Actor-turned-politician M.H. Ambareesh had a chequered political career, switching parties, winning and losing elections from Mandya, and being a Minister in both the Union and State Council of Ministers but resigning from both of them.
A Vokkaliga politician with a mass base and popularity, his career could have reached greater heights, many felt. But Ambareesh probably never pursued his political career with a single-minded passion, nor was he shrewd, his close associates say.
However, he was a “star campaigner” for Congress in the Cauvery basin where he connected with the masses well. His passing away has left a vacuum to that extent and the party has no leader from the film industry to galvanise party workers in the region.
Ambareesh remained a ‘Rebel Star’ in politics too, which only affected his career. But he did not stick to positions of power at the cost of his self-esteem. Once he said: “Like my entry into cinema, entering politics is also accidental. I came to politics to serve the people, not for power.” He quit as the Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting in the Manmohan Singh government at the Centre, when the verdict of Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal went against the interest of Karnataka in 2008.
In 2016, he rebelled against the then Chief Minister Siddaramaiah when he was dropped from the ministry. His only grouse was not being consulted before dropping from the Cabinet. He asked whether Mr. Siddaramaiah considered him as the slipper, to leave and wear whenever he wants. Feeling let down by the Congress, he resigned from his membership of the Legislative Assembly. In recent days, he focussed more on his son’s career in the film industry. Tayige Takka Maga , starring his wife Sumalatha in the lead, was the last film he watched and he was eager to watch his son’s film Amar , named after Ambareesh’s name before he joined films.
