like the Rajkumar family, Sudeep, Darshan, and others enjoy a good relationship with all political parties,” the film critic said.

MET DKS ON FEB 17

Sudeep’s meeting with Karnataka Congress president D K Shivakumar on February 17 had led to fevered speculations in both political and film circles. Sudeep said that he knows D K Shivakumar, CM Bommai, and Minister D K Sudhakar and enjoys a good relationship with everyone and would make it public the day he decides to foray into politics.

“But I have not made any decision regarding my political entry. I will make it public when I take a decision,” he said a couple of months ago.

When asked about his rapport with politicians at CNN-News18 Bengaluru Townhall, the actor replied cryptically: “The first norm of politics is never discuss your opinion, don’t give a hint.”

A similar buzz was seen in 2018 when the Vikrant Rona actor was seen stepping out of the house of Nikhil Kumaraswamy, son of JDS leader and former CM Kumaraswamy. JDS insiders had confirmed to this reporter then that Kumaraswamy had offered to field him from Chitradurga or Bellary on a JDS ticket, but the southern star politely declined.

The Congress, too, had set their sights on Sudeep as a possible candidate and had approached him multiple times over the past few years. That is why the Shivakumar meeting set tongues wagging on the possibility of his debut in electoral politics.

SHOWS BJP’s DESPERATION: CONG

Senior Karnataka Congress leader Priyank Kharge called the decision by Sudeep personal, but added that it shows the desperation of the BJP and how they would use any power — money, muscle or star — to try and win the upcoming election.

“It looks like the BJP is now reduced to going to people with the power of film stars rather than showing good development to seek votes,” Kharge told News18.

Kharge said that it is evident that the BJP high command has lost confidence in CM Bommai with BS Yediyurappa back in the saddle.

“BSY’s back in the reckoning. The man who was insulted by the BJP is holding hands with the PM like a long lost friend and all the insults are forgotten. The ministers and political secretary say things are not being managed well by Bommai. That is why they are looking for any sort of power that could help their sinking ship,” he added.

2 DECADE-LONG CAREER

One of the highest-paid actors, Sudeep has acted in films across languages — Kannada, Hindi, Telugu, and Tamil. He made his acting debut in 1997 with the film, ‘Thayavva’. He has spent over two decades in the industry. His first major break was the remake of the Tamil film ‘Vikram’, named ‘Huchcha’ in Kannada.

He has starred in box office hits, including ‘Vaali’, ‘Kichcha’, ‘Shanthi Nivasa’, ‘Swathi Muthu’, ‘Ranga (SSLC)’, ‘Just Maath Maathalli’, ‘Vishnuvardhana Kempe Gowda’, ‘Eega’, ‘Vikrant Rona’ and ‘Pailwaan’, among others.

He debuted in Bollywood with Ram Gopal Varma’s Phoonk (2008). He went to work with Bollywood bigwigs namely Amitabh Bachchan and Salman Khan in Rann and Dabangg 3. His latest release was Kabzaa.

KANNADA PRIDE

His video schooling a journalist on how to pronounce the word ‘Kannada’ won the hearts of the people of Karnataka.

“Jaise Hindi, Hind nahi hota, waise Kannada, Kannad nahi hota (like Hindi, cannot be Hind, Kannada also can’t be become Kannad),” said Sudeep, which set the tone for Kannada pride.

His take on Hindi supremacy also hit the headlines last year when he made a statement at a film event that “Hindi was no more the national language”. Countering this, Ajay Devgn tweeted, “Hindi was and will remain our national language.”

Sudeep was quick to respond to Devgn with a quip: “I did understand the text you sent in Hindi. Tats only coz we all have respected, loved, and learnt Hindi. No offense sir, but was wondering what’d the situation be if my response was typed in Kannada.!!”

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