Tuhina Sahoo
Bhubaneswar, May 20: In recent years, the Odia film industry has encountered numerous challenges, including a decline in viewership. As a result, many regional cine stars from Odisha are increasingly shifting their focus from films to politics, particularly with the simultaneous Lok Sabha and Assembly elections looming in the state.
Since the 2009 elections, there has been a noticeable trend of film stars venturing into politics in Odisha. Late actor Bijay Mohanty and actress Aparajita Mohanty notably contested from Bhubaneswar and Cuttack Lok Sabha seats, respectively, in the 2014 elections on Congress tickets. Despite their efforts, they were unsuccessful. Aparajita later contested and lost from the Bhubaneswar North Assembly seat in the 2019 polls as a BJP nominee.
Similarly, veteran actress Mahasweta Ray joined the BJP in 2018 but did not contest the subsequent elections.
In the lead-up to the 2014 polls, actress Pinky Pradhan and comedian Papu Pom Pom aligned themselves with the BJP and BJD, respectively. Although Papu unsuccessfully contested the Assembly elections in 2014, Pinky faced defeat in the 2019 elections. It is anticipated that more Odia actors will enter the political arena in the near future.
Notably, Anubhav, Sidhant, Akash, and Arindam joined the BJP after losing hope of securing tickets from the BJD to contest the upcoming polls. The saffron party has nominated Sidhant for the Digapahandi Assembly seat, a constituency under the Berhampur Lok Sabha seat that he represented from 2009 to 2019. Akash, on the other hand, is the BJP's nominee for the Korei Assembly seat, which he previously represented from 2014 to 2019.
Other prominent actors affiliated with the BJD include sitting Rajya Sabha Member Munna Khan and Kuna Tripathy, Chairman of Odisha Film Development Corporation. Additionally, Manoj Mishra, a major star known for his work in both Odia and Hindi films, is the Congress nominee for the Balangir parliamentary seat in the upcoming polls, having recently joined the party.
The involvement of film stars in Odisha politics is not a new phenomenon. Yesteryears’ superstar Prashanta Nanda, whose tenure as a Rajya Sabha Member of the BJD concluded earlier this year, has been actively engaged in politics since the 2000 elections. He has previously contested Assembly elections from the BJP and the erstwhile Nationalist Congress Party before eventually joining the BJD and serving as a Minister in the Naveen Patnaik Government.
