Even Left parties don't seem to be immune to the dazzle of celluloid any longer. Kerala's ruling Left Democratic Front (LDF) appears set to field south Indian cinema's superstar Mammootty in the forthcoming Lok Sabha elections.
Though formal talks are yet to begin, LDF leaders said the move will have wide acceptability among all LDF partners. "We have always supported artistes and cultural activists. And Mammootty is known to be a Left sympathiser. What is wrong if we consider his name," a senior Left leader said on condition of anonymity.
In a career spanning more than a quarter of a century, Mammootty has acted in more than 300 movies - mostly Malayalam but some also in other languages, including Hindi. He has thrice won the national award and has also been honoured with the Padmashree.
He could be fielded from either Ernakulam, where he is based, or the Ponnani or Mancheri seats.
Minister of state for external affairs and Indian Union Muslim League (IUML) leader E. Ahamed currently represents Ponnani. The seat has returned only IUML candidates since 1977. But LDF believes Mammootty's presence can create troubles for the IUML here.
In Mancheri, another IUML stronghold, Mammootty had worked as an advocate briefly. If the actor is fielded from here, sitting MP and CPM leader T.. K. Hamsa could be shifted to Ponnani, as he is quite popular in the Muslim- dominated Malappuram district.
Though he was not available for comments, Mammootty has hinted at a possible jump into politics in recent interviews as well as on a blogsite he launched on New Year Day. In his first post, titled Politics of Economy, he wrote no one should take the global economic meltdown lightly.
"An economy that can meet the crisis must be envisaged. We need new economic habits and intelligent investments, " he said. Many respondents also asked him to be more active" in politics.
Mammootty also dwelt at length about his concern for the "socio- political situation" in three interviews he gave on January 1 to major Malayalam channels.
He made similar speeches during his unscheduled visit to the State School Youth Festival on December 31.
Last year, he had addressed the national conference of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI), the youth wing of CPM. He told the meet the Gujarat riots of 2002 would not have taken place had organisations like the DYFI been active there.
Mammootty is also the chairman of the CPM- funded Kairali television channel. But his presence at the release of the Malayalam translation of BJP leader L. K. Advani's autobiography late last year raised a lot of Leftist eyebrows in the state.
His massive popularity as a filmstar, however, does not guarantee political success.
Kerala stands out among south Indian states for not taking kindly to the ilk of actorsturned- politicians. Popular film and stage actor Murali contested the 1998 general elections from Alappuzha on a CPM ticket, but lost to veteran Congress leader V. M. Sudheeran by a huge margin. Iconic Malayalam star Prem Naseer also tried his luck in politics, but could not make an impact.
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