Media see money luring Bollywood stars into politics
MUMBAI, March 12: Bollywood stars are flocking to join political parties ahead of next month's general election, but questions are now being asked whether it's due to their strong political convictions
, the raw taste of power or the lure of cash.
The Indian media is awash with allegations that millions of rupees are being splurged by the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the opposition Congress on wooing stars to brighten their otherwise dour campaigning.
Dozens of actors and actresses have joined the BJP and Congress in the past month, including the bad men of Bollywood, Shakti Kapoor and Suresh Oberoi; the "dream girl" of the 70s Hema Malini; former leading lady Poonam Dhillon; television star Smriti Irani and former Miss World Yukta Mookhey.
While most stars deny that they are up for grabs, some admit they have been approached with lucrative offers by various parties to campaign for them.
"I have been approached by many parties to campaign and the offer is not just money, but even a seat in the upper house of parliament," popular Bollywood actor Ashutosh Rana said.
"The parties feel that actors are reflection of the society and that they (parties) represent the society and so the combination works. They think we can change their electoral prospects."
The Mumbai-based tabloid Mid Day said its investigations had shown that many of the new entrants had either been paid by the parties or been promised similar political benefits.
The newspaper said Irani, a household name after her hit television serial "Sas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi" (Every Mother-in-law Was Once a Daughter-in-law), was paid the astronomical sum of 10 million rupees (221,000 dollars) by the BJP last year, an allegation she denies strongly.
"Where is the proof that I have taken money," said Ms Irani in an interview with television channel, NDTV 24x7.
"I joined the BJP before the three assembly elections last year and at that time the party was expected to lose. But I believe in their ideology so I joined them."
Analysts claim the political parties are paying out hand over fist to the movie stars.
"It appears as if these stars are up for grabs, or it is a coincidence that all of them developed political convictions at the same time, which I do not believe," said veteran political analyst Kumar Ketkar.
He alleged the BJP is paying out more money than Congress. "The party has mobilized so much money in the last six years be it in dollars, euros or rupees, that it has made Congress a novice in politics."
Denying the allegations, the BJP claims the party has become attractive not just to stars but to people from all walks of life for its image and the leadership qualities of Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee.
"It is not true that we are offering money to these actors," BJP spokesman Prakash Javadekar said. "Let me tell you that it is not just stars who are joining the party. Politicians are joining, sportsmen, retired bureaucrats and many others are joining. But it is the media problem that you see only filmstars joining us."
"These people know that only the BJP under the leadership of Vajpayee can make the country stronger. They are intelligent people from their field and they know what they are doing. There is no question of money."
The Congress, too, denies it is paying for its star-studded lineup. "No money is used in getting these stars. If we start using money, then the BJP can easily take in the entire industry," said Congress leader T. Subbarami Reddy.
Analyst Ketkar said the presence of stars will not make much difference in voting patterns.
"Very few stars have managed to make a presence in politics ... Most of these new ones even need to be fed lines by campaign handlers during a press conference," said Mr Ketkar.
Two popular Bollywood stars, Shatrughan Sinha and Vinod Khanna, are ministers in the present BJP government, while veteran actor Sunil Dutt has made it to the parliament many times on a Congress ticket.
In the southern state of Tamil Nadu, J. Jayalalitha, a former movie star, has won the chief minister's vote a number of times. -AFP
