Not that Sidhu has grown into his political role like the Sialkot willow moulds itself into a cricket bat (that's definitely not a Sidhuism). He has been a late entrant and probably wouldn't have taken the plunge if former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee hadn't convinced him. He was bowled over by the irrefutable argument that his idiomatic stroke-play should make politics his natural playing ground. Like Vinod Khanna and Dharmendra, Sidhu must have been swayed by the idea of becoming a part of an invincible winning combination. The NDA was guaranteeing a smooth return to power through the India Shining campaign. But Sidhu was different from his celebrity contemporaries because his glamour quotient had just begun paying rich dividends. He was not a fading star trying out a political career to win back some glitter.
What Amritsar discovered in 2004 was Sidhu's intrinsic Punjabiyat. He was no longer just a cult figure to whom cricket commentary meant exploring a world of weirdly witty metaphors. His innate ability to sire a new genre of entertainment as the host of the Laughter Challenge unraveled much later. Amritsar went into raptures as Sidhu recited Punjabi couplets in his own inimitable style. He was seeking immediate recognition of his political worth as a son of the soil, as one of whose command of the local tongue was flawless. Sidhu was falling back on the widely acceptable, post-Lalu political idiom --- buffoonery and clowning --- to reach people's hearts.
But Sidhu's role as a jester does not really have profound political implications, at least, not as yet. He has not matured into a man married to politics and electioneering in a way an aspiring, full-time politician would have. Sidhu still stands on the peripheries, playing to the gallery, importing elements from the world of showbiz and firing up the political imagination with tidbits conceived for the Laughter Challenge show. Sidhu has retained his impulsive nature, is a shade impetuous and can, sometimes, be very unpredictable. These are not traits of an experienced, street-smart politician. Sidhu may be more grounded than politician-film actors and his absence from Amritsar may never be as derisively discussed as that of Govinda's from Mumbai North or Dharmendra's from Bikaner but he does not yet understand the importance of political homework and grassroots contact-building.
But the BJP believes in him. There are some singular positives about the Sidhu phenomenon that can be exploited only if Sidhu is willing and if he accepts the advice of his mentors like Arun Jaitley. For a long time, Punjab has not produced a single politician who will have a forceful impact on the national stage. The Amrinder Singhs and the Prakash Singh Badals have been contented regional politicians. After Giani Zail Singh, Punjab has been represented in Delhi by mediocre power-players like Surjeet Singh Barnala, S.S. Dhindsa and Buta Singh. Manmohan Singh's journey to what should have been his home state has only just begun and, that too, via 7, Race Course Road. Sidhu understands the rest of urban India as much as he does Punjab. Not one face in the third-last row of the treasury benches in the Lok Sabha, none among Milind Deora, Sachin Pilot, Deepinder Hooda, Kuldip Bishnoi, Jitin Prasada has the variegated political elements which have gone into the making of Sidhu.
If Sidhu takes his politics seriously and is not derailed by the attractive pay offered by the entertainment industry, he can nicely fill this vacuum. He understands the popular Punjabi demands, comprehends the flow of local sentiments and simply needs to familiarize himself with the ground reality. He has an instinctive idea that Punjab's politics is dammed up and enclosed by a handful of families. The state electorate is probably seeking a release from the stranglehold of the Patiala royal family, the Badals and the Brars.
There is another crucial advantage which Sidhu enjoys. The Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP alliance was supposed to be a non-starter. The BJP, defined and delineated as a party of the urban Hindus, has always been uncomfortable about the SAD's separatist past and the demands enshrined in the Anandpur Sahib resolution. Yet, the alliance, once labeled shamefully opportunistic, worked on the ground. BJP played the role of an inoffensive junior partner and waited for a chance to break new grounds. Sidhu has thrown open a window of opportunity. Being a Sikh, he breaks the stereotype about the Jat Sikh voting unquestioningly for the Akalis and city-bred Hindus opting for the BJP. A Sidhu concentrating on his political career can be of great use to the BJP. The moot question is whether Sidhu himself will grasp the vague contours of his own possibilities and work towards achieving them. The BJP has to push him towards that goal. About the AuthorDiptosh Majumdar Diptosh Majumdar is the former National Affairs Editor, CNN-IBN....Read Morefirst published:February 13, 2007, 08:55 ISTlast updated:February 13, 2007, 08:55 IST
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You just have to spread the message anywhere in Punjab that Sidhu is expected and that his name is there on the guest-list. There is no easier way of collecting a crowd. The Punjab and Haryana High Court judgment, handing him the suspended sentence of three year's imprisonment, has not really worked against him. There were jubilant celebrations in Amritsar when the Supreme Court granted the former cricketer that rare stay on conviction. It is not for nothing that the BJP sees enormous possibilities in the Sidhu phenomenon.
Not that Sidhu has grown into his political role like the Sialkot willow moulds itself into a cricket bat (that's definitely not a Sidhuism). He has been a late entrant and probably wouldn't have taken the plunge if former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee hadn't convinced him. He was bowled over by the irrefutable argument that his idiomatic stroke-play should make politics his natural playing ground. Like Vinod Khanna and Dharmendra, Sidhu must have been swayed by the idea of becoming a part of an invincible winning combination. The NDA was guaranteeing a smooth return to power through the India Shining campaign. But Sidhu was different from his celebrity contemporaries because his glamour quotient had just begun paying rich dividends. He was not a fading star trying out a political career to win back some glitter.
What Amritsar discovered in 2004 was Sidhu's intrinsic Punjabiyat. He was no longer just a cult figure to whom cricket commentary meant exploring a world of weirdly witty metaphors. His innate ability to sire a new genre of entertainment as the host of the Laughter Challenge unraveled much later. Amritsar went into raptures as Sidhu recited Punjabi couplets in his own inimitable style. He was seeking immediate recognition of his political worth as a son of the soil, as one of whose command of the local tongue was flawless. Sidhu was falling back on the widely acceptable, post-Lalu political idiom --- buffoonery and clowning --- to reach people's hearts.
But Sidhu's role as a jester does not really have profound political implications, at least, not as yet. He has not matured into a man married to politics and electioneering in a way an aspiring, full-time politician would have. Sidhu still stands on the peripheries, playing to the gallery, importing elements from the world of showbiz and firing up the political imagination with tidbits conceived for the Laughter Challenge show. Sidhu has retained his impulsive nature, is a shade impetuous and can, sometimes, be very unpredictable. These are not traits of an experienced, street-smart politician. Sidhu may be more grounded than politician-film actors and his absence from Amritsar may never be as derisively discussed as that of Govinda's from Mumbai North or Dharmendra's from Bikaner but he does not yet understand the importance of political homework and grassroots contact-building.
But the BJP believes in him. There are some singular positives about the Sidhu phenomenon that can be exploited only if Sidhu is willing and if he accepts the advice of his mentors like Arun Jaitley. For a long time, Punjab has not produced a single politician who will have a forceful impact on the national stage. The Amrinder Singhs and the Prakash Singh Badals have been contented regional politicians. After Giani Zail Singh, Punjab has been represented in Delhi by mediocre power-players like Surjeet Singh Barnala, S.S. Dhindsa and Buta Singh. Manmohan Singh's journey to what should have been his home state has only just begun and, that too, via 7, Race Course Road. Sidhu understands the rest of urban India as much as he does Punjab. Not one face in the third-last row of the treasury benches in the Lok Sabha, none among Milind Deora, Sachin Pilot, Deepinder Hooda, Kuldip Bishnoi, Jitin Prasada has the variegated political elements which have gone into the making of Sidhu.
If Sidhu takes his politics seriously and is not derailed by the attractive pay offered by the entertainment industry, he can nicely fill this vacuum. He understands the popular Punjabi demands, comprehends the flow of local sentiments and simply needs to familiarize himself with the ground reality. He has an instinctive idea that Punjab's politics is dammed up and enclosed by a handful of families. The state electorate is probably seeking a release from the stranglehold of the Patiala royal family, the Badals and the Brars.
There is another crucial advantage which Sidhu enjoys. The Shiromani Akali Dal-BJP alliance was supposed to be a non-starter. The BJP, defined and delineated as a party of the urban Hindus, has always been uncomfortable about the SAD's separatist past and the demands enshrined in the Anandpur Sahib resolution. Yet, the alliance, once labeled shamefully opportunistic, worked on the ground. BJP played the role of an inoffensive junior partner and waited for a chance to break new grounds. Sidhu has thrown open a window of opportunity. Being a Sikh, he breaks the stereotype about the Jat Sikh voting unquestioningly for the Akalis and city-bred Hindus opting for the BJP. A Sidhu concentrating on his political career can be of great use to the BJP. The moot question is whether Sidhu himself will grasp the vague contours of his own possibilities and work towards achieving them. The BJP has to push him towards that goal.
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