From an ardent admirer of socialist revolutions to a fierce advocate of Sanatan Dharma, the actor-turned-politician Pawan Kalyan has come a long way. This ideological metamorphosis of the 53-year-old maverick star appears more dramatic than what the scriptwriters of his popular movies could have imagined.
As Deputy Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh, he has now positioned himself as a staunch defender of Hindu traditions in the backdrop of widespread public outrage over the adulteration of cow ghee used in the making of the sacred Tirupati Laddu at the iconic hill shrine. The adulteration occurred during the previous YSR Congress Party regime headed by Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Soon after the scandal came to light recently, Kalyan, who is also the founder and president of the Jana Sena Party, made strong statements condemning the adulteration issue, and in a dramatic gesture, performed penance to "atone for the sins" committed under the previous administration.
He has now emerged as a prominent voice in support of preserving the Sanatan Dharma and raised the demand for setting up ‘The Sanatana Dharma Rakshana Board’ at the national level to look into all the issues related to the management of temples across the country.
The actor-turned-politician also called for a debate among policymakers, religious heads, the judiciary, the citizens and the media on the protection of Hindu Dharma.
Political implications
A fascinating fallout of the Tirupati Laddu controversy has been the emergence of Pawan Kalyan as a vociferous Hindutva proponent. While expressing deep anguish over the sacrilegious act of allowing ghee, contaminated with animal fats, in the making of revered Laddu prasadam, he even said he was prepared to sacrifice his life for the protection of Hindu dharma.
Kalyan’s ideological transformation has clear political undertones, particularly as he strengthens his alliance with the BJP. His star power, coupled with his zealousness to champion the Hindutva cause, makes him an ideal choice for the BJP to project as the chief ministerial candidate in future. There is an expectation that a gradual erosion of YSRCP’s support base could potentially create enough space for the Opposition in the state. The BJP, which is now in the government as an ally of the TDP and Jana Sena, hopes to occupy this space in future and emerge as a formidable player to take a shot at power. In the absence of a charismatic regional leader in AP, the saffron party will look up to Kalyan to foot the bill.
The change in the body language and the growing stridency in the tone and tenor of his statements suggest that Kalyan is preparing to play a more significant role in the state’s politics, possibly as the BJP’s face. His actions in the wake of the ghee controversy indicate that the political landscape in Andhra Pradesh is evolving, with new alignments and power dynamics coming into play.
Mass hero, maverick ways
From a middle-class upbringing in a small Andhra town, Kalyan rose to stardom in the Telugu film industry. His fans adore him as a “power star” while his critics dismiss him as a maverick and mercurial person with unclear motives.
“Pawanism”, a compilation of the actor’s observations on life and society in general, has entered the lexicon of Tollywood. A mishmash of high-sounding yet naïve and often superficial assertions, Pawanism has a loyal following, particularly among the youth.
There is a massive army of his fans, who call themselves “Pawan Sena” and turn into online warriors to defend their hero from the mocking memes and spoofs on the actor. He has 5.8 million followers on Twitter.
Restless, Brooding
Kalyan is the younger brother of the megastar of Telugu cinema K Chiranjeevi whose tryst with politics ended in a disaster.
Having made his debut in 1996 with “Akkada Ammayi, Ikkada Abbayi”, Pawan has a string of hits and awards under his belt. Known for his penchant for unconventional style of filmmaking, he has produced and directed a couple of movies. Forbes listed him among the top 100 Indian celebrities while he was the most searched Indian personality on Google in 2014 when he launched Jana Sena Party.
For someone who had five consecutive mega hits that earned him fame, fortune and fans, Pawan comes across as a brooding and lonely person yearning for some higher purpose in life.
In the media interviews he gave ahead of his political foray, the actor spoke about his inclination towards socialist ideology and revealed how he was
awe-struck by the history of socialist revolutions around the world. He made known his admiration for Latin American revolutionary Che Guevara.
Pawan floated Jana Sena in March 2014 but was largely inactive and reclusive for a long time. The mercurial star had supported the NDA, saying he was a big fan of Narendra Modi. He had even campaigned for the TDP-BJP combine, a factor that played a key role in the TDP coming to power in AP.
His Jana Sena Party bombed at the ballot box in the 2019 polls. It managed to win just one assembly seat. The lack of organisational structure and absence of concrete policies and programmes were cited as the reasons for his electoral debacle.
In the recent elections, a resurgent Jana Sena supremo played a key role in bringing the TDP and BJP together and forging a broader alliance that succeeded in unseating YSRCP from power.
Follow us
