- It comes as no surprise that Tollywood, Bengal’s cinema industry, is at the centre stage of its upcoming state assembly elections.
- Mamata Banerjee, the incumbent Chief Minister of the state and leader of the Trinamool Congress, has played this card earlier too.
- But this time she sees a much wider and stronger competition from the Bharatiya Janata Party.
There’s barely a day in the good ol’ Bengali household without an
adda (gathering) that involves
cha (tea), cinema, cricket (only when football doesn’t take precedence) and of course, politics. And with the assembly election fever hitting its peak in the state, it comes as no surprise that Tollywood – Bengal’s cinema industry – is at the centre stage of its upcoming state assembly elections.
Hoping to get votes from the movie lovers and sports aficionados in West Bengal – the land of legends like Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak and Soumitra Chatterjee – a few superstars (of past and present) have entered the political arena.
Of course, it's not a new sight.
Mamata Banerjee (more affectionately called as Didi), the incumbent Chief Minister of the state and leader of the Trinamool Congress (TMC), has played this card earlier, too. From Dev to Soham Chakraborty to Mimi and Nusrat Jahan, Bengal’s Didi has used celebrities to garner votes, both during the assembly as well as the general elections.
And, as Didi looks at a third consecutive term, she has tough competition from the Narendra Modi and Amit Shah-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which has put forward its own list of celebrities – from Mithun Chakraborty to Payel Sarkar.
Here’s a look at Mamata Banerjee’s ensemble cast who are leading the fight in some of the toughest constituencies.