As one drives through the serpentine Road No 46 in the upmarket Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad, a swanky corporate structure standing at the top of the street brings one to a natural halt, surrounded as it is by an eager but patient crowd waiting for “the star” to smile upon them.
The scene instantly reminds one of a film shoot. In fact, much like a film set, the quintessential 21st century office came up in just 40 days. But what is unfolding inside is not exactly filmi. Though the central character remains a film star — Chiranjeevi, who spent three decades in Tollywood — the script being drafted is political and the hero and his lieutenants believe it is certain to change the politics of Andhra Pradesh.
A pin-up board in one of the rooms has clippings from various newspapers of the day. One report describes how he lost his cool when fans blocked his way, another links the outburst to his unhappiness at the insignificant number of seasoned leaders joining his party. Yet another clipping from a vernacular reports that fans want him to hit the road sooner than later.
In the conference hall, a sizeable gathering awaits the leader’s return from lunch. One of them happens to be a technocrat from Harvard who wants to sell software to the new party.
The same software, the technocrat tells an NRI in the Chiru camp,was sold to Barack Obama for conducting a socio-economic survey in the US. He explains how it would be useful to Chiranjeevi’s Praja Rajyam.
Nearby, as we chit chat in the board room sipping hot coffee, the man of the moment — Chiranjeevi — arrives to engage us in a freewheeling conversation for the next 45 minutes.
Understandably, to most questions, he tries to relate his replies to his experience in the film world. “I am pretty relaxed,’’ he says in his opening remarks on how he feels in his new role as a political leader.
While in the film industry he had to depend on his own resources, now he is more comfortable because there are quite a few friends who share his ideology and thoughts and are willing to hone them into policy programmes that can be implemented. “They provide me a lot of cushion and with the support I am getting from the people, I am confident of reaching the goal,” he avers.
The actor-turned-politician does not hesitate to concede that the decision to switch roles was a long drawn out process. Did he spend sleepless nights? “Not exactly. But for months I used to get up early in the morning and spend time alone in my room wondering how to respond to suggestions that I should enter politics,” he recalls.
Many told him that the people of the state gave him all that anyone could aspire for as an actor and it was time he repaid the debt.
He goes on: “There are many who have charisma but how many will receive the encouragement that I have to go forward?” After all, even if he had continued in films, he would have done a couple more movies before deciding to call it a day. But if he did that he would have wasted a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take up a bigger cause, more so because he believes he has the capacity to change lives for the better. That, finally, persuaded him to take the plunge.
But what about his on-screen and off-screen image? Having played characters that reflected a lot of aggression, what Chiranjeevi has shown in the month since he launched his party is a goody-goody and soft side. But he feels it is a perfectly okay approach. “I don’t think you need to be necessarily aggressive to connect to the people. On the contrary, I believe that if you show intensity in what you say, you will be able to strike a chord in their hearts.” From the angry hero in films, will the state now see an angry young politician (at 52, he is young by Indian standards) who is out to change society? He laughs heartily. “I may not portray myself as an angry politician but I am sure people will appreciate my honesty and commitment to change the way politics is pursued,” emphasising that curbing corruption and ensuring that a major chunk of the benefits go to the identified beneficiaries would be his top priority.
The Praja Rajyam founder also argues that there is nothing wrong when he keeps saying that he would try to do the same things that are being done now but in a different manner.
“Take the case of social welfare and girls hostels.
We have a lot of them even now, but the inmates suffer from lack of dining facility, toilets and a proper place to sleep.We may not be able to provide them dining tables but we can certainly give them economical cement platforms to have their food. Likewise, ensuring a mattress to sleep is not difficult. All that is required is sincerity in approach. You don’t have to necessarily change the system. If the leader sets an example, the rest will follow in great measure,” he explains.
Unconsciously, he again goes back to his past world to relate how he changed the way a hero performs dance sequences. The number of songs in a movie remained the same as before even after he joined films, but what he did do was to bring about a distinct change in the way they were played out to the audiences and they became a runaway trend-setter.
Chiranjeevi has no doubt that his lack of experience in politics will not work against him. On the contrary, it may be an advantage.
Take the case of Ram Gopal Verma, who was looked down upon as a rookie when he first wanted to direct a film or a Sekhar Kammula, an NRI who returned to the country and got into film-making, he points out and says, “They had never worked with anybody. But when they did their first movies, they were lapped up by people who liked their refreshingly fresh approach”.
Though he is only a month-old as a politician Chiranjeevi says he has stopped thinking about his past. His thoughts are not going back to the sets, trolleys and the frequent shouts of lights, action...camera… from the director.He was used to working 18 hours a day while making films and, therefore, does not find it difficult to spend 12 to 14 hours in the party office handling various tasks — meeting newcomers, discussing policies with the think-tank (they are still taking shape) and catching up with the media.
Comparisons may not always be right but Chiranjeevi has to live with the manner in which he is compared with the Telugu film giant, NT Rama Rao, who launched the Telugu Desam 25 years ago and changed the course of politics in the state.
“N T Rama Rao was, no doubt, a strongwilled person but when it comes to determination I am no less,” he says recalling that even when NTR launched Telugu Desam, support did not come overnight. At that time, people thought they had no option but to live under a Congress regime. But when the alternative came along, they looked at it and soon it turned into a groundswell of support. Likewise, his heart tells him that people are once again looking for a change from the two principal parties — ruling Congress and Telugu Desam.
Youth have, of course, attended his maiden meeting in Tirupati in large numbers and been coming to him on a daily basis.
“Others like women or farmers may not express themselves the same way. But, I am sure they too would lend support once I hit the road later this month,” he says in a voice oozing confidence, before signing off to meet others waiting for him.
