Coimbatore: It’s a rib-tickler from the ghost movie “Kanchana”. The director comedian Manobala who plays a godman who exorcises the ghost in the movie, relives the scene on the stage. “We need to drive away more Kanchanas,” he thunders. And the crowd erupts into giggles and guffaws. Entertainers from Kollywood have descended on Coimbatore to liven up the sedate poll scene.
Comedian starlets, Senthil, Thyagu and Manobala streaked through Coimbatore over the last three days, lending a touch of humour to the heat and dust of the hustings. All of them campaigned in support of the ruling AIADMK candidate. And their prime target was the DMK patriarch M.Karunanidhi and his son, M.K. Stalin
While Manobala tickled the funny bone with his hairstyle, comical diction, Thyagu chose to strain his vocal chords with a bit of music. Opening his campaign with a 1980s song from “Oru Thalai Raagam” which features transgenders, he informs the crowd that the Jayalalithaa government had given them monthly pension of Rs.1000.
Manobala, who has directed 40 films and appeared in over 175, told Deccan Chronicle that India was in a critical situation and it would be disastrous to take the wrong decision.
“Congress has done nothing in the last ten years, especially for the State of Tamil Nadu and if this situation prevails the county is in a state of jeopardy. Those in power are usually not bothered about the public. They are more concerned about how much they earn and what they leave behind for their own kith and kin. AIADMK Supremo J Jayalalithaa has a vital role to play at the national level because she has no family and her focus is on development of the state in particular and nation as a whole.”
Pulling reasonable crowd, comedian Senthil who often co-starred with Kaundamani in comedy sequences, highlighted schemes of the government including cradle baby scheme, gold thali scheme among several others. Refuting Stalin’s statement that Amma has done nothing for the state, he said that she had considered the people of the state her children unlike DMK whose only focus has been amassing wealth for their biological progenies.
At his campaign meetings, comedian Thyagu narrated his story of betrayal by the DMK Patriarch and his son Stalin, for whom he had served for 25 years. Stating that the family exploited his hard work and had also gone to the extent of assisting his siblings in grabbing the ancestral property that was willed on his name, he reiterated that the party did not respect loyalty and had no humaneness.
Even as DMK grew with the assistance of artists from film field including SS Chandran, Radha Ravi, Sarathkumar, Kushbu and Vadivel, they hardly show any respect. “On the contrary Amma is an embodiment of humaneness and when I first met her, I felt as though I was standing in front of a goddess. She told me that she was aware of what has happened and that I could be a part of AIADMK and serve the party. Ever since, she has treated me so well”, he said.
Upholding the promise that she had given to Puratchthalaivar MGR, she has dedicated her life by working for the cause of people without getting married. DMK on the contrary has only brought defame to the nation as a whole with their involvement in 2G scam. They have also betrayed the Tamils and kept mum when 1.5 lakh Tamilians were killed in Lanka, he added.
