BACHCHAN HAS TO DECIDE

Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan is facing a huge dilemma. From the time his close friend Amar Singh has been expelled from the Samajwadi party (SP), both Bachchan & Singh have been looking for a new political patronage. Given the number of controversies the Bachchans have been involved in, it is imperative for them to get some concrete political shelter.

Bachchan’s parents shared a very close & cordial relationship with the Nehru-Gandhi family. Bachchan himself was a very good friend of Rajiv Gandhi. But things changed drastically after Rajiv Gandhi’s death. The two families started drifting away and reached a point where the bitterness with the two was out in the public. In the 90’s when Bachchan was going through financial crisis, the Gandhis didn’t do much to help them out. It was during this period that Amar Singh’s proximity to Bachchan grew and eventually also brought him closer to Amar Singh’s Samajawadi party. In the early part of this decade Amar

Singh, Amitabh Bachchan & industrialist Anil Ambani became to be known as the famous ‘A’ group. This was also the time when the Samajawadi party was not only growing in UP but also had a strong growing influence in Delhi. But for the last 4 years Samajwadi Party has been on the decline. And during that period Amar Singh’s open fight with Samajwadi’s top bosses also didn’t do much good for the Bachchans. And now with Amar Singh out of Samajwadi, things are looking dicey for the Bachchans & Singh.

Bachchan’s proximity to Bal Thackeray has been growing for years even during the time he was in SP. Though last year when Jaya Bachchan (Amitabh’s wife) had to face Raj Thackarey’s rage for insulting the so called sentiments of the Marathi people, Bal Thackeray did not back him publicly. Surprisingly just a couple of months back the Shiv Sena went on a rampage against Shahrukh Khan for criticizing the non-selection of Pakistani players in this edition of the IPL. Where as on the other hand no one including Bal Thackarey even uttered a word against Amitabh Bachchan even though he publicly criticized the non inclusion of the same Pakistani players in the IPL and he was also the brand ambassador of the peace initiative by the two leading English dailies of India & Pakistan.

But given Bal Thackeray’s declining power & influence in national politics & with no Samajwadi to back him anymore, Bachchan needs to look for new political friends. Last month to everyone’s surprise Bachchan landed up in Gujarat to screen his latest hit ‘Paa’ for none other then Narendra Modi. A new friendship was seen brewing between the two when Bachchan immediately agreed to become the brand ambassador for the state of Gujarat. This growing proximity between Bachchan & BJP’s posterboy has send ripples across political circles. But another stunner came this week when Amitabh Bachchan was invited by the Congress government in Maharashtra to inaugurate the 2nd phase of the famous Bandra-Worli sea link in Mumbai. While just a year back the 1st phase of the same sea link was inaugurated by Sonia Gandhi. This latest invitation is seen by many in political circles as an indication by both the Congress & Bachchan for a public patch up. And this would have never been possible with out the permission of Sonia Gandhi.

It would be interesting to see in the near future which party will Bachchan publicly show more inclination. With bollywood always landing in the middle of some political conspiracy or the other, Bachchan is trying to keep good terms with all the parties. But on bigger issues it would be imperative for Bachchan to take a clear stand. With Shiv Sena on the political downslide and Raj Thackeray waiting for an opportunity to attack Bachchan again, Bachchan will have to make sure that atleast one out of the Congress or BJP gives him political protection. The emperor of bollywood desperately needs allies for future security. This script could end up having a much more thrilling climax compared to any other superhit bollywood movie would have had.

THE AMAR STORY IS NOT OVER YET!

A few days back a senior political journalist described Amar Singh as the king of television ‘sound bytes’ for his punch comments (statements given on television cameras) with the distinct potential of delivering political maneouvers with same force. The expulsion of Amar Singh from the Samajwadi party does not come as a surprise given the sequence of events that transpired between him and the party over the last few weeks. But the big question on everyone’s mind is –what next? Is this the end of Amar Singh?

Many in the media and political circles believe this is the end of Amar Singh. But my answer is ‘no’. As mentioned earlier he has been the media’s favourite for his blunt

sound bytes. But Amar Singh has done much more then just giving colorful dialogues to news reporters. He is someone who has bridged the divide between corporate India & politics. Though businessmen & politicians always co-existed and worked together but never before were they so candid in displaying their connection in public life. Anil Ambani, Suburato Roy rubbing shoulders with Mulayam Singh and other politicians in public glare was unveiled only when Amar emerged on the scene. He was also instrumental in adding the bollywood glamour to the socialist, cadre based party.

Amar Singh was the key reason behind the huge funding the Samjwadi party received over the years. He was the main fund raiser for the party. When Amar joined the party 14 years back Mulayam had no clue how to draw big personalities into their fold.

Another unique attribute about Amar is that he has the reputation of being a star ‘fixer’ or ‘dealer’ with the potential to negotiate and strike any political deal. When the BSP-BJP alliance collapsed in Uttar Pradesh in 2003, Amar was instrumental in poaching rebel BSP candidates which helped Mulayam Singh become the chief minister of the state for the third time.

But the mother of all deals was the one in 2008 when the Samajwadi party extended outside support to the Congress for the trust vote on the nuclear deal. Had it not been for Amar Singh, there is a possibility that Manmohan Singh’s dream to implement the US-Indo deal would have been left half way.

For Mulayam Singh being out of power both at the centre and the state has compelled him to take desperate measures. With his family now running party like family business, Mulayam has send the message loud and clear that as long as one falls in line with his family members they are welcome.

But what next for Amar Singh? Many say that he is cozying up to Maywati and the Congress to get a political haven. Amar does not have much of a choice…but if he joins the Congress it will be a win-win situation for both as far as UP is concern. Even though Amar is not a mass leader but still along with the Congress he can work towards weakening the Samajwadi party vote bank. Having been in the party for one and half decade he can play a major role in attacking the Samajwadi Party on their weak areas.

For the Congress, the weaker the Samajwadi gets the more it gains as this would lead to a two party competition in UP, with Mayawati’s BSP the only other competitor. But many second rung leaders in the Congress wouldn’t like to see Amar Singh in the party as he would be a threat for them. Unless the Congress is very clear in limiting his role only till UP.

Another choice for him would be join a smaller party like the NCP which does not have a base in North India. But that would not offer him much political clout as he enjoyed in the Samajwadi. Though he may have a much stronger voice in a smaller party compared to what he may enjoy in the Congress.

Another important factor Amar has to bear in mind is the interest of close family friends like the Bachchans and Anil Ambani. The Gandhi family and Bachchans don’t get along, ruling out any support for them even from the Congress even if Amar joins the party. Similarly, Congress is known to be closer to Mukesh Ambani which is not good news for Anil Ambani.

Amar Singh has a tough task ahead. Many would say that the Samajwadi party will move on but Amar Singh won’t. But the fact is that Amar Singh was the face of Samajwadi at the centre and there is no one who can fill his place. Life for Samajwadi will definitely be not easy going ahead. And as far as Amar is concern, the king of ‘sound bytes’ will bounce back sooner than later. The Amar political story is not over yet!!