The actor’s meeting with PM Modi Monday has strengthened speculation that he may take the political plunge in the state.
Bengaluru: When Mohanlal Vishwanathan Nair made his silver screen debut in 1980, it was the beginning of a long illustrious film career in multiple Indian languages.
It now seems that the Malayalam superstar is ready to convert his reel-life roles as a politician into reality with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) courting him ahead of the 2019 elections.
The speculation that the actor may take the political plunge was strengthened Monday when he met Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
After the meeting, where Mohanlal briefed the PM about his VishwaSanthi Foundation’s initiatives, both used their social media handles to pat each other on the back.
The actor said that the PM had assured all possible assistance to Kerala, which is recovering from the devastating floods. He also explained that his meeting with Modi was to invite him to the Global Malayalee Roundtable, to chalk out a roadmap for a “New Kerala”.
He has assured all support and offered to participate in the Global Malayalee Round table that can formulate futuristic solutions for a New Kerala. Hon. PMO India has also appreciated our vision to set up a Cancer Care Centre to cater to the needs of the under-privileged. pic.twitter.com/3icdyqZlgu
— Mohanlal (@Mohanlal) September 3, 2018
On his part, the Prime Minister said the actor’s “humility” was “endearing”.
Yesterday, I had a wonderful meeting with @Mohanlal Ji. His humility is endearing. His wide range of social service initiatives are commendable and extremely inspiring. pic.twitter.com/f3Dv3owHUV
— Narendra Modi (@narendramodi) September 4, 2018
Heavyweight backing for the BJP
If he does join the party, Mohanlal will bring the much-needed star power that the BJP particularly needs in Kerala. The party has been trying to make inroads in the last few elections, and although it has increased its vote-share in the state, it has not been able to significantly swing voters towards it. The BJP hopes that with Mohanlal on its side, it would be able to gain through his popularity.
V. Muraleedharan, MP and former Kerala BJP president, however, told ThePrint that as of now, there was no such development in the party.
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“I have heard about these rumours, but what has been conveyed to me by people very close to Mohanlal is that he has still some more years of his career left,” Muraleedharan said. “He doesn’t want to sacrifice that career and join politics. I would say that we are not aware of any such discussion and nothing has been decided formally on this.”
Muraleedharan though does not deny that if Mohanlal has plans to join the party, it will help bolster its image in the state.
Natural transition
The actor has played politicians on screen. He most famously starred in Mani Ratnam’s Iruvar (1997), in which his character was moulded on M.G. Ramachandran, or MGR, the larger-than-life Tamil actor who went on to become the chief minister of the state.
In one of his famous movies, Bhoomiyilae Rajankanmar, Mohanlal’s character as a politician is very similar to what he may possibly want to project himself today – that of a leader in tune with the needs of his people.
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And if the entries on his blog, ‘thecompleteactor’, are anything to go by, Mohanlal has been a politician in the making for a long time now. His blog posts contain his thoughts on issues of ‘national interest’, one of which was on Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) row. Commenting on the controversy, in a piece titled ‘What is the point of us being alive when India is dying’, he wrote, “It is this land that we stand on, that we call our country, it is the sky above our heads, the air that we breathe, the water we drink and the soil that is beneath us which we finally merge with as we die”.
The actor, a five-time national award winner, has acted in over 300 films across languages. He is also a recipient of the Padma Shri for his contribution to regional Indian cinema. Some of his notable films include Kireedam, Bharatham and Vanaprastham. He has also acted in the Hindi film Company.
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