top of page

By:

Abhijit Mulye

21 August 2024 at 11:29:11 am

Resorts, Rallies, and Rebellion

Inside Mahayuti’s high-stakes firefighting for legislative council polls Mumbai: The public posture of ruling Mahayuti alliance radiates supreme confidence. Leaders from the BJP, Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, and NCP led by Sunetra Pawar are predicting a clean sweep. Voting is scheduled for Thursday. Yet, beneath this calm exterior lies intense backstage panic. None of the alliance constituents are leaving any loose ends. No leader wants to take any risks, as everybody is trying to ensure...

Resorts, Rallies, and Rebellion

Inside Mahayuti’s high-stakes firefighting for legislative council polls Mumbai: The public posture of ruling Mahayuti alliance radiates supreme confidence. Leaders from the BJP, Shiv Sena led by Eknath Shinde, and NCP led by Sunetra Pawar are predicting a clean sweep. Voting is scheduled for Thursday. Yet, beneath this calm exterior lies intense backstage panic. None of the alliance constituents are leaving any loose ends. No leader wants to take any risks, as everybody is trying to ensure their real value is recognized and past political scores are waiting to be settled. This volatile environment has triggered widespread fears of cross-voting. It has given a massive boost to resort politics across the state. The upcoming contest spans 17 local self-government constituencies. The unique composition of this electorate makes the election highly unpredictable. The voters are not regular citizens. They are elected corporators, municipal councillors, and Zilla Parishad members. This setup makes the election hyper-localized. It offers a perfect shadow arena for local politicians to exercise leverage. Consequently, ruling alliance leaders are taking extraordinary measures to protect their flocks. Every single vote is being heavily guarded. Poaching Game Political parties have quickly locked down their voters to prevent poaching. Sources reveal that local body members from Sangli, Nanded, and Nagpur are already gone. They have been taken on special tours to Goa under tight supervision. Meanwhile, corporators from Nashik have been moved elsewhere. They are currently staying at a secluded luxury resort near Bhiwandi. These defensive tactics show how deeply the party bosses distrust their own members. Political managers are monitoring every voter’s movement around the clock. The ground reality across key cities highlights this deep regional friction. In Nagpur, the stakes are incredibly high. This by-election became necessary after state BJP chief Chandrashekhar Bawankule vacated the seat. He did so after winning his election to the state assembly. The BJP cannot afford a defeat in its primary ideological stronghold. Similarly, the Wardha-Chandrapur-Gadchiroli constituency presents a tough challenge. The BJP has fielded Arun Lakhani for this crucial seat. However, managing the intricate web of local body representatives in Chandrapur is testing the party machinery. Shifting Loyalties Other regions show similar vulnerability. In seats like Jalgaon, Nanded, and Sangli, traditional political loyalties are shifting. Compounding these internal threats is the BJP’s aggressive campaign strategy. The party chose to treat this council election as an opportunity. They wanted to expand their standalone organisational footprint across the state. Instead of relying on traditional top-down bulk voting through alliance bosses, the BJP targeted the electorate directly. The party organised an array of localised rallies, town hall meetings, and gatherings of the electorate. Some of these events registered an excellent response. However, this unilateral approach deeply irritated their alliance partners and many of these events saw dismal attendance by BJP’s alliance partners. Apart from this general apathy, the real challenge was that of open rebellion within the ruling alliance’s internal ranks. Disgruntled local leaders, disappointed ticket seekers, and ignored district presidents had expressed loud resentment. Even sitting MLAs and MLCs have signaled their displeasure over candidate choices. State BJP leaders had to spend considerable energy for the firefighting and ensuring that rebellion is contained. Yet many leaders are still unhappy with current regional power equations. Frantic Firefighting Fearing massive internal sabotage, the BJP top brass has launched a frantic firefighting operation. Senior leaders have been entrusted with strict responsibilities to oversee specific seats. They are managing all local arrangements personally. Top party managers are literally crisscrossing the state using helicopters and chartered flights. They are conducting last-minute pacification drives in every sensitive district. These leaders are holding urgent, closed-door meetings to placate angry regional chieftains. They are working hard to neutralize rebel factions. No disgruntled leader is being left unattended before Thursday morning. Promises of future political rewards are being distributed generously. Leaders are promising state-run board appointments and fresh development funds to buy peace. The frantic resort lockdowns and endless late-night negotiations reveal the true story of this election. The Mahayuti may still win a majority of these 17 seats through sheer resource dominance. However, the visible fractures in cities like Nashik, Sangli, Chandrapur, and Jalgaon reveal a fragile coalition. This council election has ceased to be a routine legislative exercise. It has mutated into a brutal internal audit of the ruling alliance’s unity. The final results will offer a definitive look at who holds the real power.

Mr. Bharat’s brushes with two superstars

Mumbai: Years ago, the veteran south Indian and Bollywood director A. Bhimsingh was working on the gloomy love-triangle, ‘Aadmi’ (1968) starring the then reigning emperor of acting, Dilip Kumar, along with Waheeda Rehman and others.


During the early filming, Bhimsingh and the other hero of the film, the late Feroze Khan, had some huge differences and couldn’t see eye-to-eye on many things.


The enraged Bhimsingh narrated everything to Dilip Kumar and it was finally decided to drop Khan, recalled veteran Bollywood producer K. Ramji of Tina Films International (TFI).


“Dilip Kumar also called up his close friend and film-maker, my father, A. Krishnamurthi, and requested him to see if Rajendra Kumar or Manoj Kumar could be convinced to play the crucial role, replacing Khan,” Ramji told The Perfect Voice.

Though Rajendra Kumar politely declined, Manoj Kumar jumped with joy at the honour of working with his cherished idol Dilip Kumar that simply landed in his lap, chuckled Ramji.


At one point when Bhimsingh fell ill, Manoj Kumar even volunteered to direct a portion of the film, to ensure completing it on schedule and it turned out to be a blockbuster.


A couple of years later, Dilip Kumar returned the favour by convincing his wife, the dazzling Saira Banu to work in a glam role for Manoj Kumar’s patriotic superhit ‘Purab Aur Paschim’ (1970).


Manoj Kumarhad crafted his own style, mannerisms, and even a hairstyle that was displayed in almost all barber shops of that era for youngsters to emulate.

Decades later, legendary choreographer-cum-director Farah Khan came up with her smash-hit film, ‘Om Shanti Om’ (2007), considered a heart-felt eulogy to the whims and vagaries of Bollywood.


In one scene, the film took an uncharitable swipe at Manoj Kumar, rattling him enough to file a Rs. 100-crore defamation suit (which he later gracefully withdrew).


The scene in ‘Om Shanti Om’ poked fun at Manoj Kumar’s famed mannerism – covering his face with his palm to express shyness, disappointment, happiness or sadness.


The struggler Om Prakash (played by Shah Rukh Khan) unabashedly lampooned the senior actor by flaunting his identity-card to a cop, with his photo showing the face covered by his hand - a la Manoj Kumar - leading to howls of laughter in cinema halls.


As film critics then noted, Manoj Kumar’s iconic ‘style’ cultivated over decades, was ripped to a farce in just one momentary scene in the film and he expressed his deep distress by saying, “This is how they treat me”.


However, later, like many Bollywood films the ugly brawl had a happy ending with a round of apologies from Farah Khan and Shah Rukh Khan, while Manoj Kumar earned widespread applause in film circles for graciously burying the hatchet.

Comments

bottom of page