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During general elections in 2004,Vani Tripathi was known more for her roles on TV than in politics. This time around,things are different.

Written by Vandana Kalra

April 6, 2009 03:52 AM IST

3 min read

Actress Vani Tripathi is the glamourous face of the BJPs youth wing

During general elections in 2004,Vani Tripathi was known more for her roles on TV than in politics. This time around,things are different. The 29-year-old is the national secretary of the Bharatiya Janata Partys Youth Wing and television serials are history,though films are still on her priority list.

On the campaign trail,Tripathi crisscrosses the country,trying to garner votes,fielding questions about Varun Gandhi and keeping the focus on the important issues development and terrorism. Last week she was in Bihar,next she will head to Rajasthan,Jharkhand,Uttaranchal and Maharashtra,after a stopover in hometown Delhi. Varun Gandhi is not a criminal,how he can be charged under the National Security Act is beyond me. Development and terrorism are the key issues but,most importantly,I will urge the youth to exercise the right to vote, she says.

Tripathi became a popular face for her roles in the TV serials Ehsaas and Agneepath on Doordarshan. Now,dressed in a white Lucknawi suit,as she readies for a meeting with senior leaders,the actress insists that political responsibilities have taken over from television. I did not like the regressive manner in which women were depicted on television, notes the political science graduate from Hindu College and former faculty member at National School of Drama.

She is till open to films,if the role are convincing, says the actress who has been seen in Chalte Chalte and Dushman. I dont want to quit films. I want a parallel career. Politicians with another career are incorruptible, she smiles,as she recalls her debut in Bollywood. It was in 1998,someone who had seen me act on stage recommended me to Tanuja Chandra for Dushman, she shares. Several films followed,but when BJP approached her to join them,she could not refuse. Some other parties had also approached me,but for me (Atal Bihari) Vajpayeeji is an idol and so is Advaniji.

What followed was a balancing act. Even though her duties as the youth leader and appearances in international forums,including the Asia 21 Young Leaders Summit held in South Korea in November 2006,kept her occupied,Tripathi managed to be part of the film world too. In 2006,she essayed an unconventional role of a prostitute in the Shrirang Dhawale-directed film Dil Se Pooch¿ Kidhar Jaana Hai and in 2007,she toured Vidarbha for a documentary on farmer suicide. Its important to share their misery. I hope to send the film to international forums soon, says the actress,who also has an international film project lined up. She is also ready to make another debut as an author,with a book on women. But right now,her favourite role is a real life on as BJPs voice to the electorate.

Vandana Kalra

Vandana Kalra is an art critic and Deputy Associate Editor with The Indian Express. She has spent more than two decades chronicling arts, culture and everyday life, with modern and contemporary art at the heart of her practice. With a sustained engagement in the arts and a deep understanding of India’s cultural ecosystem, she is regarded as a distinctive and authoritative voice in contemporary art journalism in India. Vandana Kalra's career has unfolded in step with the shifting contours of India’s cultural landscape, from the rise of the Indian art market to the growing prominence of global biennales and fairs. Closely tracking its ebbs and surges, she reports from studios, galleries, museums and exhibition spaces and has covered major Indian and international art fairs, museum exhibitions and biennales, including the Venice Biennale, Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Documenta, Islamic Arts Biennale. She has also been invited to cover landmark moments in modern Indian art, including SH Raza’s exhibition at the Centre Pompidou in Paris and the opening of the MF Husain Museum in Doha, reflecting her long engagement with the legacies of India’s modern masters. Alongside her writing, she applies a keen editorial sensibility, shaping and editing art and cultural coverage into informed, cohesive narratives. Through incisive features, interviews and critical reviews, she brings clarity to complex artistic conversations, foregrounding questions of process, patronage, craft, identity and cultural memory. The Global Art Circuit: She provides extensive coverage of major events like the Kochi-Muziris Biennale, Serendipity Arts Festival, and high-profile international auctions. Artist Spotlights: She writes in-depth features on modern masters (like M.F. Husain) and contemporary performance artists (like Marina Abramović). Art and Labor: A recurring theme in her writing is how art reflects the lives of the marginalized, including migrants, farmers, and labourers. Recent Notable Articles (Late 2025) Her recent portfolio is dominated by the coverage of the 2025 art season in India: 1. Kochi-Muziris Biennale & Serendipity Arts Festival "At Serendipity Arts Festival, a 'Shark Tank' of sorts for art and crafts startups" (Dec 20, 2025): On how a new incubator is helping artisans pitch products to investors. "Artist Birender Yadav's work gives voice to the migrant self" (Dec 17, 2025): A profile of an artist whose decade-long practice focuses on brick kiln workers. "At Kochi-Muziris Biennale, a farmer’s son from Patiala uses his art to draw attention to Delhi’s polluted air" (Dec 16, 2025). "Kochi Biennale showstopper Marina Abramović, a pioneer in performance art" (Dec 7, 2025): An interview with the world-renowned artist on the power of reinvention. 2. M.F. Husain & Modernism "Inside the new MF Husain Museum in Qatar" (Nov 29, 2025): A three-part series on the opening of Lawh Wa Qalam in Doha, exploring how a 2008 sketch became the architectural core of the museum. "Doha opens Lawh Wa Qalam: Celebrating the modernist's global legacy" (Nov 29, 2025). 3. Art Market & Records "Frida Kahlo sets record for the most expensive work by a female artist" (Nov 21, 2025): On Kahlo's canvas The Dream (The Bed) selling for $54.7 million. "All you need to know about Klimt’s canvas that is now the most expensive modern artwork" (Nov 19, 2025). "What’s special about a $12.1 million gold toilet?" (Nov 19, 2025): A quirky look at a flushable 18-karat gold artwork. 4. Art Education & History "Art as play: How process-driven activities are changing the way children learn art in India" (Nov 23, 2025). "A glimpse of Goa's layered history at Serendipity Arts Festival" (Dec 9, 2025): Exploring historical landmarks as venues for contemporary art. Signature Beats Vandana is known for her investigative approach to the art economy, having recently written about "Who funds the Kochi-Muziris Biennale?" (Dec 11, 2025), detailing the role of "Platinum Benefactors." She also explores the spiritual and geometric aspects of art, as seen in her retrospective on artist Akkitham Narayanan and the history of the Cholamandal Artists' Village (Nov 22, 2025). ... Read More

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