Kannada cinema & its limited influence in politics

Unlike their Telugu and Tamil counterparts, Kannada cinema mega stars have always maintained a safe distance from politics. Be it Dr. Rajkumar or Dr. Vishnuvardhan, stars never tried to cash in on their popularity in politics. But there are always exceptions. Some actors, though not as big names as Rajkumar, decided to enter politics when their career started waning in films.

One of the biggest names among Kannada actors who became quite successful in politics is Ambareesh. His journey started with Congress in 1994, but he quit the party in just two years after it denied a ticket to contest in the then ensuing elections. He then joined Janata Dal-Secular (JDS) and won the Mandya Lok Sabha constituency in 1998.

Later, he quit JDS too and rejoined Congress. Thereafter, he twice became minister in Congress governments. However, his impact was restricted just to Mandya and he could not taste success like the way stars attained success in Tamil Nadu or Andhra. He died in 2018 due to medical complications.

His wife Sumalatha entered politics after his death and won as an independent candidate from the Mandya parliamentary constituency in the 2019 polls. In all likelihood, she is going to be a BJP candidate from the Assembly segment in the upcoming polls.

Other prominent names

Around the same time, veteran actor Ananth Nag forayed into politics. He was made a minister by the Janata Dal government under J.H. Patel's leadership. He had unsuccessfully contested against former Karnataka CM S.M. Krishna in 2004.

Another actor who always hogged headlines after entering politics in recent years is Ramya. Her career in politics started in 2013 Mandya by-election on a Congress ticket and she defeated the JDS candidate in her maiden election. Unfortunately, she lost the poll six months later in the 2014 general elections. Thereafter, she was made the head of the AICC social media cell.

Four-time MLA B.C. Patil, who was not just an actor but also a cop before becoming a full-time neta. In 2018, he emerged victorious from the Hirekerur constituency, but later quit the party and joined BJP, which made him the Agriculture Minister.

Even former CM H.D. Kumaraswamy, son of former Prime Minister and JDS patriarch H.D. Deve Gowda, was a film producer-distributor before taking a plunge into politics. His son Nikhil and many other prominent personalities from Kannada film industry like actress Umashri, Jaggesh, Narendra Babu, Malavika Avinash, Shruti and Bhavana are associated with some or other political party and have been a bit successful in politics.

How successful are these celebrities?

At the individual level, they might have found some success, but their influence has been limited to in and around their constituency alone. No actor in Karnataka could recreate what MGR or NTR did in their respective States. It may be because cinema has never been so influential in Karnataka like in its neighbouring States.

However, the fact is that Rajkumar at his peak had the opportunity to foray into politics. Possibly, he was the only actor who could have made it big in politics, but never wanted to capitalise on the popularity that he had earned in cinema to enter politics. He still remains a stellar personality on the basis of high moral turpitude.