Megastar Chiranjeevi Political News

Cong move to rope in Chiru to 'check' Jagan

2009-09-10T04:23:00.000-07:00

The story goes that within days of coming back to power, YSR had opened channels with Chiranjeevi’s Prajarajyam to make him merge with the Congress to consolidate his as well as Congress position in the state.

Now in an encore of sorts, within days of YSR’s demise, the party high command has begun exploring the same option and one reason is to check the perceived control of Jagan over the state unit.

Sources say that Allu Aravind, brother-in-law and manager of Chiranjeevi, has been sounded to convince the actor to deliver his 18 MLAs. Chiranjeevi’s response is not known, but political watchers said that he may be game. Aravind may be more keen, a Congress source said. These 18 MLAs will not owe allegiance to Jagan and this will help the high command to take an independent decision on the next CM. It will also help in solidifying the Kapu vote behind the Congress, a political analyst said.

Source : http://www.greatandhra.com/ganews/viewnews.php?id=15997&cat=&scat=16

I am disappointed - Chiru

2009-08-26T09:28:00.001-07:00

Normally, it should have been a festive occasion for the Praja Rajyam Party, which has completed one year of its formation on Wednesday. But the euphoria was glaringly missing at the PRP office.

PRP president Chiranjeevi hoisted the party flag at the party office and addressed a small gathering, before returning to the Assembly to participate in the proceedings. He admitted that the election results were a disappointment to him, as the PRP could not come to power as expected.

“However, we are still committed to our goal of achieving social justice. We are not worried about the people who had left us. Those who were with me (read Allu Aravind) at the time of founding the party are still with me (where is Dr Mitra?) and we will take the party forward into victory in 2014 elections. We are going to win the Tekkali byelection and show to the world that we may be down, but not out,” he said.

Source: Greatandhra

Chiranjeevi's Flop Show

2009-08-26T09:26:00.000-07:00

Like superstar Chiranjeevi’s movies, it was a houseful during his party’s launch rally last year. Millions of people had thronged to witness the mega event. Tirupati had become Chirupati on that day. Exactly a year later, the situation is totally different.

His party, Prajarajyam, is a flop show and Chiranjeevi seems like a defeated general after a long battle. With no friends and only a few fans in politics, he is a worried man. Most leaders have already left him and the rest are waiting for a chance to leave.

“What has been happening is a kind of cleansing process. We are very happy. Those who stay with us now are the real well wishers of Prajarajyam,” an optimistic Chiranjeevi said.

Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YSR Reddy who had engineered a rift in the PRP even before the polls is now smiling. According to insiders, Reddy wants Chiranjeevi to merge with the Congress. But, Chiranjeevi's pride and ego are coming in the way.

“As far as Chiranjeevi is concerned neither we are trying nor has he sent us any feelers,” APCC president D Srinivas said.

When Chiranjeevi first entered politics, many saw him as the next NTR but the actor-politician could not become the next superstar of Andhra politics.

For his fans, Chiranjeevi, the politician, has been a disappointment. They blame the highhandedness of his family members and coterie around the actor for his failure.

“Just because NTR made it big in politics does not mean everyone else can also do it,” a fan said. While another one added, “Lack of political knowledge and incompetence are the reasons for his failure. It is not all about the fame game.”

So as Chiranjeevi's party completes one year, there will be little to celebrate but more introspection to be done. His fans can only hope that Chiranjeevi will at least now realise that reel life and real life are exactly the opposite, and success on the big screen is no guarantee of stardom in politics.

Source: Greatandhra

Chiranjeevi dons role of legislator

2009-06-03T20:35:00.000-07:00

Telugu superstar-turned-politician K. Chiranjeevi Wednesday began a new innings in his career when he entered the Andhra Pradesh legislative assembly as a member.

Elected from Tirupati constituency, the Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) president entered the premises of the assembly to a warm welcome by his party colleagues.

However, his entry was also marked by protest from a former PRP leader Masala Eranna, who had quit the party before elections to protest the denial of ticket. Police later whisked away Eranna when he was trying to enter the house raising slogans of “Chiranjeevi down down”.

Clad in white with a green scarf, Chiranjeevi, the floor leader of PRP, took oath as member of the 13th legislative assembly, whose first session began with members taking oath of allegiance to the Constitution of India and vowed to abide by the assembly rules.

The 53-year-old Chiranjeevi, who launched PRP in August last year after a three-decade long successful film career, took oath in Telugu amid thumping of desks by his party legislators.

Before entering the house, the actor told reporters that his party would play the role of a constructive opposition and take up people’s issues in the house.

Though claiming to be a strong contender for power, PRP finished a poor third with 18 seats in 294-member assembly in April elections. Chiranjeevi himself lost the polls from Palacole in his native West Godavari district, though he was elected from temple town of Tirupati.

Bureaucrat-turned-politician Jayaprakash Narayan also made a beginning as the state legislator. The Lok Satta president was elected from Kukatpally constituency in the state capital on the slogan of clean politics.

Though Jayaprakash Narayan was the only Lok Satta candidate elected, the party made an impressive beginning by polling significant number of votes, especially in urban constituencies.

Jayaprakash Narayan, who took oath in the name of the sacred office of the legislator, had quit as an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) official in mid 1990s to launch Lok Satta, a movement for democratic reforms. In 2007, he turned the movement into a political party.

Earlier, the session began after state governor Narayan Dutt Tiwari administered oath to senior Congress party legislator J.C. Diwakar Reddy as protem speaker at Raj Bhavan.

Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy was the first to take oath as legislator followed by leader of opposition and Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N. Chandrababu Naidu.

After the two leaders, the ministers took the oath. Two out of 35 cabinet ministers could not take oath as they were away attending the last rites of newly elected Congress legislator K. Revatipathi who died Tuesday following cardiac arrest.

His death brought the strength of Congress party to 155 in 294-member house.

For the first time in its 26-year-old history, TDP is sitting in opposition for the second consecutive term. The party bagged 92 seats against 45 seats it held in the previous assembly.

Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS) won 10 seats, down from 26 in 2004 elections. Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (MIM) improved its tally from five to seven.

Communist Party of India (CPI) won four, against six in the last elections. The strength of CPI-M came down from seven to one. BJP remained at two while three independents were also elected.

Chiranjeevi's glamour fails to impress voters

2009-05-16T23:35:00.000-07:00

The glamour quotient of Telugu superstar K. Chiranjeevi failed to garner votes as his Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) appeared to be heading
for a crushing defeat in the Andhra Pradesh assembly elections.

Despite a high-pitch campaign and tall claims, the PRP launched by the actor in August last year came a cropper as the votes were counted Saturday.

Initial trends from all 294 assembly constituencies show the party is leading in only 20 assembly constituencies. The party candidates are leading in two out of 42 Lok Sabha constituencies.

The only consolation for Chiranjeevi is that despite a poor performance, his party may hold the key to power as both the ruling Congress party and the four-party grand alliance led by Telugu Desam Party (TDP) appear to stop short of majority.

There was gloom in PRP camp, as the actor had been hopeful of his party reaching the magic figure of 148.

Chiranjeevi himself was trailing in Palacole assembly constituency in his native West Godavari district, though he was ahead in Tirupati, the other assembly segment he is contesting.

The party failed to make any impact even in East and West Godavari districts and some other parts of coastal Andhra, where it was expected to do well. The presence of PRP only seemed to have affected the prospects of TDP in some constituencies and of Congress in some others.

The trends are a big blow to the 53-year-old actor, who had launched the party with a mammoth public meeting in Tirupati amid high expectations from his fans.

After a three-decade-long film career, his plunge into politics was expected to dramatically alter the political equations in the state. Pundits had compared the event to the political entry of the legendary actor N.T. Rama Rao, who created history by coming to power within nine months after launching TDP in 1982.

Though as a film star the popularity of Chiranjeevi was comparable to that of NTR, he failed to match NTR in politics.

Chiranjeevi, who launched the party on the slogan of social justice, had hoped to become the first Andhra Pradesh chief minister from his Kapu community. Despite having a sizeable majority, the community is yet to have its leader as chief minister in a state where most of the chief ministers were either from Reddys or Kammas, the two dominant castes.

The migration of several leaders from TDP to Chiranjeevi's camp also failed to help the party. PRP's prospects were also hit by series of resignations by its leaders before the elections to protest the manner in which tickets were distributed.

Babu on break And Chiru at work

2009-05-09T03:15:00.000-07:00

In a reversal of roles, Telugu Desam Party (TDP) president N Chandrababu Naidu left for vacation and Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) president Chiranjeevi is conducting review meetings with party leaders. The seasoned politician that he is, it is unusual that Naidu has taken a break at a time when party leaders are worried over the TDP’s prospects in the elections.
Naidu, who is known for conducting a series of review meetings and tele-conferences with party leaders, left for foreign countries along with his family. After the two-phase elections, Naidu briefly reviewed the party position with his leaders. He took a break from his routine and wanted to take rest in an undisclosed foreign location.
Contrary to expectations, starturned politician Chiranjeevi opted to stay in the city. He is busy with review meetings with party leaders over the performance of the party in the elections.
The meetings will continue till May 15. Naidu, who is eyeing the Chief Minister’s ‘gaddi’, will return to the city on May 8 and might start his regular business of review meetings with district leaders from May 9.
Despite the talk that Naidu may play the ‘king-maker’ in national politics, he is away from the country, while, Chiranjeevi, who is expected to emerge as a ‘king-maker’ in State politics is busy conducting meetings.

Chiranjeevi's Voice In Mobile Phones

2009-04-15T03:04:00.000-07:00

Don’t be surprised if you hear the voice of megastar Chiranjeevi on your mobile but at the same time, don’t start responding to him thinking he is on the other line. This is part of the megastar’s canvassing process as part of the elections that is causing a surprise and also some confusion.

It is said that a voice message is being sent to many mobile users so when they take a call, it is Chiru greeting and saying’ hello, this is your Chiranjeevi speaking, please vote for PRP blah blah..’. At the onset, many are thinking that it is a live call and are reacting to Chiru’s voice only to realize it is not so.

On the other hand, there are those who are expressing annoyance since they would be in the middle of something important and attend to the call thinking it is important only to hear the voice of Chiru and his typical accent urging one and all to vote for his party. It remains to be seen if his ‘voice’ will bring any ‘Marpu’ or not.

Best of luck to Chiru From Nagarjuna

2009-04-15T03:03:00.000-07:00

Hero Nagarjuna and Chiranjeevi are good friends. They are also business partners and both have a substantial stake in MAA TV. The two however are now on not so friendly terms after Chiranjeevi entered politics and launched his own political party.

Nagarjuna is now openly supporting chief minister YS Rajashekar Reddy and asking people to vote for the congress. Nagarjuna said that Chiranjeevi may not have done the right thing by entering politics. He said that the smile has gone from Chiru’s face and he is no longer as happy as he was used to be when in films.

Nagarjuna wished Chiranjeevi luck in his new role as a politician. Nag said that politics was tough and it was hard to make it to the top in politics. Nagarjuna hoped that Chiru will succeed in politics like he did in films.

Nobody invited Chiru into politics – Jr. NTR

2009-04-15T03:00:00.000-07:00

“Chiranjeevi ni Bottu petti evaru Rajakeeyalloki Rammani pilavaledu.. Aayanaki Cheera saare petti everu pilavaledu”. These are the exact words used by Jr. NTR to the claim made by Chiranjeevi several times that the people had invited him to better politics.

Jr. NTR came down heavily on the congress and also the Praja Rajyam Party in his speech. Jr. NTR ridiculed the claim of the PRP Chief Chiranjeevi that the people had invited him to enter politics. Jr. NTR said that a true leader is born and not ‘invited’ by thh people to come and do good to the society.

Jr. NTR asked who invited Gandhiji to take up the freedom struggle. Who invited Netaji to rebel against the British army? Who invited the late NT Rama Rao to come into politics and serve the people? No one!

Jr. NTR said that all great people come and do good to the society on their own calling and don’t wait to be ‘invited’. Jr. NTR said that no one invited Chiranjeevi to enter politics by applying tilak on his forehead and presenting him with a sari.

PRP chief takes on Naidu

2009-04-14T04:12:00.001-07:00

VISAKHAPATNAM: Film star-turned-politician and founder of Praja Rajyam Chiranjeevi launched a broadside against Telugu Desam president N. Chandrababu Naidu for calling him ‘inefficient and will not be able to run a Government’.
Roadshow

Speaking at a roadshow at Anakapalle, 40 km from here on Monday night, Mr. Chiranjeevi said he has been in the film industry as a top hero and No. 1. “Is it not efficiency?” he asked.

“On the other hand Mr. Naidu failed to be an opposition leader in the Assembly. When Chief Minister Dr. Rajasekhara Reddy told him to sit down, he could not do anything.

Mr. Naidu failed to prove the many corruption charges against Dr. Reddy”.

The Praja Rajyam leader said while Mr. Naidu is a retailer in corruption, the Chief Minister was a wholesale dealer.

Reacting to a reported statement by Mr. Naidu that Praja Rajyam had given tickets to upper caste candidates in the guise of BCs, Mr. Chiranjeevi challenged the TDP leader to prove the charge.

If the charge was proved, he would quit politics and if not Mr. Naidu must take sanyas from politics, he demanded.

Mr. Chiranjeeevi reached the Nehru Chowk in the jaggery town after 9 p.m. to canvass for his brother-in-law and an important figure in the party Allu Aravind, who is contesting for the Lok Sabha and Ganta Srinivasa Rao for the Anakapalle Assembly seat.

A woman supporter presented Mr. Chiranjeevi with a locomotive, party’s symbol, made of jaggery.

Another fan presented a pair of costly sunglasses. A large number of party supporters gathered to listen to Chiranjeevi.

The PR leader was stopped at several places as he came to Anakapalle from Elamanchili and had to conclude the day’s campaign in Anakapalle as the deadline approached.

I am ready to quit politics: Chiru

2009-04-14T04:11:00.001-07:00

Responding angrily to the statement given by Parakala Prabhakar Praja Rajyam party President Chiranjeevi said that, his allegations of allotting BC seats to bogus BC candidates are false. If he can prove it, I am ready to quit the politics. I challenge him to come forward with strong evidence and prove us that our 40 BC candidates are not BCs and they belong to Upper casts.

Pawan Kalyan discharged

2009-04-14T04:09:00.001-07:00

The Yuva Rajyam president, the youth wing of the Praja Rajyam Party (PRP), Mr Pavan Kalyan, was on Tuesday discharged from hospital. Doctors said that he needs rest for at least another two days.

Mr Pavan Kalyan was admitted to a corporate hospital in the city after he got fainted due to sun stroke. The Yuva Rajyam president was suffering from high fever for the past three days and suddenly collapsed on Monday evening while he was on way to Ramnagar area of the city for campaigning after completing his electioneering in the Amberpet Assembly segment.

He was immediately admitted in Yashoda Hospital,Secunderabad.

Chiranjeevi Wished Jr.N.T.R Speedy Recovery@YUPPTV.com

2009-04-08T05:03:00.001-07:00

Chiranjeevi vs Karunakar Reddy In Tirupati

2009-04-04T00:27:00.000-07:00

Bhumana Karunakar Reddy, who is all set to collide head-on with ‘mega star’ Chiranjeevi, filed his nomination for the Tirupati Assembly constituency on Thursday amid great excitement and expectations.

The colourful procession took off at RTC crossroad after Mr. Reddy garlanded the statues of Dr. Ambedkar and Mahatma Gandhi.

Braving the blistering heat, his followers turned out in impressive numbers ahead of the motorcade.

The convoy passed through congested areas like Peddakapu Street, Bandla Street, Nethaji Road and Rayalacheruvu Road before culminating at the RDO’s office.

Incumbent legislator M.Venkatramana, former civic chief V. Muniratnam and his deputy D. Prasannakumar Reddy, TUDA Chairman Ch. Bhaskar Reddy, district Mahila Congress president K. Prameelamma, INTUC district president Mabbu Chenga Reddy, city Congress president Palagiri Pratap Reddy and other senior leaders were part of the procession.

As ‘super star’ Krishna announced his support to the Congress, members of the Tirupati Krishna-Mahesh Fans Association also joined the procession.

Auspicious time
Mr. Reddy hurried into the RDO’s office just minutes before the chosen ‘muhurtham’ to file the nomination papers, leaving his drum-totting followers well behind, understandably for fear of incurring the wrath of the ever-vigilant Election Commission.

Mr. Reddy announced that the Chief Minister’s development mantra alone would triumph and the “greasepaint” was all set to fade.

“I am sure the sanction of funds under Prime Minister Swasthya Suraksha Yojana (PMSSY) to SVIMS, Municipal Corporation status to Tirupati, establishment of SV Veterinary University and sanction of Rs.1,380 crore to the city under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) will endear me to my voters”, he told mediapersons.

Courtesy-The Hindu

PRP releases second list of candidates

2009-03-30T00:08:00.000-07:00

The Praja Rajyam Party has released the names of its candidates for 13 Lok Sabha and 60 Assembly constituencies for the April elections in Andhra Pradesh.

PRP general secretary Allu Aravind released the party's second list on Sunday amidst protests by activists from various constituencies over denial of tickets to their respective leaders.

Former Indian Administrative Service officer Thota Chandrasekhar has been nominated as the party candidate for the Guntur Lok Sabha seat, while former MP Bhuma Nagi Reddy, who switched sides from the Telugu Desam Party, has been given the Nandyal Lok Sabha ticket.

Another former TDP leader S A Khaleel Basha is being fielded from Kadapa Lok Sabha constituency against Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy's son Y S Jaganmohan Reddy. Former Union minister P Shiv Shanker's son P Vinay Kumar is being fielded from Nizamabad Lok Sabha constituency. Of the 13 candidates for the Lok Sabha, three each are from backward classes, upper castes, minorities and Scheduled Castes while one woman too was given a ticket.

Former minister J Chittaranjan Das, known as the "giant killer" for having defeated the legendary N T Rama Rao in Kalwakurthy in Mahbubnagar district in 1989, has been given the PRP ticket from the same Assembly constituency. He defected to the PRP from the Congress.

There are no other big names in the PRPs second list for the Assembly.

Sticking to its "social justice" plank, the party gave 21 seats to BCs, 12 to SCs, 11 to STs, 14 to upper castes, two to minorities and seven to women.

The PRP has so far announced candidates for 23 of the 42 Lok Sabha seats and 160 of the 294 Assembly seats in the state.

Aravind asked Rs 5 crore for ticket: NRI

2009-03-06T04:49:00.001-08:00

What is the cost of each ticket in Praja Rajyam Party? According to Guntur district co-convenor Satya Vasam Setty, it is between Rs 3 crore to Rs 5 crore.

Setty, a US-based NRI, who resigned from the party on Thursday, has alleged that PRP leader Allu Aravind is openly demanding money from the ticket aspirants. “I was shocked, when he asked me to pay Rs 5 crore to get the party ticket for the next elections. This is atrocious. I spent huge amounts in promoting the party among the NRIs and also in the district, How can they ask me money?” he said.

Well, it is not just PRP. It is the case with every political party, including the Telangana Rashtra Samiti. Money is what all matters, not your hard work or popularity, my dear.

Apologise first, Chiru tells Roja

2009-03-02T04:45:00.001-08:00

Praja Rajyam Party president Chiranjeevi has put forth a proposal before Telugu Mahila president Roja to buy peace with her, in the wake of recent controversy between her and PRP mahila wing president Sobha Rani.

While regretting for the comments made by Sobha Rani against Roja, Chiranjeevi told media persons on Monday that he was prepared to convince Sobha to tender an apology to Roja, provided the latter, too, does the same. “Let us confine to this particular incident. It is a fact that myself and my family members are deeply hurt with the comments made by her (he did not name Roja) without any basis. Let her express regrets for the same and apologise first. I will definitely ask my people to take back their words,” he said.

Chiranjeevi said he had talked to Sobha Rani and reprimanded her for making personal allegations against Roja. “It is not proper to resort to wild personal allegations in politics. The criticism should be limited to policies and ideologies,” he said.

Chiru's strange claim on vote bank!

2009-02-06T22:11:00.000-08:00

Megastar and Praja Rajyam Party president Chiranjeevi has made a strange claim before the High Court, while challenging the decision of Election Commission of India not to grant a common symbol for his party candidates all over the State.

Chiranjeevi has claimed that there is a 16 per cent vote bank for him in the State. One may wonder how he could claim the vote bank, when his party did not contest a single election in the State so far. His argument, however, is that nearly 50 lakh people had enrolled as PRP members during the recent membership drive and they constitute 16 per cent of the total number of voters in the State.

But EC will not go by the membership enrolment, because there is every possibility that the membership records are fudged and fabricated. Membership enrolment does not mean, all those who had enrolled would vote for PRP.

It may be noted that in 2004 elections, Telugu Desam did not get as many votes as the number of members it had enrolled before the elections. So, EC won't accept such a claim!

Chiranjeevi Speech In Srikakulam District

2009-02-06T22:09:00.002-08:00

Chiranjeevi Speech At Gorantla

2009-02-06T22:09:00.001-08:00

Watch Pawan Kalyan Renudesai Marriage Video

2009-01-30T22:10:00.000-08:00

Balakrishna Says PRP Asalu Poti Kadu : Video

2009-01-30T22:05:00.000-08:00

Balaiah ready to contest against Chiru!

2009-01-30T22:00:00.000-08:00

Telugu Desam star campaigner Nandamuri Balakrishna is more than ready to contest against megastar and Praja Rajyam president Chiranjeevi in the next elections.

"If the party directs me to do so, I am prepared to contest even against Chiranjeevi. Or for that matter from anywhere in the State. And I challenge that I will emerge victorious in this contest," he said.

However, Balaiah made it clear that except him, no other person from NTR family would contest the elections. "Jr NTR, Taraka Ratna and Kalyam Ram will campaign for the party, but not contest the elections at present," he said.

Why Chiru is bothered about NTR?

2009-01-26T21:03:00.000-08:00

Why is Praja Rajyam party president Chiranjeevi making so much fuss about Telugu Desam party carrying N T Rama Rao's portrait during its election campaign?

According to TD leaders, the answer is simple: If TD highlights NTR during its campaign, people would definitely draw a comparison between him and Chiranjeevi. Already, Chiru's speeches have failed to generate any enthusiasm among the people, as they are dull and drab. They are coming in large numbers to his meetings, but they are finding that his speeches do not have any punch and sting that NTR used to have.

And once Balakrishna enters the scene and goes about with his road shows with NTR's portrait in the backdrop, people will definitely get attracted towards him. Hence, Chiru is raking up the issue of NTR to convey to the people that the NTR legacy in TD had already been lost.

Pavan wants ACB raids on politicians

2009-01-24T04:23:00.000-08:00

Coming up with a new idea to end corruption in public life, Yuvarajyam president Pavan Kalyan on Friday called for the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) raids against politicians too.

“It is not good to restrict the ACB raids to government employees. Instead, there should be more raids against the public representatives and politicians to unearth their black money,” he said. The youth wing leader said that the ACB raids against politicians would help recover hundreds of crores of rupees amassed in various projects.

Kalyan, who was on the fourth day of his tour to Karimnagar district, began his yatra from Karimnagar town. He went to the Yellampally irrigation project site where he undertook a padayatra and alleged that the ruling party leaders have amassed crores of rupees by hiking the estimates in the project cost.

Chiru promise to cost Rs 15,000 crore

2009-01-08T04:41:00.000-08:00

Believe it or not, it causes a burden of more than Rs 15,000 crore per year on the exchequer, if Praja Rajyyam Party president Chiranjeevi has to implement his "Vandake Vantinti Saruku" (Essential commodities for Rs 100) scheme if he comes to power.

Chiranjeevi thought his scheme would work wonders, as Rs 2 a kg rice scheme did for N T Rama Rao at the time of formation of Telugu Desam. Though Chiru made the grandiose announcement, there was no proper response from crowds. On the other hand, people who have gained a lot of awareness in the last two decades, are questioning the rationale behind Chiranjeevi's scheme.

According to a survey, it would cost not less than Rs 650 to provide all the commodities promised by the PRP president – 25 kg of rice, one kg of edible oil, one kg of red gram, one kg of tamarind and chilli powder. Interestingly, he did not include onions in the list. Taking that, too, into consideration, the total cost would go up to Rs 675 as per the present rates (God knows what would be the cost of these commodities by the time Chiru comes to power).

Taking 2 crore white ration cards into account, it would cost Rs 1300 crore per month on these commodities. For 12 months, the total expenditure comes to Rs 15,600 crore. And the consumers will pay only Rs 200 crore per month, which means the revenue will be only Rs 2,400 crore. Apart from these commodities, the government would have to supply sugar and kerosene also on white ration cards. So, you can imagine the total burden on the government.

So, don't try to fool voters, Chiru! Brush up your knowledge in economics and think practical. Don't get carried away by All-Free Babu and go by the advice given by pseudo intellectuals like Dr Mitra!

Cheranjeevi Vs Pawan Kalyan Video

2009-01-07T20:48:00.000-08:00

Pavan Kalyan Got Legal Notices

2009-01-06T03:11:00.000-08:00

Pawan kalyan made serious attacks on Congress party and many of its ministers. Shabir Ali reacted immediately and abused pawan on pawan's personal life too. It seems shabir ali is not satisfied and now shabir Ali has sent Legal Notices to Pavan Kalyan stated that he has made his image as well image of Muslim community to go down. Pavan Kalyan made severe abuses on shabir ali saying Deshadrohi and Daivadrohi.

Balayya Putting Fire For Chiru Fans

2008-12-26T02:03:00.000-08:00

Yuvaratna Balakrishna may have roared with his speech at the 'Yuvagarjana' meeting but then it must be kept in mind that such things are only once in a blue moon occurrences. It has often been said that Balayya tends to blurt out few unexpected things at the wrong time so something like that may have just happened.

Apparently, Balayya has been quite blatant about his stand for contesting for the Chief Minister position if given a chance and then also added that he would fight against his sister Purandareswari if the situation demands. Not stopping at that, he has now begun to pass few statements that are rubbing megastar Chiranjeevi's fans on the wrong side.

Incidentally, Chiru fans have been quite placid about the whole issue and they are said to be maintaining restraint due to orders from above. Everyone knows the nightmares actor Rajasekhar had to go for one wrong line of his. So one hopes that such things are put to rest and these prospective leaders focus on public welfare instead of hitting out at each other.

Apart from this, many say that Balakrishna has been talking irrelevant in his trademark style and not making any sense for public to turn their heads towards TDP.

Unrest Fuels Clashes In Praja Rajyam

2008-12-16T03:02:00.000-08:00

Unrest among the fans and the cadre at the grassroots is increasing every passing day fuelling clashes at the meetings in the Praja Rajyam Party.

The party, which was formed with more than a year of speculation, remains unchanged in constituting panels at various levels and giving an agenda to the party cadre to take the party to the masses.

The leadership has failed to give an action plan to the ignited cadre and fans of the Megastar, whose energy is slowly getting diluted. Even after three months of its formation, the party could not give clear direction to the rank and file on its policies, programmes and had failed in constituting committees.

In the absence of the committees and continued programmes, the cadre is left without direction, while the rich and influential leaders are commanding things.

Though the party leadership had promised to come up with a clear policy statement to help the leaders and cadre to work accordingly, nothing has been spelt out so far.

The leaders are in confusion over commenting on various issues, including the latest acid attack on two engineering girls in Warangal. “We don’t know what stand that the party is taking on such issues. Unless the party’s stand on various issues is cleared, how we are expected to make any statement,” is what the leaders ask, when encountered by the media.

So, how long does Chiranjeevi require spelling out the party’s stand and giving an agenda to the cadre?

Srikanth talks about his relationship with Chiranjeevi

2008-12-16T03:01:00.000-08:00

Shrikanth who is right now shooting in Banglore spoke to the media and clarified on the rumours about his relation with Chiranjeevi. He said that he never had any differences with Chiranjeevi. He also said that he was always like an younger brother to Chiru and will also be in the same way in future too. Srikanth also added that he didnt know much about politics and also dont like politics.

Earlier, there were rumours in some section of the media stating that hero Srikanth and Megastar turned Prajarajyam Party Chief Chiranjeevi had some opinion differences. The media also stated that there was a conflict between the two heroes.

PRP Is No More In No-2 Position

2008-12-12T03:51:00.000-08:00

It was with great hype and hoopla that it was recently announced about the success of the Praja Rajyam Party. Apparently, their internal surveys had shown a whopping 200 plus seats along with twenty plus Lok Sabha seats for megastar Chiranjeevi and his men. But then all that seems to be a farce of sorts as per the latest records.

There is news that the Telugu Desam Party is standing next to Congress when it comes to popularity rankings and public preferences while PRP has lost its second position as it was proclaimed earlier. Experts say that the reason for all this is the assumption of the PRP folks that the charisma of Chiru alone will get things going.

What they don't realize is that till date, PRP has not come out with a concrete agenda or a plan that will give direction and vision to the people who want to support the party. Moreover, the appeal of Chiranjeevi has been good enough for the crowd to come and feel his presence but the truth is about 40% of them are coming just to have a look at Chiru and they cannot be looked at vote banks.

Chiru asks Dil Raju to join PRP

2008-12-12T03:43:00.000-08:00

The president of the Praja Rajyam Party, Chiranjeevi is now busy finalizing the name of party leaders and candidates for the assembly elections. It is being rumored that Chiranjeevi has asked Dil Raju to join the PRP.

Dil Raju is a producer with a Midas touch. The young producer began his career as a distributor and literally struck gold as a producer. It is being said that Chiranjeevi plans to field Dil Raju from his native place Nizamabad.

Nagababu Offers For Chiranjeevi

2008-12-11T02:02:00.001-08:00

Ever since Chiranjeevi announced his Praja Rajayam party, it’s been raining offers for ‘mega’ brother Nagababu.

According to industry sources, the producer-turned-actor has completed 20 to 25 films in 2008 alone! No mean achievement, given that he is neither known for his acting talent nor his looks.

The actor who was earlier considered good only for the ‘father’ and ‘brother’ roles is now being offered character roles as well as lead roles.

According to sources, filmmakers who want to get close to Chiranjeevi are now planning to do films with Nagababu, and if he is unable to give dates they are cajoling him to take up at least a special appearance.

Cashing in on his newfound saleability, the megastar’s brother is demanding hefty amounts, we hear. Nagababu’s career graph has taken an upward curve both in terms of the number of films he is doing and the amount he is charging. If sources are to be believed, he is now charging Rs 50 lakh for playing the lead character and Rs 5 to 10 lakh for a three-day shoot, while earlier his rates were around Rs 3 to 6 lakhs for a film!

Recently one producer from Kurnool made a film with Nagababu and released it last week. Nagababu played the lead in it and it bombed at the box-office. The film costed between Rs 3 crore to Rs 3.5 crore and we hear that the producer's intention was to meet Chiranjeevi, and he was least bothered about the film’s fate at the BO.

“The industry is full of politics, and many actors are aligning themselves with some political party or the other. It’s not good for the industry and it never happened before,” said a top filmmaker, who has a big production house and doesn’t want to divulge his name.

The sad fallout however of this development is that cinematic sensibilities are being compromised for political reasons. It isn’t a surprise that most of Nagababu’s recent releases have bombed at the box-office. Whatever it be, Chiranjeevi’s entry into politics has definitely helped his brother. The point is will this trend continue after the elections? Looks like it all depends on how Chiranjeevi fares in the elections.

Rare Laughing Treat By Pawan Kalyan

2008-12-09T21:42:00.000-08:00

Power star Pawan Kalyan may be the most talented stars in the Telugu industry and he might also hold the maximum appeal among the youth but then it is very rarely seen that he shares a smile with the media or the public and has often been quite aloof with the rest of the folks. However, all of them were in for a big shock from Pawan yesterday.

It was during his official induction into the Praja Rajyam Party when Pawan was all smiles and one could feel that he was quite delighted with himself. Later, he was also seen speaking warmly with the media and other folks and this surely has come across as a surprise package for many.

Meanwhile, there are those who have been keen to know what happened to the CMPF (Common Man Protection Force) that Pawan had set up quite some time back and till date there is not a single piece of news about it. Now, with this new role of his, let us wait and see how effective he is.

Chiru, Naidu in bloody politics

2008-12-08T05:13:00.001-08:00

It is bloody politics again! The political leaders are taking advantage of even the bloodiest terrorist attack in Mumbai for their political advantage.

Praja Rajyam Party president Chiranjeevi held a press meet on Thursday morning to condemn the terrorists attack in Mumbai and announced that his blood bank would arrange for any amount of blood required for the victims of the Mumbai carnage. However, he expressed his ignorance by stating that he would first write letters to the Mumbai authorities to find out how much blood is required and based on their indent, he would arrange for blood. There are enough blood banks in Mumbai and the people of Mumbai are large hearted to donate their blood for their brothers and sisters. But Chiranjeevi tried to gain some political advantage by sending blood, without verifying the requirement.

Within minutes of Chiru's announcement, Telugu Desam, too, made a similar announcement. The NTR Memorial Trust announced that it would send 100 units of blood of rare groups to Mumbai to help the victims.

And it is evident that this is also for political advantage for TD. Let us wait for the Congress stand!

Chiranjeevi Wants That Every Night

2008-12-08T05:11:00.000-08:00

It is a known fact that megastar Chiranjeevi was the reigning emperor of the Tollywood till the time he took to politics and left the filmdom. But then it appears that Chiru seems to have taken this label far too seriously if reliable sources are to be believed.

Apparently, those who have known Chiru closely say that he was one man who used to enjoy praises and accolades at the end of every evening of his shoot. Colloquially, they are known as the 'Bhajana batch' whose job is to heap praises about his mannerisms and actions during his cine career.

Now, there is news that he has been continuing the same tradition even to this day. Some say that since he is a strict follower of Hanuman, even he likes to be motivated from time to time and he has been accompanied by a bunch of those regular followers who are continuing their 'Bhajan' with him.

Chiranjeevi offers blood for Mumbai victims

2008-12-08T05:08:00.000-08:00

Hyderabad (IANS) Telugu superstar-turned-politician Chiranjeevi Thursday offered to provide blood from his blood bank for the injured in Mumbai terrorist attacks.

He wrote to the Maharashtra chief minister and chief secretary offering blood from Chiranjeevi Blood Bank here.

‘We are ready to make required quantity of blood available for the treatment of the injured,’ the actor told reporters. Chiranjeevi also appealed to his fans to donate blood and help those being treated.

The founder and president of the Praja Rajyam Party condemned the terrorist attacks and expressed condolences for those killed.

Chiranjeevi said the failure by the central intelligence agencies led to the attack. ‘The attacks show that terrorists can strike wherever they want. The common man is feeling insecure,’ he said.

Praja Rajyam In 'Brahmamamgari Kalagnanam'

2008-11-20T03:57:00.000-08:00

"Vinara Vinara O Naruda
Brahmam Maata Kalla Kaadura
Praja Rajyame Vachchenu
Koththa Chattale Techchenu
Terapai Bommalu Rajyamelenu
Vinara Vinara O Naruda
Brahmam Maata Kalla Kaadura"

This is a verse from a song on 'Srimad Virat Pothuluri Veerabrahmam Charitra', a film made by Nandamuri Taraka Rama Rao in early 80s. The word 'Praja Rajyam' is used as a synonym for 'democracy' here but TV5 channel has made it a big news by linking it with Chiranjeevi's 'Praja Rajyam Party'.

And indeed the expression 'terapai bommalu rajyamelenu..' has turned true ever since NTR and MGR and now Chiranjeevi is an extension to that indeed.

Pothuluri Veerabrahmam, of 16th century, has been regarded as Nostradamus of Andhra Pradesh. So if Pothuluri Veerabrahmam garu said that 'Praja Rajyam' will come, can we expect that it is Chiranjeevi who is becoming CM soon?

No Difference between Chiru and Tarakarathna

2008-11-20T03:53:00.000-08:00

Tarakaratna made big comedy by striking his thigh during his political campaigns before 'Yuva Garjana'. He did such filmy acts much to the delight of people those seek entertainment. But Chiranjeevi has been projecting himself as a responsible politician with the terms 'change' and 'Gandhism'. Yet why did he carry himself with 'thigh striking' and 'moustache caressing' in Pulivendula road show like Tarakaratna? Chiranjeevi might have felt that those acts are the birth rights and tradition of Rayalaseema people.

On the other hand he made baseless statements like 'I will make entire state a Pulivendula'. This gives wrong signals to entire population of the state as many perceive Pulivendula as a token of factionism but not development.

With this entire episode, Chiranjeevi has proved that he is no less to Tarakaratna as far as political shows are concerned. What a doom? Mega Star has in to the comparison with Tarakaratna.

Chiranjeevi hits out at YSR after attack on party leaders

2008-11-20T03:51:00.001-08:00

Hours after the attack by ruling Congress party activists on the leaders of his Praja Rajyam party, actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi took on Chief Minister Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy in the latter’s home district Kadpa.Addressing massive crowds in Pulivendula town Wednesday, Chiranjeevi criticised the chief minister for not ensuring development of other parts of the state on par with his home constituency.

Chiranjeevi, whose ongoing ‘yatra’ entered the chief minister’s assembly constituency Pulivendula, also wondered if a ‘Special Political Zone’ has been created in the region.

“The government is creating many Special Economic Zones (SEZs) but it should not create a ‘Special Political Zone’,” he said while referring to the attack on Praja Rajyam leaders and activists in the town Tuesday night.

“The chief minister says that everybody has the right to form a party and contest the elections in a democracy but his philosophy has not gone down to the grassroots level,” the actor said.

“I may not have money and muscle power but I have the support of my fans,” he said amid loud cheers by the crowd. He also appealed to his fans to remain peaceful.

Thousands of people turned up to catch a glimpse of Chiranjeevi, who is already locked in a war of words with the chief minister.

The Praja Rajyam founder denied Reddy’s allegation that the actor did nothing for his native village Mogalturu in West Godavari district despite being a superstar for 30 years and earning millions of rupees.

He said if Praja Rajyam comes to power, he would turn every village in the state into Mogalturu.

Chiranjeevi reiterated his allegation that the chief minister was showing favour only on his constituency. “I wish if he has taken care of every village and town like this,” he said.

Chiranjeevi, who began his ‘yatra’ in the faction-ridden Rayalseema region Sunday, has been criticising Reddy and the Congress government for “corruption” and “lack of development”.

Chiranjeevi’s security was stepped up after some miscreants attacked Praja Rajyam leaders and activists. Seven people were injured and seven cars were damaged in the attack.

Blaming the ruling Congress party for the attack, Praja Rajyam Wednesday urged director general of police and state human rights commission to intervene and bring the culprits to book.

The miscreants attacked the guest house where Praja Rajyam leaders and former ministers K. Vidyadhar Rao and Shoba Nagi Reddy were holding a press conference to deplore the action of some Congress activists in burning and tearing away their party posters and banners in the town.

Praja Rajyam leaders alleged that the police did not act as stick-wielding Congress activists went on the rampage, damaging their cars and manhandling those present in the guest house.

Congress activists also staged a sit-in before the guest house demanding an apology from Praja Rajyam leaders for criticising Reddy and demanding his resignation.

The attack and protest led to tension in the town as police increased security around the Praja Rajyam office.

Chiru all praise for Pulivendula

2008-11-20T03:49:00.000-08:00

Irrespective of the political differences, Chief Minister Dr Y S Rajasekhara Reddy must have appreciated Praja Rajyam party president Chiranjeevi for one reason.

Chiranjeevi was all praise for Pulivendula, the native constituency of YSR, in Kadapa district. The PRP president, who toured Pulivendula as part of his road shows, was amazed to witness tremendous development in the constituency and the benefits being accrued to the people from the government.

"I have seen a lot of development in Pulivendula. How nice it could have been, if such development is witnessed all over the State," he wondered.

By the way, the Congress leaders were wondering whether Chiranjeevi was praising YSR or criticising him for focussing only on Pulivendula and ignoring the rest of the State. Well, that is politics!

TDP pits Junior NTR against Chiranjeevi

2008-11-20T03:48:00.000-08:00

Former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N.T. Rama Rao's grandson and popular Telugu actor Junior NTR is all set to campaign for the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP).

After much dillydallying amid speculations of a rift in NTR family, Junior NTR agreed to campaign for the party with road shows from January.

TDP hopes that the 25-year-old actor, who resembles his grandfather and enjoys a huge fan following, will help the party counter superstar-turned-politician Chiranjeevi, who recently floated the Praja Rajyam party.

The move comes at a time when the Congress party is planning to unleash several actors including Nagarjuna, superstar of yesteryears Krishna and his young actor son Mahesh Babu.

Though NTR's actor sons and grandsons have already thrown their weight behind TDP, Junior NTR was maintaining a distance. TDP president N. Chandrababu Naidu was desperate to garner his support as he is more popular than other members of the NTR family.

Junior NTR along with his father N. Harikrishna and uncle N. Balakrishna met Naidu on few occasions in the past but skipped the 'Yuvagrajna' public meeting held at Guntur Nov 5, triggering speculations of a rift in the family.

Junior NTR wanted an assembly ticket for his film producer friend Vallabhaneni Vamsimohan from Gannavaram constituency but his father and party politburo member Harikrishna and Kalyanram demanded that the party field former legislator Dasari Balavardhan Rao from the constituency.

There were reports that Junior NTR was also unhappy over the treatment meted out to his mother by the NTR family.

Naidu, who was worried over reports that NTR's daughter and central minister D. Purandareswari and others were trying to convince Junior NTR to campaign for the Congress, began frantic efforts to woo him.

The TDP president, during a meeting with Junior NTR on Wednesday, reportedly promised to give ticket to his friend and convinced him to campaign for TDP.

TDP sources said the popular actor agreed to conduct road shows on the condition that he would not criticise the rival parties and the actors campaigning for them.

"As his film career is at its peak, he doesn't want controversies to affect his career," said a TDP leader, requesting anonymity.

The actor will only appeal to people to support the party founded by his grandfather. As his uncle Balakrishna, also a popular actor, is launching a 'yatra' next month, Naidu wanted him to conduct road shows in January.

NTR created record of sorts by coming to power within nine months after forming TDP in 1982.

Naidu had led a revolt against his father-in-law NTR to become the Chief Minister in August 1995 after Lakshmi Parvati, whom NTR married just before the 1994 polls, was emerging as a power centre. NTR died of cardiac arrest five months later.

Naidu, who lost power to the Congress in 2004, is banking heavily on NTR charisma to regain power.

Elections to the State Assembly are scheduled in March-April next year.

Shiv Shankar appointed PRP manifesto panel chairman

2008-11-17T04:13:00.002-08:00

Senior leader Ch V Harirama Jogaiah went to Shiv Shankar's residence and accompanied him to the PRP office this morning. Later, Chiranjeevi invited the former Union minister to join PRP. Meanwhile, another Congress leader P Upendra is also expected to join the PRP in a couple of days. Talking to TOI over phone from Vijayawada, Updendra confirmed receiving an invitation from Chiranjeevi to join PRP. He said he would likely to announce the date of his joining PRP on Monday.

Shiv Shankar, who held key positions during the days of India Gandhi, has been unhappy with the present Congress leadership both at the Centre and state ever since he was denied the party ticket in the 2004 elections. Admitting the backward leader from the Munnuru Kapu community from Telangana into the party, Chiranjeevi said the vast experience of Shiv Shankar would help the fledgling Prajarajyam Party greatly. The veteran Congress leader's entry would boost the profile of PRP, Chiranjeevi hoped.

Shiv Shankar criticised AICC president Sonia Gandhi for `throwing' to the winds the values enunciated by Nehru, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi. "She has no morals, both ethical and political. Money spinning has become the principal activity of the Congress," he said.

Chiru brother to attend Nandi, spoil Cong all-show

2008-11-17T04:13:00.001-08:00

Realising that the Congress government will try to gain the maximum political mileage from the Nandi awards function in the city on Sunday, the Prajarajyam Party (PRP) has decided to play spoilsport. Indications are that PRP leader Chiranjeevi's brother Nagendra Babu will show up at the function although the NTR clan will do nothing to spoil the party of the Congress which is keen to project hero Mahesh Babu as it's big supporter.

Chiranjeevi-starrer `Stalin' bagged the special jury award for the year 2006 and though the megastar himself will not attend the function to receive the award, his brother Nagendra Babu will turn up as he was the producer of the movie. "I am in Vizag now and I hope to return to be present at the awards ceremony," Nagendra Babu told STOI. Allu Aravind, his son Allu Arjun and Chiranjeevi's son Ram Charan Tej will skip the function. Chiranjeevi will begin his tour of Rayalaseema from Sunday.

The Nandi awards show, being organised for the first time at the Lal Bahadur stadium, promises to be a show of Krishna and his son Mahesh Babu, and Nagarjuna - all supporting the Congress. However, with no one expected to turn up from the Nandamuri clan, the awards function hardly promises to have all the glitter that is usually associated with filmi functions. No one from the Nandamuri family - Balakrishna, NTR Jr or Kalyan Ram are recipients of any award for the year 2005 and 2006.

Megastar Seema tour from today

2008-11-17T04:11:00.000-08:00

The Praja Rajyam (PR) founder, Mr Chiranjeevi, who had completed his Praja Ankita Yatra in north coastal Andhra and Telangana regions, will tour Rayalaseema from Sunday. He will begin his Yatra from Gorantla constituency in Anantapur district. Mr Chiranjeevi will tour Gorantla, Hindupur and Penukonda Assembly constituencies, strongholds of the Telugu Desam (TD) on the first day. The PR founder will tour Anantapur district for three days, from November 16 to November 18, and his Yatra will pass through those constituencies, which are strongholds of the Congress and the TD.

The district PR in-charge, Mr Bhuma Nagireddy, stayed in Anantapur for the last four days and made arrangements for Chiranjeevi’s tour. The PR leaders and activists hoisted party flags, flexi boards and banners in the places in which Mr Chiranjeevi will tour. As Mr Chiranjeevi is coming for the first time to Anantapur district, the PR made elaborate arrangements for his tour in Gorantla, Hindupur and Penukonda constituencies. The district PR leaders explained to Mr Chiranjeevi the various problems in the district to enable him to mention them in his speeches. In the wake of the TD Mee Kosam Yatra and the Congress president, Mrs Sonia Gandhi’s meet, the PR leaders are expressing confidence that Chiranjeevi’s meetings would evoke tremendous response in the district.

Nandi Awards 2008 Live On Internet For Free

2008-11-15T23:00:00.000-08:00

Watch Live

'Prince' and 'King' add Kamma Flavour to Congress

2008-11-13T04:36:00.000-08:00

Vijayawada: The fans of Prince Mahesh Babu and Yuva Samrat Akkineni Nagarjuna are jubilant for the reason that their heroes have joined the “winning horse”, the Congress.

Unlike the Konidela brothers, who are on an experiment with Praja Rajyam Party and the Nandamuri heroes, who are trying to bring back the past glory of the Telugu Desam, the heroes, Mahesh Babu and Nagarjuna are riding on the winning horse, according to the fans.

Though the Congress is branded as a Reddy party (Telugu Desam as Kamma party and PRP as Kapu Party), the Kamma leaders from the Krishna and Guntur districts are now moving close to the Congress. The support being extended to the Congress by the families like Akkineni and Ghattamaneni from the film world adds additional flavour to the families of Parvataneni, Devineni, Kavuri, Rayapati, Maganti and other Kamma names is giving acceptability to the Congress for other Kammas to follow suit.

The entry of Daggubati family into the Congress has turned out to be an additional advantage for the Congress in Krishna and Guntur districts. In fact, Purandhareswari’s success in the Congress as Union Minister is seen as an opportunity given to the community by the Congress.

These two factors – entry of Prince Mahesh Babu and Yuva Samrat Nagarjuna on one side and Daggubati family on the other – are luring Junior NTR into the Congress. Some of the Junior NTR fans in Vijayawada have already initiated discussion on their hero turning to the Congress. It is now only matter of time for other leading Kamma families to come close to the Congress.

How many of them will come to Congress before the elections is to be seen as the days roll out.

YSR Blasted Chiranjeevi

2008-11-13T04:35:00.000-08:00

"The pedda manishi who never stepped into his own village and never helped even a single person over there, is now saying stories that he would serve 8 crore Andhra Pradesh population. He acted as hero in films in past 30 years and earned crores of rupees. But didn't bother helping a single person in his own village", said YSR today in Guntur district today as a part of Rajeev Pallebaata.

"Chiranjeevi should explain what change he is going to bring in teh state", added YSR.

"Will he stop old age people's pensions, will he put an end to free electricity, will he put full stop to kilo Rs 2 rice, will he lift away house and welfare schemes those are meant for poor now? What change Chiranjeevi is going to bring?" asked YSR.

YSR also asked Chandrababu what welfare he did in his rule for poor people. He said that TDP leaders have eaten away the rice that was meant for poor people in Babu's rule.

Now Kangna does some Salsa!

2008-11-10T03:26:00.002-08:00

In her forthcoming film, Kites, Kangna Ranaut plays a salsa dancer.

“I’m excited. You’ll see me in a very different role,” says the lovely lass. Not only that, Kangna says that these days, since she’s getting loving vibes from all those near and dear to her (yes, it includes Adhyayan Suman), she’s able to focus on her work.

Ask her how’s life on the personal front, and she smiles and says, “I’m happy. I can just concentrate on my work. There are no distractions. Only good people around me. My family is happy, my friends are happy, Adhyayan is happy and that keeps me focussed.” Way to go, gal!

PRP to withdraw 'egg' case against youths

2008-11-10T03:26:00.001-08:00

Prajarajyam party president Chiranjeevi said the party was withdrawing the case booked against four youth who threw eggs on him when he was touring Telangana.

Addressing the media on Sunday, he said he was not in favour of the case being pursued against the students .

The incident took place in Narsampet on November 4. Following a complaint lodged by the party, police took four students into custody who were said to be belonging to TRS students wing.

Chiranjeevi said he would begin his tour of Rayalaseema from November 14. He would be visiting two districts, Kurnool and Anantapur.

Replying to a question on Telangana, he said PRP was more clear than many parties on the issue of statehood to Telangana. "It is the Centre that has to take a decision on the Telangana issue. If the people give PRP power we will pressurise the Union government to take a decision on the issue," he said.

He said the Prajarajyam party would never give false assurances on the Telangana issue. "When the Centre was ready to take a decision on Telangana some individuals stalled it. We don't want to stall it like that, what more clarity do our detractors want on the issue," Chiru asked.

Rajini to enter politics at 60 says chiru

2008-11-10T03:25:00.001-08:00

Chiranjeevi, one of the well wishers of Superstar Rajinikanth has said that the demi-god of Tamil Nadu must come into active politics and it is the right time for that.

In his recent interview to CNN-IBN Channel, the Telugu superstar said that Rajini had once told him that he would enter politics at his 60th age.

According to the actor, Rajini has already discussed a lot with him on his political entry several occasions and that he would like to enter in to politics at the right time.

"I think Rajinikanth should have joined politics. I think he should have come into politics. He has got so much charisma, people expect from him," said Chiranjeevi.

Asked whether he has discussed the issue with Rajinikanth, he said: "Yes, oh yes! Several times-we have discussed it. We discussed it many times. He said that when he enters 60 years it would be the right time."

Chiranjeevi wants the Tamil actor to decide about joining politics now. "Yes. You are right-something like that," he said when asked if Rajinikanth should make a decision now.

Top Telugu Actors To Clash In Andhra Politics

2008-11-10T03:23:00.000-08:00

The ensuing elections in Andhra Pradesh is likely to witness a keen tussle among top stars of the Telugu film industry, with the ruling Congress party planning to rope in popular actor Akkineni Nagarjuna to counter superstar-turned-politician Chiranjeevi as well as former chief minister N T Rama Rao’s sons and grandsons.
With Chiranjeevi launching his Praja Rajyam party and the main opposition Telugu Desam Party (TDP) banking on its founder NTR’s family, the ruling party too has decided to utilise some film glamour.
After roping in Nagarjuna to act in some television advertisements to publicise its welfare schemes, the Congress is planning to convince him to campaign for the party in the elections, due to be held in March-April next year.
The Congress began its efforts to rope in Nagarjuna soon after a massive public meeting organised by the TDP in Guntur.
NTR’s son and popular actor N Balakarishna took a plunge into politics at the meeting, which was also attended by two actor grandsons of NTR.
The ruling party’s move also came amid the ongoing state-wide ‘yatra’ of Chiranjeevi, who is attracting huge crowds.
Nagarjuna, son of thespian Akkineni Nageswara Rao, already featured in some advertisements highlighting welfare schemes of the Congress government. These advertisements hit television screens two days ago.
The 49-year-old actor, who has a mass following, had featured in a few advertisements on behalf of TDP before the 2004 elections.
Though Congress leaders often claimed that Chief Minister Y S Rajasekhara Reddy alone was capable of taking on actors like Chiranjeevi and Balakrishna, the party now seems to have realised that it needs star charisma to retain power.
Congress has already made efforts to woo young and popular actor Mahesh Babu to campaign for the party. While Mahesh Babu remained non-committal, his father and superstar of yesteryears Krishna has already announced that he would support the ruling party.
Krishna, a former Congress MP, even formed an association of fans called Krishna-Mahesh Sena.
The ruling party recently inducted actors like Rajasekhar, his wife Jeevitha, Jayasudha and Srihari to add glamour in its ranks. Though TDP chief N Chandrababu Naidu has not yet succeeded in roping in NTR’s grandson and one of the top actors Junior NTR, his party is confident after the success of the Guntur meeting that the star appeal of Balakrishna, his brother and TDP MP Harkrishna, NTR’s grandsons Tarakaranta and Kalyan Ram is enough to bring the party back to power.
While both Congress and TDP are adding several stars to their ranks, Chiranjeevi is fighting a lone battle by banking heavily on his fan following.

Will Yuva (kamma) Garjana Beats PRP Meet?

2008-11-04T22:05:00.000-08:00

Now this is the main discussion among Nandamuri fans.They want Yuva garjana to be as successful as PRP meet held at tirupati.But many predict that it is not possible.Chiranjeevi has huge following among all class of people while mainly chowdaries supporting yuvagarjana.Also all the faces on the posters of TDP's Yuvagarjana are Kammas.Tomorrow it looks like most of the people who attend yuva garjana are also from kammas.Many people calling it as kamma garjana instead of yuva garjana.Will yuvagarjana beats PRP meet?Is Balakrisha a successful competiter for Megastar?Only tomorrow people comes to know this.

Who Is Behind Throwing EGGS On Chiranjeevi?

2008-11-04T22:01:00.000-08:00

Chiranjeevi is at the centre of telangana in Warangal tour. Some unidentified activists attacked Chiru by throwing eggs at him. They sought a clear declaration on Telangana.

“I know that politics are not a bed of roses. There are chances for garlands as well as stones, I had already clarified my stand on Telangana, don’t do all these things", said Chiranjeevi reacting to this incident.

Who did this is a big question? Some sources say that TDP alleged in this activity,TDP bribed KCR to do these things.While some TDP supporters said that chiranjeevi himself arranged three people to do this activity and he is using his criminal movie knowledge to get sympathy among telengana people.They are also saying that Only Chiranjeevi gets benefited from this incident.Chandrababu,KCR knows this basic thing and they are not that fools to hire some people for throwing eggs on chiranjeevi. While media says "Anyway who ever did this PRP gets good publicity among telangana people".

Chiranjeevi Relative Next Mayor of Vijayawada

2008-11-03T22:31:00.003-08:00

In all likelihood, Prajarajyam Party chief Chiranjeevi’s distant relative M Ratna Bindu would become the Vijayawada city mayor as the Congress party’s nominee ahead of the next general election. The incumbent mayor Mallika Begum will quit her job at the special meeting of the council on Saturday. The two-year term of Mallika Begum came to an end on Friday and she has decided to honour the agreement reached before her election. Begum would leave the council immediately after placing her resignation before the general body for its approval. The deputy mayor would preside for a shortwhile to make the council’s decision public and adjourn the meeting. The State Election Commission (SEC) after getting the confirmation letter from the district collector would decide the date for the next meeting. Sources said that it would take another 15-20 days time for conducting the mayoral election. Meanwhile, the local MP Rajagopal is reportedly lobbying with the chief minister Rajasekhara Reddy and PCC chief D Srinivas to prevent Ratna Bindu from occupying the chair. His contention is that Ratna Bindu might shift loyalties to Chiranjeevi just before the elections, which could jeopardize the interests of the Congress. However, city legislators Vangaveeti Radhakrishna, Devineni Nehru and city Congress president P Sominaidu are all in favour of Ratna Bindu. She is a nephew of Allu Aravind, brother-in-law of Chiranjeevi. Two years ago, the Congress nominated Mallika Begum to the post of mayor when the CPI’s Tadi Sakunthala resigned after completion of one year in the office. The CPI, CPM and Congress fought municipal elections jointly with an understanding that the left parties should share first two years leaving the remaining three years to the Congress.

Chiranjeevi vows to resolve farmers' woe

2008-11-03T22:31:00.001-08:00

It looked like Chiranjeevi was back to his good old days of film world, albeit briefly. The supporters present there were all pumped up and the farmer-friendly Chiru was more than willing to dance to their tunes. Except that it wasn't a scene from his films, but a a cotton field in Rupireddypalli village in this mandal — where his histrionics were in full flow on Monday.

The Prajarajyam party chief during the second leg of his Praja Ankita Yatra in Warangal district stopped at the cotton field and interacted with the farmers, much to the delight of the passers-by and some of the farmers themselves. They lustily clapped when Chiranjeevi said the farmers' problems could have easily been overcome had the governments worked with dedication, taking a dig at YSR's 'pro-ryot' mantra.

The ryots went gaga when the star politician alleged that the government was neglecting serious issues like spurious seeds, pesticides and fertilizers that have forced the farmers lose their crops in a large extent.

He alleged that though the government had announced an MSP of Rs 3,000 per quintal of cotton, the farmers are getting only Rs 2,000.

"Who is to blame? The middlemen are taking away the remaining amount and forcing the farmers into a debt trap," he hollered evoking an instant applause from the farmers. "The fertilizer supply has gone haywire as the ruling party leaders have diverted them to their followers," he alleged.

When a woman farmer, P Radha, complained that she sustained injuries in the police lathicharge when she went to get the fertilizers at Regonda mandal headquarters recently, the new 'messiah of the farmers' promised her that all her woes would vanish once the Prajarajyam party is elected to power in the 2009 general elections.

"Wait for another four months and all your problems would be wiped out," he thundered amidst cheers from the farmers.

Another farmer, Nagapuri Vijaya, urged the actor-turned-politician to come to the power and solve their problems. Responding to her demand, he said that he entered politics only to solve their problems.

As the actor's convoy sped past, Vijaya had only tears of joy. "I have interacted with the megastar and am too overwhelmed to say anything. I only hope he would do something for us," she said.

Earlier, addressing a road show meeting at Parkal, Chiranjeevi turned emotional and blamed the Congress for lacking clarity on the separate Telangana state issue."Some people are demanding me to make my stand clear on the Telangana state issue. I have clearly stated that I support the formation of the separate Telangana in tune with the aspirations of the people of the region," Chiranjeevi said, taking a dig at the Congress leaders.

Chiranjeevi dares Congress to clear stand on Telangana

2008-11-03T22:30:00.001-08:00

Praja Rajyam president Chiranjeevi dared the Congress to come out clear on the Telangana issue. “We said we are for a separate State. We said we will not obstruct formation of new State. We said we respect the sentiments and self-respect of people of Telangana. What more clarity do you want from me,” he sought to know from the Congress leaders as the people cheered in jubilation.

People continued to throng in large numbers to welcome Praja Rajyam leader on the second day of his tour in rural areas of the district. He addressed road shows at Gudepad cross roads, Parkal chowrastha, bus stand area and all along the road until he crossed over to proceed towards Regonda mandal headquarters.

Mr. Chiranjeevi was speechless on occasions and just he waved at the multitude of crowds who vied to see him in real life.

En route, the TRS workers sporting flags protested demanding him to say ‘Jai Telangana’. Irked at such protests,

Mr. Chiranjeevi said he was very clear on the issue. “It is the Congress party which promised separate Telangana. It is the Congress leaders who owned the TRS flag and come to people. Let us all question the Congress party on the issue,” he told the people.

Wearing a broad smile and waving at the people, Mr. Chiranjeevi drove past the villages and junctions as hundreds of vehicles followed him. The aspiring candidates put up a good show erecting huge flexi boards with the photographs of Mr Chiranjeevi and themselves at all important road corners.

At the Parkal, Mr. Chiranjeevi reminded the farmers of gloomy days when several of them were forced to commit suicides. He said lack of minimum support price failed their hopes and drove them to extremes.

He promised to learn more about their plight as he proceeded in the district. After crossing the Parkal town, Mr Chiranjeevi walked into the cotton field and interacted with a farmer there.

Earlier in the day, several leaders from the district and a group of doctors led by noted paediatrician M. Seshu Madhav called on him and apprised him of the public response to the party.

Sting on Chiranjeevi creates ripples in Praja Rajyam

2008-10-30T22:24:00.002-07:00

A sting operation showing Chiranjeevi of the Prajarajyam Party sharing his intimate views with IT professional recently sent the fledgling party into a tizzy.

The nine-minute video clip of a closed-door meeting Chiranjeevi had with IT professionals was telecast by local news channels on Wednesday. The clip was also uploaded on the internet
.

The video showed Chiranjeevi interacting with the IT professional on different issues like political corruption, SEZs, weavers' deaths, etc. During the interaction, Chiranjeevi asked the participants to be wary of politicians willing to join PRP.

He went on to observe, "It may be inevitable for the party in some places because of their experience but they don't bring in freshness." "The change we want to bring in will not be achieved if we open the floodgates to politicians," he added.

Chiranjeevi was also seen saying that PRP rank and file should mingle with their counterparts in other political parties and be friendly with them so that they can find out the developments there. "Some kind of spying," he told them, chuckling. In the same breath he advised them to be cautious lest they should land in trouble if they betray their real intentions.

Soon after the telecast of the video clipping, the bloggers were busy posting comments for and against the episode. It is not clear as to who is behind this sting operation and its purpose.

What baffled the party leadership was how the meeting held within the four walls of the party office was reported in the media. PRP sources say that an important file went missing from Chiranjeevi's office recently and they suspect that it is an insider job.

Following this, Chiranjeevi has kept the keys of his office with one of his most trusted secretaries, party sources added.

It may be recalled that party spokesman Parkala Prabhakar recently said that he had a strong feeling that their telephones were being tapped. He said the suspicion was strengthened since the discussion that had taken place between Allu Arvind and TRS MLA T Harish Rao was reported in toto by the media.

Chiranjeevi order to spy goes on YouTube

2008-10-30T22:24:00.001-07:00

A secretly recorded video of megastar Chiran-jeevi giving directions to his party district coordinators to spy on leaders who have come in from other parties has embarrassed the Praja Rajyam to no end.

The video, which has been posted in popular website YouTube, was recorded with a spy camera by a leader who took part in the core committee meeting. It was also circulated to a section of the press. In the video, Chiranjeevi can be seen saying that many whom he considered close aides were passing on information to rivals.

“These days we can’t believe anybody however big they may be,” he says in the video grab. “After all we are all human beings and have so many desires. So I want you to spy on the movements of politicians in our party.” The Praja Rajyam is red-faced that a meeting which was held to chalk out plans to snoop on leaders was itself spied upon.

More so, since it has happened just two days after the party accused the government of tapping the cell phones of its leaders. The issue came out just days after this paper reported that party observers had been asked to spy on new entrants. Chiranjeevi’s directive has also given credence to criticism that Praja Rajyam istreating leaders who came in from the Congress and the Telugu Desam with derision and suspicion.

The core committee meeting was held in the context of a ‘classified file’ going missing from the Praja Rajyam headquarters despite it being under constant surveillance by CCTV cameras. The party spokesperson, Mr P. Mitra, however defended the plans to spy on the activities of the party leaders. “There is nothing wrong in it,” he said. “We are keeping tabs on the politicians who came in from other parties only to keep the party corruption free.”

This newspaper had reported the other day that the party had appointed district coordinators to spy on the movements of leaders. The Praja Rajyam top brass is also afraid that politicians from other parties may now think twice before crossing over. Meanwhile, the second phase of Chiranjeevi’s Praja Ankita Yatra will begin from Siricilla in Karimnagar district on Thursday.

Chiranjeevi to spell party's stand on Telangana soon

2008-10-30T22:23:00.001-07:00

Actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi on Thursday virtually endorsed the demand for separate Telangana state, though he stopped short of announcing his party's stand on the issue.

Kicking off the second leg of his mass-contact programme from this handloom hub in the Telangana heartland, the Praja Rajyam party founder said he understood the sentiments of the people and their desire.

"I don't have any personal agenda. People's agenda is my agenda. I can understand the heartbeat of the people of Telangana. I honour the self-respect of the people of the region," he said, addressing a road show here.

Amid cheers from the large gathering, the megastar said he would spell out his party's stand on the statehood issue before completion of his present leg of tour.

"I will not leave Telangana without spelling out my stand on the most-awaited issue," Chiranjeevi said. The second round of his tour would cover Karimnagar, Warangal and Khammam districts over the next eight days in Telangana region.

Without naming any one, he hit out at political parties for exploiting the innocence of Telangana people for their advantage.

Chiranjeevi's tour in Telangana is keenly watched in political circles as his stand on the statehood demand is expected to impact the outcome of the next year's assembly elections.

Since Telangana has emerged as a key issue ahead of polls, the megastar's position will influence the nature of alliances in the region.

Chiranjeevi must adjust, says DGP

2008-10-22T03:46:00.000-07:00

The actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi has to adjust with whatever security the government provides him for his ongoing tours. The director-general of police, Mr S.S.P. Yadav, said that the government will provide security based on threat perception.” “There will be enough security to cover him wherever he goes,” Mr Yadav said. He evaded a direct reply when asked whether the Praja Rajyam or Chiranjeevi had requested for additional security.

Speaking on the Police Commemoration Day on October 21, Mr Yadav said security will be provided to people according to requirements and not according to request. Replying to questions on the terror suspects caught by the Mumbai police, the DGP said that one Naveed was picked up by the Mumbai police for questioning.

“He has been already released. The investigation will begin only when the suspects are handed over to the AP police,” Mr Yadav said. “The legal process has begun to bring them to Hyderabad.” Mr Yadav said that the government took care of families of those police personnel who were killed by terrorists. He said the families would be provided a house, free education apart from other schemes.

PR limits Chiranjeevi second tour

2008-10-22T03:42:00.000-07:00

Praja Rajyam president Chiranjeevi’s second phase of yatra has been limited to seven days due to concerns over his health. Chiranjeevi is likely to tour four districts during the tour scheduled to start on October 30. His first phase of yatra was already cut short as he was down with a sore throat. In order to prevent such an eventuality in the second phase, the PR party core committee which met here on Tuesday to finalise the tour schedule has decided to limit the tour and reduced the number of towns which will be visited by Chiranjeevi.

The Praja Rajyam chief will start his tour in Karimnagar and proceed to Warangal, Khammam and Nalgonda districts. However, sources in the party said that Nalgonda was dropped from the list of places to be toured. Party leaders are anxious to know the response he will get in Telangana as it will be a deciding region with many parties contesting the 119 Assembly seats. Chiranjeevi is giving final touches to his speeches in Telangana, where he will also announce the party’s stand on the proposed statehood for the region. Party sources said that Chiranjeevi will spell out a favourable.

Guinness Book Idea For Chiranjeevi

2008-10-20T05:40:00.001-07:00

What's great in roaming all over the state in hot Sun and receiving blow from heat stroke? We are talking about Chiru's 'Praja Ankita Yatra'.

Chiranjeevi would have adopted a new method by recalling Lord Ganesha. While Lord Kumaraswamy used his peacock and reached all pious rivers to take plunge in order to gain the power of divine army general, Lord Ganesha used the short cut method by circumambulating around his parents which is equal to that of taking plunge in all holy rivers and ultimately won the power. It implies for Chiru as well now.

Chiranjeevi is just imitating what YSR and Chandrababu did. He has got unique strength of fans and followers. Even there are hundreds of dupes for him across the state those have entertained people from small screen channels as well. Chiranjeevi might have hired a dupe from each district or region to give lip movement for his recorded speech. With that he can save several man hours and also go ahead with optimum utilization of resources. Even the fans and dupes would feel happy for involving them in the party campaign. Indeed, Chiranjeevi may get a Guinness record for using many dupes for political campaign.

Chiru’s kin to keep off polls

2008-10-20T05:38:00.001-07:00

The Praja Rajyam president Chiranjeevi’s brother Nagababu made it clear that he along with his brother Pavan Kalyan would not contest the ensuing polls in the state.

The Praja Rajyam leader arrived here to take part in a party meeting on Saturday. Later, speaking to newsmen, he said that groupism in the party would no longer be tolerated and those who encourage it would be dealt with severely.

Referring to the entry of leaders into Praja Rajyam from several other political parties, Mr Nagababu said that they were joining the party as they were interested in the party goals and objectives and added that in a democratic setup everyone has a right to join any party of his or her choice. However, he made it clear that only those who comply with the party norms would be given the responsibility and said that Chiranjeevi’s fans would also be given prominence. He expressed confident that the Praja Rajyam would win nearly 200 seats with 20,000 majority each in the ensuing polls for the Legislative Assembly.

Mr Nagababu said that all districts, including West Godavari, which is the home turf of Chiranjeevi, would be given equal prominence. With regard to party’s stand on Kolleru issue, he felt the need to conserve and protect the lake from environmental point of view. He said that the party high command would decide on possible alliances with other parties for the polls.

Chiru cancels roadshows

2008-10-17T06:04:00.000-07:00

Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi will wind up his Praja Ankita Yatra two days ahead of schedule because of a hoarse throat and fatigue. The roadshow has apparently proved to be too much for the megastar and party sources said he would fly back to Hyderabad on Thursday morning.

Chiranjeevi launched his mass contact programme on October 9 at Srikakulam after completing his road shows in that district as well as Vizianagaram, he was to tour Visakhapatnam district from October 14 to October 17. And on the last day he was supposed to heli-hop to Paderu and Araku Valley and talk to the media on October 17 before boarding the last flight to Hyderabad. But the Agency visits were cancelled. However, Chiranjeevi was still supposed to address meetings in four assembly segments in the city on that day.

However, doctors who examined the actor on Tuesday adviced him to call off the yatra as he was showing symptoms of fatigue and sickness. But Chiranjeevi refused to heed their words and continued with his tour on Wednesday. "In the afternoon, doctors found that his vocal chords were overstrained because of continuous speeches," said a party leader. "Then we decided to cancel the remaining programmes." Chiranjeevi was slated to catch the last flight to Hyderabad on Tuesday but because of heavy traffic jam in Makavarapalem, he could not make it to the airport on time and the flight left without him at 8 pm. Party sources said his next trip to Visakhapatnam would be finalised after the dates of East and West Godavari programmes are announced.

Chiru: I paid my I-T dues

2008-10-17T06:03:00.000-07:00

The Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi said on Wednesday said that he was a prompt income-tax payer and had even got an award from the IT department. Rebutting Congress leaders allegations that he did not pay income-tax, Chiranjeevi urged them to check their facts before speaking.

On the second day of his Praja Ankita Yatra, the Praja Rajyam chief said he was not desperate to capture power but was committed to bring change and reforms in the lives of common people. "I’m not a seasoned politician to make promises," he told a cheering crowd at Makavarapalem. "I know only to act properly as per the needs of the public." He added that his party’s top priority was to provide better quality of life, health, education and social justice.

"I will be your servant and not leader and so would all Praja Rajyam members be," he said. He adviced youngsters to go to the villages and educate adults about the corruption in irrigation projects and in the implementation of various government schemes. "Everyone, especially youngsters, should be prepared for the ballot battle," he said. The actor said the government had accorded "greater" status to some cities to increase the value of their assets. "We will ensure development from village level if voted to power," the PR chief said.

Jayasudha: I’ll not criticise Megastar

2008-10-17T06:02:00.000-07:00

Noted film actor Jayasudha, who joined the Congress on Wednesday, said she would not indulge in personal criticism of actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi, but would fight him on issues. "We need not indulge in mudslinging," she said. "I don’t like it. I will prefer to speak about issues and serve people. People are more important than Chiranjeevi."

Apart from Jayasudha, Mr Ramamuni Reddy, a close friend of the Chief Minister, Dr Y.S. Rajasekhar Reddy, and actor Vijaychander, grandson of Tangaturi Prakasam Pantulu, joined the Congress. The Chief Minister, the APCC president, Mr D. Srinivas, and the AP Mahila Congress Chief, Ms Ganga Bhavani, were present at Gandhi Bhavan when the trio formally joined the party.

Dr Rajasekhar Reddy welcomed them and hoped they would prove to be assets for the party. Jayasudha, who was in the Telugu Desam for some time, said she was impressed by the developmental and welfare schemes launched by the Chief Minister. "I joined the Congress after thinking about it for a long time," she said. "The Congress would provide me a platform to serve people."

Jayasudha has done 200 films including a dozen with N.T. Rama Rao and two films with Chiranjeevi. However, she refused to speculate on the future prospects of Chiranjeevi’s Praja Rajyam. "People are the ultimate judges," she said. "Being an actor alone would not help. You should serve people and earn their goodwill." When asked if she expected Chiranjeevi to have an impact as NTR did, she said: "That is the big question in everyone’s minds." Meanwhile, Mr Ramamuni Reddy said he quit the TD since the president, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, deviated from the party ideology.

Chiru, Allu differ on issues

2008-10-15T04:18:00.000-07:00

The Prajya Rajyam chief, Chiranjeevi, and his brother-in-law and party leader, Mr Allu Aravind, on Monday expressed contradictory opinions over the violence at Bhainsa in Adilabad district. Chiranjeevi, who is touring north Andhra, attributed the violence to failure of the intelligence machinery. Mr Aravind did not see any fault with the government after visiting the riot-hit village on Monday.

This is not the first time that the two top leaders of the party have expressed different views. Even on the matter of the party’s alliance with the CPI(M), Chiranjeevi and Mr Aravind had divergent views. Immediately after meeting the CPI(M) top brass in New Delhi on Saturday, Mr Aravind had said the Prajya Rajyam had "affinity" with the Left. A day after Mr Aravind’s statement, Chiranjeevi indirectly attacked the CPI(M) for setting a deadline for the party to decide on its electoral alliances.

Chiranjeevi took pot-shots at the CPI(M) during a roadshow in Vizianagaram district on Sunday and said: "Some parties are demanding us to disclose our policies to them. Why should we reveal it to them? We are accountable only to the people." The CPI(M) on Monday condemned the remarks made by PR leaders.

When the Marxist party’s state leadership gave an ultimatum to the Prajya Rajyam to decide on electoral alliances, the party spokesperson Mr Parakala Prabhakar took it lightly. It may be recalled that a day after Chiranjeevi favoured a dalit Chief Minister in an interview with this newspaper, the PR spokespersons Mr Parakala Prabhakar and Mr Mitra backtracked on it.

Chiru to back T-state

2008-10-15T04:16:00.002-07:00

Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi will announce his party’s support to the separate Telangana state movement in a fortnight. Sources close to the actor-turned-politician said he would make the announcement during the second round of his ongoing Praja Ankita Yatra in Telangana districts later this month. Chiranjeevi, after interacting with party leaders from coastal Andhra and Rayalaseema areas, dropped sufficient hints about the party’s stand on the contentious issue.

The party leadership had come under pressure after the Telugu Desam came out in support of statehood for Telangana last week. The TD move was meant to win over the Telangana Rashtra Samiti which, it hopes, will be a crucial poll ally. Both the TRS and the Nava Telangana Praja Party of Mr T. Devender Goud, a former Telugu Desam leader, have dropped enough hints that they would prefer to sail with the PR if it comes out in clear support of statehood.

"Chiranjeevi wanted to announce the party stand when tours Khammam and Nalgonda districts from October 25. By that time we are expecting more clarity on the alliance between TRS and TD," said a senior PR leader. The party think-tank has been asked to finalise the vocabulary to express its support to the separate state movement in a way that would not hurt the sentiments of its followers in the Andhra and Rayalaseema areas.

Deliberations are going on in the party on whether it is enough to announce that the PR would not come in the way of the formation of Telangana state or if a more lucid statement has to be made in support of statehood Sources close to Chiranjeevi said that he had himself made it clear to senior party leaders that he would not like to beat around the bush on the sensitive issue. "After talking to him it was clear that our statement on Telangana would more lucid than any other party," said a former minister who joined the PR recently.

2 die in Chiru rallies

2008-10-15T04:16:00.001-07:00

Two persons who took part in Chiranjeevi’s Praja Ankita Yatra died on Tuesday. Tirumala Rao, 23, of Simhachalam and a diehard fan of the actor died when a car in Chiranjeevi’s convoy hit his motorcycle. Rao was following the convoy when the accident occurred between Anandapuram and Pendurthy. Rao suffered severe injuries and was declared brought dead in hospital.

Elsewhere, an elderly woman, K. Hemalatha, 60, of Allipuram in the city died due to exhaustion. She was made up as Mother Teresa to take part in a programme organised by locals to welcome Chiranjeevi to Anandapuram. She stayed under the hot sun for hours. She collapsed after the actor left the town. She was also rushed to the King George Hospital where the doctors declared her dead. Party activists visited Rao’s residence in Simha-chalam and handed over an amount of Rs 1 lakh as compensation to his family.

Ram Charan Tej sings for PRP

2008-10-14T03:14:00.000-07:00

A music audio has been composed by Devi Sri Prasad to be used in the Praja Ankitham tour of Chiranjeevi. One song in this album has been sung by Ram Charan Tej.

These songs written on the agenda of Praja Rajyam Party are being extensively used by all the units of the party while going on with the membership drive. According to reports already more than 10 lakh members have been registered. The drive is still on and the party hopes to get a membership of over 2 crores.

Chiru revives his filmy roles

2008-10-13T05:44:00.000-07:00

Megastar and Praja Rajyam party president Chiranjeevi seems to have realized that there is no other option but to recall his filmy roles to attract people during his road shows.

That is the reason why Chiranjeevi recalled the role played by him in the film "Tagore," while speaking at a road show in Srikakulam district. He reminded that "Tagore" fought against rampant corruption in the society and tried to weed out the corrupt elements. "Everyone of you should become a Tagore and fight against corruption. Only then can we establish a clean society," he said, addressing the gathering.

It was apparent that Chiranjeevi was looking for cheers and whistles from the crowds, especially the youth. And the only way to attract them was to speak out film dialogues. His friends in the film industry, who are accompanying him during the road shows are preparing the script for him. What Chiru is doing is only action!

Chiranjeevi Promises If PRP Comes Into Power

2008-10-13T05:42:00.000-07:00

Chiru was addressing the gatherings in Narsanapet, Srikakulam district and he made several promises to the public.

If PRP elected to power in the next elections.

1. PRP promises to implement social justice in the state.

2.People can rule themselves.

3.PRP will provide Pesticides and fertilizers to farmers at appropriate time.

3.PRP will supply 24 hrs power to farmers.

4.PRP will control the prices of all domestic needs of people.

5.Farmer's produce (grains and paddy etc) will be given reasonable and support price.

7. Weavers and other handcrafts will be taken care of by PRP Government.

8. Women will be supported with welfare schemes.

9. Middle class section of the society will be taken care by PRP Governement.

Hope if PRP comes into power chiru can keep his promises.

Support PR now: Chiru

2008-10-13T05:40:00.001-07:00

Actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi called upon the people to teach a fitting lesson for corrupt political parties. “This is the right time to teach them a lesson. They have been misleading you for decades,” Chiranjeevi said at a roadshow at Mayuri junction on seeing a large number of youth and women on either side of the road.

Chiranjeevi arrived here two-and-a half hours late on Sunday from Srikakulam district as part of the second leg of his Praja Ankitha Yatra. The Vidyalanagar wore a festive look with all the roads leading to the actor’s roadshows. A large number of people turned up to catch a glimpse of Chiranjeevi atop his Praja Ankitha Ratham.

Chiranjeevi regretted that successive governments completely neglected public welfare. “I entered politics leaving the cinema industry to end corruption at all levels. I am not interested to counter the allegations leveled by other political parties. If you support the Praja Rajyam, I promise that we can resolve problems you have been facing for decades by removing imbalances in the society,” Chiranjeevi said.

The actor called upon youngsters and women to use their vote to defeat selfish and evil rulers of the past and the present at the right time by supporting his endeavour for a “change” in the political arena. His private security had a very tough time to control the swelling crowds as the local leaders, political sympathisers and fans began competing with each other to dominate others in showing their strength. Later, he proceeded to Gajapathinagaram.

Chiranjeevi Promises If PRP Comes Into Power

2008-10-12T04:15:00.000-07:00

Chiranjeevi not my hero: Vijayashanti

2008-10-10T23:01:00.002-07:00

Talli Telangana president and former actress Vijayashanti said on Tuesday that actor-turned-politician Chiranjeevi was not a hero for her. "He was only a cinema hero for me," she said at a meet-the-press programme at the Press Club here. "He is definitely not a political hero for me."

Vijayashanti explained that she had been in politics for the past 11 years and had also espoused the Telangana cause for that long. "I was the first and only woman politician to launch a political party in the State," she said.

She demanded the BJP to include the separate Telangana issue in the election manifesto of the NDA to gain the confidence of the people of the region. "Though the BJP went back on its promise to form the separate state when it was in power, we still can trust only the NDA as the UPA was clearly against the Telangana demand," Vijayashanti added. When asked about the proposed electoral alliance between the TRS and the CPI (M) in the State, she stated that the Marxists should first have supported the Telangana State.

"It is not good that they are still supporting united Andhra," she said. "The TRS should have allied with them only after they expressed support to the Telangana demand." Vijayashanti decried the CPI’s suggestion for a power sharing proposal between the Telugu Desam and the Praja Rajyam and said it was aimed at denying a chance to a Telangana leader to become Chief Minister.

She urged all the Telangana forces to jointly contest the next elections in order to avoid a split in Telangana votes. The actress sharply refuted allegations that she was a Congress agent and said they were being spread to malign her.

No takers for Chiru call here

2008-10-10T23:01:00.001-07:00

There are no takers for the Praja Rajyam (PR) president, Chiranjeevi’s call for tree plantation in the district. Chiranjeevi had called upon his party’s supporters to take part in a tree plantation programme to plant 1 crore saplings. He asked the party supporters to plant saplings from October 2 to 11 and promote a better environment. Except for a couple of functions where the tree plantation was taken up, there were no other programmes in the district.

The leaders were busy in fighting among themselves and no leader was confident of his or her place in the party. There was a clear lack of coordination in the party as it was yet to create a hierarchy in the district. “Everything is being dictated by a coterie from Hyderabad. There is no leader for the party in the district and at least there is no committee of the party here to take up its programmes,” said a senior leader, who is repenting his decision to join the PR.

Rajinikanth's political party name : rajinirajyam?

2008-10-10T22:58:00.000-07:00

After Telugu superstar Chiranjeevi floated a political party named 'Praja Rajyam' its now Tamil Mega Star Rajinikanth's turn. Some of the fans of Rajinikanth launched a political party in Coimbatore in a bid to pressure him to enter into politics.

The activists of 'Rajini Narpani Manram' who launched the party at a meeting on Monday, Oct 6 said that there is no official word from the association at Chennai but they believe the name and flag would be the symbols of aspirations of thousands of fans. The fans association also said that they are planning to send requests to 'Shivaji' to authorise the symbols.
The fans released the flag and announced the party's name as 'Desiya Dravida Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (DDMMK).'The tricolour flag, in red, white and black, features Rajinikanth's face inside a shining star, was released during the Manram's (association) meeting. Sources said that The meeting also passed a resolution requesting their star to stop acting in films and enter politics.

Some fans had already pasted wall posters last week, announcing the desire of fans for his entry into politics and giving a broad hint that the party would be named 'Rajinirajyam' on the lines of Prajarajyam floated by Telugu filmstar Chiranjeevi.

Chiru yatra may tilt CPM support

2008-10-07T02:16:00.001-07:00

The Communist Party of India (Marxist) leadership in the state will decide whether to join hands with the Telugu Desam or the Praja Rajyam after gauging the public reaction to Chiranjeevi’s yatra. Though the CPI(M) has agreed to form an electoral pact with the Telangana Rastra Samiti, it has adopted a wait and watch policy as far as the TD and the Praja Rajyam are concerned. This was evident from the deliberations of the CPI(M) state committee which met on Monday in Hyderabad.

The committee reportedly resolved to maintain strategic silence on the pre-poll alliance with the TD for the time being. A leader who participated in the meeting said that the CPI(M) would be keenly monitoring Chiranjeevi’s yatra to find out how much clout he wielded among the public in the state. "We are also waiting for Chiranjeevi’s party to reveal its stand on key issues such as the Indo-US nuclear deal, the economic reforms, World Bank policies and the attitude towards the BJP," said the leader.

"We were informed by the Praja Rajyam leaders that all this would be spelt out during Chiranjeevi’s yatra. So we decide to wait." Meanwhile, the CPI(M) politburo member, Mr Sitaram Yechury, said that the party had not taken any decision on whether to align with the TD or with the Praja Rajyam.

"We feel that alliances among the Opposition parties in the state should be forged on the basis of the alliances at national level," he added. When asked the new friendship between the TRS and the CPI(M), Mr Yechury said, "We are moving with the aim to dislodge the Congress government as well as to keep the communal BJP away from power. For this, we are bringing anti-Congress and anti-BJP forces to one platform."

The CPI(M) leader said that the party’s central committee would take a clear stance on pre-poll alliances during its meetings to be held on October 13 and 14 in Kolkata. DC

As polls near, film stars get working on fans

2008-10-07T01:18:00.000-07:00

With megastar Chiranjeevi stirring up the political atmosphere with his entry, filmstars backing the other main political parties in th
e state are working overtime to sway their fans.

On Sunday, there was action at two film studios in the city with the stars holding meetings with their fans.
While the Nandamuri clan’s action was seen at the Ramakrishna Horticultural Cine Studios at Nacharam, hero Krishna met up with his fans at the Padmalaya studios.

NTR’s clan including Balakrishna, NTR Jr, Kalyan Ram and Tarakaratna displaying unity and declaring that there were no differences in their family urged the hundreds of fans who had thronged the place to work for the victory of the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) in the next elections.

Fans at Ramakrishna Studios could not stop their enthusiasm and while promising to work for the victory of TDP during the elections said “this time we will help Chandrababu Naidu to become the chief minister but our ultimate goal is to see Balaiahbabu,” as the chief minister.

Addressing the fans, Balakrishna asked them to rid the state of corrupt and inept administration. The fruits of the welfare schemes were not reaching the people as the Congress government was deep rooted in corruption.
He said that he along with his nephews would tour the state and launch a massive campaign against corruption and expose the misdeeds of the government.

At the Padmalaya Studios, Krishna told scores of his son Mahesh Babu’s fans that they should ensure that the Congress romps home to power when elections are held.

Krishna, however, told his fans that his son Mahesh Babu would not enter politics now.

The yesteryear hero, known as ‘superstar’ reminded his fans that he had always been with the Congress. Krishna, it may be mentioned here, had also been a Congress MP.

So long as Chiranjeevi appeared to be wavering in his decision about entering politics, both the TDP and the Congress showed no interest in using their back-up ‘star power’ for political needs.

With the need now arising because of Chiranjeevi taking the plunge, TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu recently met NTR’s son Balakrishna, Harikrishna and his sons Kalyan Ram and NTR junior.

However, Tarakaratna, son of Mohan Krishna, one of NTR’s sons recently ruffled feathers when in a meeting at Vinukonda in Guntur district declared that the Telugu Desam Party belonged to his grandfather NTR and Balakrishna was their future leader.

Since he did not take Chandrababu Naidu’s name, Naidu quickly saw Tarakaratna’s mood and invited even him for another meeting he had with the actors in NTR’s clan.

All the actors met up with their fans at the Ramakrishna Horticultural Cine Studios at Nacharam and urged them to gear up for a massive show in Guntur later this month.

With such activity being seen regularly in the Telugu Desam Party camp, hero Krishna also put up a show at the Padmalaya studios.

His son Mahesh Babu is a crowd puller and who had delivered huge hits in recent years. In the Telugu film industry, he is now the biggest star.

The support of the fans of Krishna and Mahesh Babu would be of great help to the Congress to attempt to upset Chiranjeevi’s calculations.

Ashwini Dutt: Won’t Join Chiru Party

2008-10-06T07:43:00.001-07:00

Ashwini Dutt said that he will not join Chiru party and stay in Telugu Desam only. “If TDP orders I will contest once again from Vijayawada Lok Sabha constituency”, said Dutt.

Ashwini Dutt is close to Chiru and produced several hit movies under his banner Vyjayanthi Movies. His films Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari and Indra made with Chiru created box office records. Dutt also produced the first film of Chiru’s son Ramcharan.

In the last elections Chiru supported Dutt in Vijayawada Lok Sabha constituency but could not win over Congress leader Lagadapati Rajagopal.

Praja Rajyam District In Charges

2008-10-02T23:06:00.000-07:00

Praja Rajyam - District In Charges

1.Ranga Reddy- Katti Padma Rao

2.Sree Kakulam- Kagitham Narsi Reddy

3.Vijayanagaram- Haribabu Naidu

4.Vizag- Thammineni Seetharam

5.East Godhavari- Vidhyadhar Rao

6.West Godhavari- Vanga Geetha.

7.Krishna - Yalamanchali Sivaji

8.Guntur- Kamineni Sreenivas

9.Prakasham- Vanki Penchalaiah

10.Nellore- Rehaman

11.Kadapa- Thota Threemurthulu

12.Chittoor-Veerapaneni Yalamanda Rao

13..Karnool- Jyothula Nehuru

14.Ananathapuram-NV Prasad, Sreenivas Goud

15.Hyderabad- Dr Vinay

16.Karimnagar- Raja Reddy

17.Warangal- Naragoni

18.Khammam- Ramhohan Naidu

19.Mahaboonagar- Narisimha Reddy

Nalgonga, Adilabad and other districts will be announced soon.

These in charge persons are to take responsibility of praja rajyam party.

Chiru To Launch Yatra On Oct 9

2008-10-02T23:02:00.001-07:00

Finally, Vijaya Dasami has been chosen as the auspicious day for Prajarajyam chief Chiranjeevi to launch the "meet the people" yatra.

The first leg of the yatra, which is to commence on October 9, will cover the entire North Andhra region comprising Vijayanagaram, Srikakulam and Visakhapatnam districts. The date was announced by party spokespersons P Prabhakar and P Mitra on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, C V Sesha Reddy, a senior Congress leader and PCC vice president, joined the Prajarajyam Party. Reddy who hails from Nellore district met Chiranjeevi on Wednesday morning at his Jubilee Hills residence and expressed his wish to join the party. Later, he was introduced to the media by Mitra.

Reddy, a follower of former chief minister N Janardhan Reddy, said infighting and rampant groupism in the Congress were reasons for his joining the new party.

Talking to the media, Mitra said Chiranjeevi would visit the Arasavilli Sun temple and perform puja before undertaking his yatra in Srikakulam district. "He will tour the three districts continuously for nine days and take a break to come back to Hyderabad."
Chiranjeevi will visit Gangadevi Palle, a model panchayat in Warangal district on October 2 on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti. The delivery systems developed in the village and "swaparipalana" (self rule) have attracted national attention. Chiranjeevi will study the self rule being practised in the village.

Before setting off for the village, Chiranjeevi will hoist the party flag at the party office as part of the "Vooroora Prajarajyam" week.

Later, he will participate in the tenth anniversary of the Blood Bank run by his trust and donate blood on the occasion.

Chiru Hunts For Heroines

2008-10-02T23:00:00.000-07:00

When he was a movie star, heroines lined up to act with Chiranjeevi. In his new role as a politician, however, he is finding it difficult to rope in a heroine to campaign for his party. Unlike other political parties, where heroines of yesteryears are heading women’s wings, Chiranjeevi’s party is facing a shortage of a female face. Even though actor Suhasini’s name did the rounds for some time, there was no concrete result. After she denied that she was joining the PR, the party’s camp managers have now launched a hunt for a veteran heroine who can campaign for the party.

Even though, the Congress and the Telugu Desam are not led by film personalities, the women’s department of both the parties have yesteryear’s film heroines on their side. The TD women’s wing, Telugu Mahila’s president, Roja, was a known film actor in Telugu and Tamil film industry. She unsuccessfully contested in the 2004 Assembly elections. The Congress state leadership succeeded in adding glamour to the party by roping in yesteryear heroines Jeevitha and Jayasudha.

Telugu cine hero, Rajsekhar and his actor wife Jeevitha, had joined the Congress a few months ago.

Another top heroine, Jayasudha, has also pledged her support for the Congress. The PR leaders are now seeking a heroine to head the party’s women wing. Suhasini, Sumalata, Madhavi, Vijayashanti, Radha, Radhika, Roja and Nagma were the top heroines who acted with Chiranjeevi.

Now Vijayashanti is espousing the Telangana cause and Radhika is with the DMK. Sumalata married Ambarish, a former Union minister from Karnataka, whereas Madhavi settled in United States. Radha’s whereabouts are not known. Almost all the heroines who acted with the actor are now busy in their new endeavours. This has made it difficult for the new politician to find a suitable heroine who to add glamour to the Praja Rajyam.

CLP: Chiranjeevi is ignorant about SEZ

2008-09-30T01:08:00.000-07:00

The Congress Legislature Party said actor Chiranjeevi was ignorant about SEZs and levelling baseless allegations against the Congress government. The major industries minister, Dr J. Geetha Reddy, and the government chief whip, Mr N. Kiran Kumar Reddy, said Chiranjeevi visit to Polepally near Jadcherla was to gain political mileage by whipping up passions of the farmers who had given land for the SEZ.

"Most shocking is that he was accompanied by the former major industries minister, Mr K. Vidyadhara Rao, who was instrumental in land acquisition for the SEZ during TD rule," she said. The TD government had brought the SEZ to Polepally from Khammam. Dr Geetha Reddy said Chiranjeevi did not know that the SEZ was framed by the Centre, and states have no role in it and expressed surprise that Chiranjeevi and Mr Vidyadhar Rao did not know this.

Mega fans and balaiah fans fight

2008-09-30T00:59:00.002-07:00

Fans of Nandamuri Balakrishna and Chiranjeevi clashed at Kakatiyanagar in Narasaraopet town on Sunday evening, hurling stones and bottles at each other. Trouble broke out when fans of Balakrishna tore poster of Chiranjeevi in Kakatiyanagar. About 200 Balakrishna’s fans took out a rally from Ravipadu village near Narasaraopet.

Chiru still studying issues

2008-09-30T00:59:00.001-07:00

The Praja Rajyam president, Chiranjeevi, fumbled on question of how he will solve contentious issues troubling the state, and over on the "itinerary of his maiden political tour across the state". His standard reply over the last month on any important issue has been: "We are studying it." A press conference on Sunday showed that Chiranjeevi was still grappling with policies on key issues.

Even though he visited farmers who will be displaced by the Special Economic Zone at Polepally and weavers at Sircilla, the PR chief failed to answer related queries. Angered by a volley of questions by mediapersons, a visibly upset Chiranjeevi tried to end the meeting abruptly saying: "I am not an IAS officer to know about every issue."

Earlier, referring to suicide by Sircilla weavers, the PR chief questioned the apathy of the government towards them. "Please concentrate on the welfare of weavers and curb suicides rather than criticising my visits,’ Chiranjeevi said. When asked how the PR planned to alleviate sufferings of weavers, he said: "We are examining the issue and will announce our policy soon."

The PR president replied on the same lines on restoration of land to poor farmers whose lands were acquired by SEZs, industries and other projects in the state.

Interestingly, Chiranjeevi was not sure when his maiden state-wide tour will begin. Referring to reports in a section of media that he will start his yatra on October 2, Chiranjeevi said: "It is strange that I come to know about my tour itinerary through the media. We are still to plan it. I am not sure of the date, but I will start the yatra in Srikakulam much before Dasara."

The PR chief said that his party membership drive would start on Gandhi jayanti. A top leader of the party told this newspaper at Srikakulam on Sunday that the yatra will start at Itchapuram but the date has not been confirmed. Astrologers had said Itchapuram was auspicious.

Party leaders Chegondi Hariram Jogaiah, Dr Vinay, Banguluru Ravi, Allu Aravind and two advisors of Pavan Kalyan held a meeting in the roads and building guest house in the afternoon to discuss the venue of public meetings and the route map of the yatra.

Chiru Rath to roll from October 5

2008-09-30T00:58:00.000-07:00

The Chiru Rath is finally all set to roll from first week of October from north coastal region. In his first leg beginning October 5, Chiranjeevi will tour Srikakulam, Vizianagaram and Visakhapatnam.

Announcing this here on Sunday, Chiranjeevi said PRP would also take up a massive programme of tree planting and other socially relevant programmes. October 5 is the tentative date and he would cover about 50 kms per day. He would then take a five-day break and then visit three Telangana districts. The details of his Telangana tour were being finalised and will be announced on Monday, he said. This would be followed by a tour of Rayalaseema.

He said his party would not stop at planting the saplings. It will ask the party workers to take up the responsibility of nurturing the saplings into big trees, he said.

Replying to a question on the appointment of various committees in the party, he said it would begin only after the enrolment of the members. But before that the party would take up state-wide programme of flag hoisting week in every town and village which would herald the party’s political activity on a large scale. The party flags will be hoisted in every village from October 2 and the programme will be known as "Vuroora Prajarajyam" (Prajarajyam in every village). This would be followed by enrolment of party members and inauguration of offices in the districts and mandals. When asked about inviting his daughter Srija for his campaign Chiranjeevi said he does not want children to be dragged into the campaign. "Lot of people want to campaign for me. So, where is the need to rope in children," he added.

Expressing anguish at the growing number of suicide cases among weavers in Sircilla, Chiranjeevi said instead of attacking him for his visit to the area, the Congress leaders should concentrate on giving confidence to the weavers. "None of the steps taken by the government had instilled confidence among them and the government needs to explain the reasons for the pathetic situation," he said.

Chiranjeevi Will Be Silent Winner

2008-09-26T23:28:00.001-07:00

It appears that Megastar Chiranjeevi has become a strict follower of the saying by Lord Buddha –'Silence is Golden'. After having come into politics, he is being targeted for every small reason and those who used to die to be on his side on the screen or even took pride to be seen with him outside are now shamelessly hitting out at him without a cause.

However, all these things don't seem to matter much as Chiru has been silent over all the mud slinging and is going on doing his work. It was the same mantra that he had adopted in the film career that took him to envious heights. His idea of remaining calm over such things and just focus on the task on the hand has got him a lot of success.

Now, he is following the same principle in politics and there are many of his supporters who say that it is this stand that will ensure that he will also become the Chief Minister and will get him great success in this dangerous and murky field. Let us wait and see how true all this turns out to be.

Chiru’s Ticket Show Irks Fans, Workers

2008-09-26T23:26:00.000-07:00

The entry of Chiranjeevi fans and party workers into the Praja Rajyam headquarters here is being restricted through a ticket system. It is similar to the ticket system in cinema theatres, which is fitting, but in this case, some don’t get to see the hero at all. This has evoked much resentment. Be it a second-rung leader of the Praja Rajyam or a die-hard Chiranjeevi fan from a far off village, everyone is allotted a ticket according to his or her standing.

To enable the ticket system to function smoothly, the party leadership has also set up a help counter near the main gate. There are four kinds of tickets. One allows a person to enter the premises but denies him entry into the party office. The second kind of ticket is given to those who have business with the Praja Rajyam spokespersons. Those who get the third category of ticket can go to the conference hall and wait there, till Chiranjeevi comes down to meet them.

And there is also the “VIP” ticket which is given to those who can directly walk into the megastar’s chamber and interact with him. The ticket system has disappointed many party workers and fans who come from far away to meet the star and have to return without a darshan. Some MPTCs who came from Mahabubnagar district to meet Chiranjeevi on Wednesday did not get the right tickets, so to say. So they went back disgruntled. Similarly, the party leader, Ms P. Karuna, daughter of Mallu Swarajyam, was denied entry by the party managers on Wednesday. The Praja Rajyam leader, Ms B. Shobha Nagi Reddy, said she was not aware of these restrictions On Thursday, the party managers did not allow any visitors since a core committee meeting was taking place in the office.

Chiranjeevi Finds Fault With SEZ Policies Of Previous Regimes

2008-09-26T23:24:00.000-07:00

Praja Rajyam president Chiranjeevi on Friday launched an attack on previous governments for not considering the interests of farmers while establishing Special Economic Zones.

Expressing concern over the plight of farmers displaced by the Pharma SEZ here, he said, “While SEZs are essential as they spawn industrial development, they cannot be set up by depriving poor farmers of their land.” As many as 56 out of the 250 SEZs in the country were in Andhra Pradesh, and it was regrettable that they were carved out of fertile lands owned by poor farmers. “It is not real development when it is achieved at the cost of hungry stomachs.”

Mr. Chiranjeevi spent over three hours in the area where the government had acquired about 1,000 acres in Polepalli, Mudireddipalle and Gundlagadda Thanda in Jadcherla mandal for the Pharma SEZ in 2001-02. Two companies are putting up their facility and only 153 acres is in use. He also visited the houses of three displaced families.

Addressing an impressive gathering from atop a vehicle under blazing sun, the actor-turned-politician drew applause when he said that farmers had become labourers after acquisition of their land. He said farmers cherished the small piece of land that they could call their own and were so sentimental that elders would be buried in a corner of the holding.

Asserting that his party would stand by the displaced farmers led by the Polepalli SEZ Vythireka Samiti (Struggle Committee Against Polepalli SEZ), he demanded that the government allocate alternative land and houses to them, apart from paying an additional sum of money in tune with the rising land prices. Farmers who lost their lands were not reaping the full benefit considering that allocation of SEZs invariably led to a real estate boom.

He said it was a pity that the governments were overlooking the interests of the farmers. The Hindu

We Are Sidelined: Chiranjeevi Fans

2008-09-26T23:21:00.000-07:00

Barely one month into its existence, Telugu megastar Chiranjeevi's party Praja Rajyam seems to be bogged down by internal strife.

"Fans" of the star are miffed at being "sidelined" by the politicians who are trying to hog the limelight in the company of Chiranjeevi.

"We are getting a raw deal in the party," president of a district Chiranjeevi fans association lamented at the Praja Rajyam Party office on Friday.

Ironically, senior political leaders who jumped into the actor's outfit leaving their parent parties too aren't exactly happy with the state of affairs in Praja Rajyam.

The coterie around Chiranjeevi is reportedly trying to "dictate terms" even to seasoned politicians, who earlier held important positions in their parties as well as the government. Now, some of such leaders are apparently regretting their decision to join hands with Chiranjeevi.

"It's a different kind of mess out here," one former minister said. "People here seem to have lot of airs about themselves. You don't find such a situation in any political party," he pointed out.

Worse, enthusiastic people who are thronging the Praja Rajyam office in Jubilee Hills here to catch a glimpse of Chiranjeevi are literally being necked out by over-zealous security personnel.

This has become a "routine" affair at the party office, the people complain.

People Turned Angry On Praja Rajyam Party In Polepally

2008-09-26T23:18:00.000-07:00

Praja Rajyam president Chiranjeevi got a taste of public wrath in his role as politician for the first time. The actor-turned-politician met farmers who will be displaced due to the Special Economic Zone at Polepally in Mahbubnagar district on Friday.

They turned angry when he was not able to explain how the PR could mitigate their sufferings if they voted the party to power. The PR chief listened to farmers and tried to understand their problems during a whirlwind tour to villages and thandas adjacent to Polepally.

He assured the farmers that he will lessen their hardships as soon as the PR came to power, but did not elaborate on the same. "Unlike other politicians, I have not come here just for political mileage. I assure you that when the Praja Rajyam comes to power, we will take necessary steps to uplift you," he told villagers.

Chiranjeevi criticised the state government for acquiring lands from the poor under the guise of SEZs. After he completed his visit and was about to return to Hyderabad, some farmers staged a dharna seeking a definite assurance of Rs 10 lakh as compensation per acre.

Chiru Is No Hero For Former Heroines

2008-09-23T05:20:00.000-07:00

Many heroines who ran around trees and sang lovey-dovey duets with Chiranjeevi in reel life are spurning him in the political arena. On screen, their eyelashes fluttered with adoration on seeing the hero, but now many of them talk as if they can’t bear the sight of him. Roja, the president of Telugu Mahila, the women’s wing of the Telugu Desam, was Chiranjeevi’s heroine in many films. Some of the films, including Mutha Mestri, were blockbusters.

But now Roja has no good words for her former hero. In fact, she lashes out at him every day. "His role is nil when it comes to helping the needy in times of natural disasters in the state," says Roja. Vijayashanti, who has acted in the most number of films with Chiranjeevi and was considered to be the heroine who most suited him, is also a bitter critic of the star.

Both of them are in the opposite poles of the political spectrum and fans are sad to see them snipe at each other. But there are chances of the lucky pair getting together again. Vijayashanti is planning to merge her political outfit with the Telangana Rastra Samiti. And if the TRS joins hands with the Praja Rajyam, then fans will see Chiranjeevi and Vijayashanti together in a campaign van.

Popular heroine Nagma, who acted with Chiranjeevi in many films, is now in the Congress. Chances are that she will be campaigning against Chiranjeevi. Similarly, Jaya Sudha, who donned some good roles with Chiranjeevi is all set to join the Congress to spearhead the attack against her screen hero. However, the megastar may find some relief in another former heroine Jaya Prada, whose Samajwadi Party is trying for an alliance with Praja Rajyam.

But if the SP sticks on to its alliance with the Congress and Chiranveevi goes against the latter, then even Jayaprada may have to lash out at the actor. The only exception would be actress Suhasini who is likely to join Praja Rajyam.

Shobha Criticises Naidu For Using Roja To Attack Chiru

2008-09-23T05:15:00.000-07:00

The Praja Rajyam president, Chiranjeevi, has adopted the Telugu Desam president, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu’s tactic of firing salvos at political rivals using selected leaders. And the first target of this attack by Chiranjeevi’s party was none other than the TD supremo himself. The former TD leader, Ms Shobha Nagi Reddy, who joined the Praja Rajyam on Monday lashed out at Mr Naidu for using film actor Roja to attack the megastar-turned-politician.

It may be recalled here that Roja, the TD Mahila Wing leader and former heroine of Chiranjeevi, criticised him saying that he had entered politics solely to gain power and was motivated by self-interest. She had said that Chiranjeevi had never helped anyone in the film industry while he was the superstar.

Retorting sharply to Roja’s comments on Chiranjeevi, Ms Shobha Nagi Reddy said that the TD chief was conducting a competition among his party functionaries on who would criticise rivals the best. "He is using Assembly tickets as bait and this is nothing but political bankruptcy," she added. This was the first time that a leader other than the party spokesperson had held a press conference at the PR headquarters. On the other hand, Chiranjeevi refused to react to the critical comments made by the Congress and the TD on his Siricilla tour by saying that he would not respond to personal attacks.

"As I was moved by the hardships of the weavers in Siricilla during my recent visit, I questioned the lackadaisical attitude of the government and local MLA towards the plight of the weavers," he said. He has also set up a committee under the chairmanship of Mr K.S.R. Murthy to study the problems of the weavers. The megastar said he had not yet decided when to launch his state-wide tour. "I was thinking of beginning my yatra in the first week of October," he said. "But, some of our party leaders are suggesting that I take it up after the Dasara festival."

Babu Spoils Chiru’s Tour

2008-09-23T05:12:00.000-07:00

The Telugu Desam president, Mr N. Chandrababu Naidu, has spoiled Praja Rajyam chief Chiranjeevi’s high-profile tour even before it has been launched. Mr Naidu has decided to launch the second phase of his Mee Kosam Yatra on Gandhi Jayanti, when Chiranjeevi was also planning to set out on his tour. Though the Praja Rajyam leadership had asked Chiranjeevi fans associations to prepare for the tour, it has not bothered to officially announce the schedule so far.

Seizing upon this lapse, Mr Naidu decided to commence the second round of Mee Kosam Yatra on October 2. “Now, the Praja Rajyam tour launch would not get much media coverage, as we are also launching our campaign on the same day,” said a senior TD leader. Mr Naidu also outsmarted Chiranjeevi by announcing that fight against corruption would be his theme for the second round of Mee Kosam.

This too would steal the wind from Chiranjeevi’s sails since he had also been planning to lash out at corruption during his tour. Through these moves, Mr Naidu has scored over the megastar, whose party is yet to learn the ropes of the political game. The TD chief would start his tour from Manchiryal in Adilabad district, where the Yellampally project has been taken up. He would be raising the corruption allegation relating to the project again to give impetus to his tour.

He will also spend time in tribal areas, where several people have died reportedly because of the lack of proper medical facilities. “Mr Naidu would spend a night in a remote village in the Adilabad district to know the conditions there first hand.” said Mr Ravula Chandrasekar Reddy, senior leader.

Chiru ‘Weaves’ A Surprise Visit

2008-09-22T05:04:00.000-07:00

Praja Rajyam leader Chiranjeevi was at a loss for words when tragic tales of weavers unfolded before him during his surprise visit to the textile town of Sircilla on Saturday. The visit is the first obvious political act of the actor after launching his party a few weeks ago. It was also a painful initiation into the complex problems of the masses which he would have to grapple with in the coming weeks.

Chiranjeevi visited the houses of four weavers who committed suicide owing to debts. He appeared shaken and perturbed after wailing family members of G. Rajamouli, a deceased weaver, narrated the circumstances that led to his suicide. “Governments lacked resolve to solve your problems and your elected representatives failed you,” said Chiranjeevi.

Though Sircilla denotes Siri (wealth), you have been deprived of wealth. The Praja Rajyam will become your voice.” He promised to field a local BC candidate.

Chiranjeevi’s visit followed his clandestine style, despite the Sircilla visit being a mass contact programme. Seasoned politicians, Mr Ch. Hariramajogaiah, K. Vidyadhara Rao and Bhuma Nagi Reddy are reportedly objecting to taking up of mass contact programmes in a filmy manner.

And Now, Chiru The Student

2008-09-22T04:51:00.000-07:00

Megastar Chiranjeevi is burning the midnight oil to pore over books on political science, the Indian Constitution and public administration to prepare for his new role as a politician. The actor, who has enacted many a character in reel life, may never have taken such pains for any portrayal. But then this is the meatiest role he has ever got.

According to aides, the Praja Rajyam chief is also reading up on all the burning issues of the state, including categorisation of scheduled castes, Naxalism, farmers’ suicides and price rise to keep abreast of all major developments. Mr Chiranjeevi, who is on a statewide tour, apparently wants to deliver speeches with as much substance as style, something which his scriptwriters often forget to do in films.

"He is thoroughly examining every problem being faced by the common man," said an aide. "He is not just analysing the problem, but is also taking advice from experts to find solutions." To formulate pro-poor policies for his party, the actor is also going through the election manifestos of different political parties.

"He is committed to the uplift of the downtrodden," said Ms Shobha Nagi Reddy, former Telugu Desam leader who joined the Praja Rajyam. "He is very keen on understanding the travails of the poor." Chiranjeevi struck a chord with the people during the Tirupati launch of his party by speaking about his lower middle-class upbringing. But to carry forward the momentum, he has to strike a chord in terms of his approach to issues as well. This means some rote learning to digest key facts and figures. And nobody needs to teach the actor how to weave them into his dialogues to give it that solid punch.

MegaStar Ventures Into New Galaxy

2008-09-20T01:33:00.000-07:00

As one drives through the serpentine Road No 46 in the upmarket Jubilee Hills in Hyderabad, a swanky corporate structure standing at the top of the street brings one to a natural halt, surrounded as it is by an eager but patient crowd waiting for “the star” to smile upon them.

The scene instantly reminds one of a film shoot. In fact, much like a film set, the quintessential 21st century office came up in just 40 days. But what is unfolding inside is not exactly filmi. Though the central character remains a film star — Chiranjeevi, who spent three decades in Tollywood — the script being drafted is political and the hero and his lieutenants believe it is certain to change the politics of Andhra Pradesh.

A pin-up board in one of the rooms has clippings from various newspapers of the day. One report describes how he lost his cool when fans blocked his way, another links the outburst to his unhappiness at the insignificant number of seasoned leaders joining his party. Yet another clipping from a vernacular reports that fans want him to hit the road sooner than later.

In the conference hall, a sizeable gathering awaits the leader’s return from lunch. One of them happens to be a technocrat from Harvard who wants to sell software to the new party.

The same software, the technocrat tells an NRI in the Chiru camp,was sold to Barack Obama for conducting a socio-economic survey in the US. He explains how it would be useful to Chiranjeevi’s Praja Rajyam.

Nearby, as we chit chat in the board room sipping hot coffee, the man of the moment — Chiranjeevi — arrives to engage us in a freewheeling conversation for the next 45 minutes.

Understandably, to most questions, he tries to relate his replies to his experience in the film world. “I am pretty relaxed,’’ he says in his opening remarks on how he feels in his new role as a political leader.

While in the film industry he had to depend on his own resources, now he is more comfortable because there are quite a few friends who share his ideology and thoughts and are willing to hone them into policy programmes that can be implemented. “They provide me a lot of cushion and with the support I am getting from the people, I am confident of reaching the goal,” he avers.

The actor-turned-politician does not hesitate to concede that the decision to switch roles was a long drawn out process. Did he spend sleepless nights? “Not exactly. But for months I used to get up early in the morning and spend time alone in my room wondering how to respond to suggestions that I should enter politics,” he recalls.

Many told him that the people of the state gave him all that anyone could aspire for as an actor and it was time he repaid the debt.

He goes on: “There are many who have charisma but how many will receive the encouragement that I have to go forward?” After all, even if he had continued in films, he would have done a couple more movies before deciding to call it a day. But if he did that he would have wasted a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to take up a bigger cause, more so because he believes he has the capacity to change lives for the better. That, finally, persuaded him to take the plunge.

But what about his on-screen and off-screen image? Having played characters that reflected a lot of aggression, what Chiranjeevi has shown in the month since he launched his party is a goody-goody and soft side. But he feels it is a perfectly okay approach. “I don’t think you need to be necessarily aggressive to connect to the people. On the contrary, I believe that if you show intensity in what you say, you will be able to strike a chord in their hearts.” From the angry hero in films, will the state now see an angry young politician (at 52, he is young by Indian standards) who is out to change society? He laughs heartily. “I may not portray myself as an angry politician but I am sure people will appreciate my honesty and commitment to change the way politics is pursued,” emphasising that curbing corruption and ensuring that a major chunk of the benefits go to the identified beneficiaries would be his top priority.

The Praja Rajyam founder also argues that there is nothing wrong when he keeps saying that he would try to do the same things that are being done now but in a different manner.

“Take the case of social welfare and girls hostels.

We have a lot of them even now, but the inmates suffer from lack of dining facility, toilets and a proper place to sleep.We may not be able to provide them dining tables but we can certainly give them economical cement platforms to have their food. Likewise, ensuring a mattress to sleep is not difficult. All that is required is sincerity in approach. You don’t have to necessarily change the system. If the leader sets an example, the rest will follow in great measure,” he explains.

Unconsciously, he again goes back to his past world to relate how he changed the way a hero performs dance sequences. The number of songs in a movie remained the same as before even after he joined films, but what he did do was to bring about a distinct change in the way they were played out to the audiences and they became a runaway trend-setter.

Chiranjeevi has no doubt that his lack of experience in politics will not work against him. On the contrary, it may be an advantage.

Take the case of Ram Gopal Verma, who was looked down upon as a rookie when he first wanted to direct a film or a Sekhar Kammula, an NRI who returned to the country and got into film-making, he points out and says, “They had never worked with anybody. But when they did their first movies, they were lapped up by people who liked their refreshingly fresh approach”.

Though he is only a month-old as a politician Chiranjeevi says he has stopped thinking about his past. His thoughts are not going back to the sets, trolleys and the frequent shouts of lights, action...camera… from the director.He was used to working 18 hours a day while making films and, therefore, does not find it difficult to spend 12 to 14 hours in the party office handling various tasks — meeting newcomers, discussing policies with the think-tank (they are still taking shape) and catching up with the media.

Comparisons may not always be right but Chiranjeevi has to live with the manner in which he is compared with the Telugu film giant, NT Rama Rao, who launched the Telugu Desam 25 years ago and changed the course of politics in the state.

“N T Rama Rao was, no doubt, a strongwilled person but when it comes to determination I am no less,” he says recalling that even when NTR launched Telugu Desam, support did not come overnight. At that time, people thought they had no option but to live under a Congress regime. But when the alternative came along, they looked at it and soon it turned into a groundswell of support. Likewise, his heart tells him that people are once again looking for a change from the two principal parties — ruling Congress and Telugu Desam.

Youth have, of course, attended his maiden meeting in Tirupati in large numbers and been coming to him on a daily basis.

“Others like women or farmers may not express themselves the same way. But, I am sure they too would lend support once I hit the road later this month,” he says in a voice oozing confidence, before signing off to meet others waiting for him.