Tollywood tunes up for elections

Tollywood's megastar Chiranjeevi is in a denial mode these days. About his political plans, that is. He issued his latest denial on Sunday along with a plea to the media not to misunderstand his recent "friendly visit" to Chief Minister Chandrababu Naidu at the Telugu Desam Party headquarters.

Chiranjeevi, who is currently riding a popularity wave following the box office success of Tagore, has always attracted speculation about his plans. Though many parties have tried to woo him, Chiranjeevi has chosen to stick with cinema. But still there has always been a hint that he is cultivating political ambitions.

So, when he met Naidu twice last week the buzz began again. Both have a very cordial relationship, although it is whispered that Chiranjeevi could easily be the pretender to the throne and that Naidu fears his charismatic appeal.

One story that is whispered is that Chiranjeevi has a personal score to settle with Naidu following the humiliation his brother, Pavan Kalyan (also a star in his own right) faced from TDP legislator Paritala Ravi over some land dispute. At that time, Chiranjeevi had turned to Naidu for help, but the latter chose a hands off policy.

Another story doing the rounds about Chiranjeevi's meeting with Naidu is that the star is seeking a TDP ticket for his brother-in-law, successful film producer Allu Arvind. A really good explanation, considering already many Telugu film stars have hitched on to the TDP bandwagon.

In fact, Naidu's connection with Tollywood will see stars lined up in his corner when elections are held. Not just glamour on the campaign trail but funding is also something Naidu can expect.

Top film stars including Nagarjuna, Venkatesh, Srikanth, Srihari, Sounda-rya and Ramya Krishna and upcoming stars like Junior NTR, Tarun and Uday Kiran will be roped in to campaign for the TDP.

Naidu's stock is so high that even the prodigals have returned. Former Rajya Sabha member Mohan Babu, who parted ways with Naidu in 1996, is expected to return to the TDP. So is actress Jayaprada.