Pune: With the stakes high for all major political players in the elections to the Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad municipal corporations, a frenzy of innovations have lent colour to the already-heated campaign proceedings.
From song-and-dance jingles to street plays and even magic shows, candidates are throwing every gimmick to reach out to their prospective voters.
Sister-brother duo Priya and Premraj Gadade, who are contesting on a Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) ticket from ward number 30 in Parvati area, have creatively developed a video on the tune of a popular Marathi song ‘Shanta Bai’. The video, with its witty lyrics, has transformed the original ‘item number’ into the duo’s ward development manifesto, charting improvements their achievements. The duo has also roped in singer Sanjay Londhe, who sang the original.
Ms. Gadade, who penned the lyrics himself, said, “We wanted to come up with something different for our election campaign so that people would recall our work.” His sister was earlier a sitting corporator of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS). She recently switched allegiances with the NCP.
Street smart
Some candidates have taken to street plays to attract voters. Four Shiv Sena aspirants from the Vadgaonsheri panel — Sachin Bhagat, Sadhana Bhagat, Nitin Bhujbal and Manish Devkar — have come up with an idea of censuring the Bharatiya Janata Party’s policies and the past workings of the NCP by using local performance artistes.
They have also hired a magician from Nagpur to innovatively portray the damages caused by demonetisation, contrasting it with the developmental works done by the four candidates.
Ms. Bhagat says, “The shows, besides being entertaining, makes people think about why they ought to vote for us.”
The NCP, too, is not far behind. The party has hired three vans, which travel in every ward, performing plays and informing people about the work the party candidates have done over the last five years.
‘Please go vote’
Meanwhile, the importance of the civic polls have impressed itself on citizens. In a bid to promote voting, a group of city-based musicians have come up with a ‘rap anthem’, encouraging voters to go out and exercise their franchise.
The video, titled ‘Please go Vote’ and running a little over two-and-a-half-minutes, serves as a ‘guide’ to resolve the citizen’s dilemma of whom to vote for, and why? It is uploaded on YouTube channel ‘Brand Pickle’. The video cautions against corrupt and self-serving ‘ netas (politicians)’.
Nikhil Khaire, who penned the lyrics of the song, said “We wanted to offer something refreshing in contrast to the well-meaning, though dull messages usually proffered by government agencies that urge people to vote. We chose the rap format as it would be an engaging way to connect with the youth.”
