Donning the messiah146;s role

Though it was drizzling, Chiranjeevi chose the hour after midnight, as it was an auspicious time according to the Telugu calendar. A calm and composed actor told reporters what he has been repeating over the past few months and ended the brief interaction with the media by making a politically correct statement.

8220;I know my fans are waiting for me to announce my party. I will not disappoint them. They have to just wait for a few more days. I will announce the party before this month-end 8212; the name of the party and its agenda on one day and launch the party on another,8221; he said. 8220;Today, I would like to extend my condolences to the families who have lost their near and dear ones in the incessant rain over the past three days. I request all my fans to help and support the bereaved families,8221; he said, before vanishing into the office.

Certainly, Andhra Pradesh8217;s next blockbuster is not a Tollywood movie. It is the long and much-awaited launch of a political party by Konidela Siva Shankara Vara Prasad aka Chiranjeevi. This potboiler is unfolding on the sidelines of a volatile political environment and changing equations in the state: senior leaders are quitting the Telugu Desam Party TDP; the Congress is wooing filmstars into its fold;nbsp;the much-hyped Telangana Rashtriya Samiti has bit the dust; there is competition from Nava Telangana Praja Party launched recently by T Devender Goud who quit the TDP; Chandrababu Naidu has roped in the support of the NTR family.

The megastar himself has not said a word about his political intentions, except asking his fans to be patient. But, by flashing those enigmatic smiles and shying away from saying anything in public, Chiranjeevi has kicked up frenzy among his followers. For them, his entry into politics is nothing less than the crowning of a monarch.

Insiders are confidant that he is playing his cards right by delaying the launch. 8220;Chiranjeevi is likely to announce his political party at a time when it is neither too early nor too late for the April 2009 elections. If the party is launched in August or September, he and his aides can shape the party8217;s image around the hype and fanfare that8217;s going to last for three to four months,8221; said a member of the star8217;s core group.

However, political analysts feel that the way things are being managed, it does not augur well for Chiranjeevi. First, his brother-in-law Allu Arvind is calling all the shots and though it appears that the megastar has given him a free hand, it is sending wrong message to people as to who is in-charge. Arvind8217;s clout within the family is likely to result in friction with Chiranjeevi8217;s actor-brothers, Pawan Kalyan and Nagendra Babu.

Second, leaders of other parties, who have either quit or have been expelled, are publicly embracing the party and inadvertently giving it a bad image that it is accumulating political discards.

Analysts say that for a party that aims to be different and promises to bring in a new brand of politics, the emanating signals don8217;t bode well.

However, if Chiranjeevi8217;s intentions of launching himself late are compared to N T R8217;s launch of the TDP, it makes some sense. The charismatic NTR launched the TDP on March 29, 1982 and became chief minister of Andhra Pradesh within 10 months, on January 9, 1983.

Padma Bhushan and winner of three Filmfare awards, Chiranjeevi is one of the highest paid actors in the country and has acted in 150-odd films. Some of his films like Mutamestri, Indra, and Stalin, in whichnbsp;he plays the roles of an honest politician, have fired the imagination of his fans who are now demanding that he play those roles in real life as well.

In anticipation, fans clubs have come up in villages as well as at the state-level. Thousands of his fans have already 8220;joined8221; the yet-to-be-named and yet-to-be-launched party.

There are dozens of websites like Jaichiru.com and blogs on Chiranjeevi where fans have urged people to join online petitions, signature campaigns and write letters to the megastar, requesting him not to delay his entry into politics anymore.

On June 28, the star8217;s fans took out a 76 km motorcycle rally in Cuddapah district to express their support. Chiru volunteers have started preparing voters8217; lists and banners with images of the megastar and state8217;s map in the background.

The megastar8217;s popularity is not restricted to Andhra Pradesh alone. The Pravasa Chiranjeevi Organisation, a fan club based in Los Angeles, has been holding functions to organise support for him. Software professionals, under the banner of Chiru Mega Youth Force, met in Muscat last month to express their support. There are also campaign songs for Chiranjeevi on the Youtube, composed by his followers in the US.

It may not match the fans8217; enthusiasm, but the action is being scripted and directed at Geeta Arts too. These days, Arvind is meeting people 8212; many of them local leaders from the Congress and the TDP. While Chiranjeevi keeps his lips sealed, it is Arvind who is dropping hints. 8220;Many leaders have approached us saying that they would join Chiranjeevi8217;s party as soon as it is launched,8221; he said.

While the megastar, who recently became a grandpa, is busy setting right some family matters, including reaching out to his estranged daughter Sreeja who eloped and got married last October, it is left to Arvind to make preparations for the party8217;s launch. Last Friday, Arvind visited Tirupati to look for a suitable place to hold a public meeting where Chiranjeevi would announce his formal entry into politics. He also inspected three grounds that can accommodate five lakh people.

Chiranjeevi8217;s brother Nagendra Babu, an actor and producer, has been given the task of touring the districts to gauge support. He has already toured 19 districts. 8220;Chiranjeevi will make an announcement himself in August. I know fans and followers have been waiting for long and they are getting impatient,8221; he said.

A group of Chiranjeevi aides have been working in the state to assess what people really want. This group comprises Dr P Mitra, Dr P Vinay, T V Rao, T Brahma Reddy and Y L N Rao of the Jana Vignana Vedika, ex-special chief secretary and ex-Congress MP from Amalapuram K S R Murthy, who is also a Dalit leader.

Chiranjeevi is also known to have met retired IAS officers like S R Sankaran and Gopal Rao. Rao has been working for welfare of the backward classes and is advising him on the SCST situation in the state and how to woo them, since Chiranjeevi8217;s party is expected to be an alternative to the upper class-dominated Congress and TDP.

However, according to political observer Parkal Prabhakar, Chiranjeevi is not very confident about his party8217;s performance. 8220;Except for coastal Andhra, Chiranjeevi knows he may not be such a big draw as a politician in other areas, especially in Telangana,8221; Prabhakar said.

The megastar8217;s apprehensions are not misplaced. A close associate of Arvind said the core group has cautioned that Chiranjeevi8217;s party cannot be seen as caste-based, although it has to nurture the image of an alternative to the Reddy-dominated Congress and Kamma-dominated TDP. All this is delaying the launch further.

It is a piquant situation, as everyone seems to be ready, except for the man himself.

However, it reminds one of a dialogue from the 1993 blockbuster Mutamestri in which Chiranjeevi becomes the CM at the end of the film: 8220;Nenu Rajakiyalloki vasthanu mastaru. Padukunna simhanni nidra lepithey emi jaruguthundo choopisthanu.8221; 8220;I will join politics. I will show what happens when a sleeping lion is disturbed.8221;

Hero of the coastal belt

Chiranjeevi8217;s party is expected to patronise the powerful Kapu community of coastal Andhra. Kapus and affiliated sub-castes make up for 22 per cent of the state8217;s population. Chiranjeevi is a Kapu himself, born in Narsapur in West Godavari district. In fact, it is the Kapu community that is putting pressure on Chiranjeevi to launch a party. Besides Kapus, backward classes are also keen on Chiranjeevi forming a party that can be an alternative to the Reddy-dominated Congress and Kamma-dominated TDP. In the 2004 Assembly elections, 48 per cent of Kapus voted for the Congress and 35 per cent voted for the TDP. The Kapu factor may work well in Chiranjeevi8217;s favour. The state Government, which has assessed the situation, is learnt to be thinking of extending reservations to Kapus and include them in the BC list. The Congress government may nip Chiranjeevi8217;s party in the bud if it decides to declare reservations for Kapus two-three months ahead of the 2009 elections.

Making of the idol

Chiranjeevi started his career with Punadhirallu in 1978.nbsp;nbsp;He makes between Rs 10-12 crore per film. He also takes the distribution rights of his films in certain regions. The title of megastar was first used for Chiranjeevi during the launch of Marana Mrudangam in 1980.

In the 1990s, Chiranjeevi8217;s career peaked with a string of hits that toppled box-office records one after the other. The star took a break after a lean period between 1999 and 2001. He returned to the box office with Indra in 2002, which went on to become one of the biggest hits in Telugu film industry. The movie was released in over 200 theatres to packed audiences. Recently, he acted in Shankar Dada, a remake of the popular Sanjay Dutt-starrer Munnabhai MBBS.

His fans can die for him

Fans have taken up cudgels for Chiranjeevi whenever someone has 8220;dared8221; to utter anything against him. Take the case of Telugu actor Rajasekhar, who had remarked that Chiranjeevi was a political novice. On January 28, Chiranjeevi8217;s fans attacked Rajasekhar and his family. When Sreeja, Chiranjeevi8217;s daughter, decided to elope with Shirish Bhardwaj, she was so scared that her father8217;s fans would harm them that she sought protection from a court in Delhi. On February 1, a police jawan and a hardcore Chiranjeevi fan reportedly committed suicide in Bhadrachalam. Police claimed that they had found a suicide note in which the jawan, K Parthsarathi, had written that he was unhappy because the star was delaying his entry into politics.