Politics more than delivering dialogues: Shatrughan

The fiery Shatrughan Sinha talks about his journey from Patna to Mumbai and of his political work with Swati Chaturvedi of Zeenews.com.

The fiery Shatrughan Sinha or ‘Shotgun’, in an exclusive interview with Swati Chaturvedi of Zeenews.com, talks at length about his journey from Patna to Mumbai, his political endeavours, his opponent in Lok Sabha elections 2009 Shekhar Suman, and his dreams for the future India.Swati: During your journey from Patna to Mumbai, what has been the most significant and memorable thing?

Shatrughan: Well, it has to be the blessings of my parents and the values I imbibed at my ancestral home. My journey began in Patna and then I came to Mumbai via Pune. So, it was actually Patna to FTII and then to Mumbai. It was in Mumbai that I struggled to achieve what I wanted to and reached where I am now. Rest as they say is history. Swati: While the industry was running after Congress you took the lone step of joining BJP. Shatrughan: I am lucky to have got the offer to join BJP from my friend, philosopher, guide and guru Shri LK Advani. After that Shri Rajnath Singh said that I could contest elections from any constituency in the country. I was the first person from the film industry to join BJP, when it was in the opposition. I have been with the party through all its ups and downs. Most of the film stars join politics when their career is finished or when a particular party is in power, but it was fairly different for me. I joined BJP when it was nowhere in question; people in their wildest dreams had not imagined that it would one day come to power. I believe in the following saying, ‘Glamour has limited power, power has unlimited glamour’. People from the glamour world enter politics for this unending glamour as well for their selfish interests. You must have noticed that some actors, act like pigeons during elections - they are at some point at dawn and at a different point at dusk. What they fail to realize is the fact that not only are they losing their dignity, but also the respect of people. These stars are under a misconception and the political parties are providing leverage to this misconception. Parties think that if we get a star, we will get votes too but that isn`t the truth. I will cite an example here - when Sridevi`s late father was contesting elections, he had asked her to campaign for him, but then what was the result like? He lost because people came, saw Sridevi`s beauty and went back home to vote for the candidates of their liking. Swati: Coming to actors, why are they disastrous in politics? Whether it is Dharmendra or Govinda, all have failed miserably! Shatrughan: First things first, Govinda is adorable and Dharmendra is like an elder brother. If they have been let down of sorts, can we put the entire blame on them? No, we can`t, as other party members are to be equally blamed since it was their duty to mould these non-politicians into refined politicians. The onus was on them to tutor these actors to perfection, but that didn`t happen. The stars are ushered into politics with great fervor but nothing follows that. These days actors have other things to do too, as most of them have got other vested interests; hence the fault is not entirely theirs. Swati: What about Amitabh Bachchan? Shatrughan: Well, Amitabh Bachchan is a bigger star and my senior in politics as he contested elections much before I fought my first one. People asked me back then, what was the difference between us? I only said Amitabh had visited his hometown/constituency after 30 years and I visit `Patna Sahib` 30 times a year. Swati: Well, that`s how you`ve got the tag of `Bihari Babu’? Shatrughan: Yes, that is my identity! Respect, fame is what I have got as a reward, a token of love from my people for whom I have worked. Being known as a `Bihari Babu` gives me a feeling of pride, as it is only me who they associate with Bihar and no one else. Swati: Amitabh Bachchan accepted that politics proved disastrous for him and he is not made for it. Govinda became Zero No 1 from being Hero No 1. So many actors flopped and went away but you have been there for quite long, what is the difference and the secret? Shatrughan: It has been a long journey, what has gone into it is my courage, conviction, confidence and honesty. I never joined politics at an impulse; it was a well-contemplated decision. I wanted to walk hand-in-hand with people, to move forward with them by taking them forward. It wasn`t an easy task. The approach has to be right. Actors should not enter politics on a mere impulse and then get impatient for immediate results. At times, I think that they are looking somewhere but aiming somewhere else, it doesn`t work like that. Swati: Why do they fail? Shatrughan: People in politics fail when they don’t connect with their lands, when they suffer from a lack of knowledge about most of the issues concerning the masses. There is more to politics than delivering dialogues. I am not denying that these actors are not entertaining. In fact, I would love to have a few of them entertaining the public during the political heat in Patna too, but they should not forget that these kinds of things don`t work in the long run, it is the work that speaks. To attain success, one should become like the respectable South Indian actors cum politicians like Chiranjeevi, MGR, Jayalalithaa, who have had a history, have the determination, and the desire for power, the courage to stand alone at the centre stage, also knowledge, and last but not the least - political acumen. Actors today are not able to make themselves `role models`. You can`t be standing amidst public and smoke a cigarette and the very next moment, do an anti-tobacco campaign. How are you supposed to believe such people? Swati: When you came to power, you faced a lot of criticism. Criticism and politics go hand in hand, how do you handle it? Shatrughan: I don`t believe in losing my cool. I don`t want my blood pressure to increase unnecessarily either; hence I prefer to stay calm and as far criticism is concerned, that happens all the time. When I became a Cabinet minister, there were rumours that I never attended office and other things. But when I heard of the rumours I dared the people to come and check my records, but no one had the courage to do so. I would say that explains it all. One has to face two kinds of people in life - opposition and family. When one starts attaining popularity and success these criticisms follow, as people can`t gulp the fact that you are moving ahead. As they say, "When the going gets tough the tough get going." Swati: Coming to the BJP leadership, there were certain statements which indicated that LK Advani will be overthrown by Narendra Modi in the 2014 polls. Isn`t it derogatory in your opinion for someone to talk of replacing the leader who is leading your party currently? Shatrughan: I believe that Advaniji`s stature is not that of a politician, but that of a statesman. The country needs him. We have a zero tolerance against corruption, against terrorism and it is he who we are looking at for providing solutions to the problems the country is facing. It is his strong-willed desire to lead the country to enlightenment that I think will see us through, hence I don`t believe in any statements of such kind. They can be purely assumptions. What matters now is the fact that the country is looking at him to provide them with long desired leadership. To come up with such statements is wrong! Swati: Arun Jaitley and Venkaiah Naidu have in the past supported Modi`s candidature. Shatrughan: All I would like to say is that Advaniji is our only prime ministerial candidate. Our only aim is to have him as the PM, but still if people have other opinions I would say - "Big people have bigger talks." Swati: What is your opinion of Narendra Modi? Shatrughan: I obviously have a very good opinion of him. Modiji, Nitish Kumar are individuals who have the right intentions and the right policies. Modi’s Gujarat is thriving in every possible way, it is far ahead of Maharashtra, which is ironically governed by the ruling party yet it lacks in everything. You’ve got farmers committing suicide there, 14 hours of power cuts. Is that how we had imagined Maharashtra to be? Gujarat by far is the only state where farmers and poor people seem happy and content with the governance. All the credit goes to Modiji and no one else. The same can be said for Nitish Kumar. People of Bihar are enjoying a breath of fresh air with him in power. Swati: It is said that Nitish feels threatened by you? Shatrughan: (Laughs) I don’t think so. He is the biggest leader of NDA in Bihar. I am his candidate in Patna. I want to work in association with him. There is no truth in this speculation; people want to say things they want to. Swati: You had called Bal Thackeray a father figure inspite of his staunch statements against north Indians. Shatrughan: I still maintain that. He is a Pita Tulya for me (father figure). Shahi Imam Bukhari and Jyoti Basu are also like father figures to me. They have a right to voice their opinion, but deep inside there is this unseen common factor. For me the karma bhoomi is same as the matra bhoomi. When I had met Bala Saheb, I was only hoping for peace and prosperity and believe me, he reciprocated very well. When it was time for me to leave, I said - ‘Jai Maharashta’ and he said ‘Jai Bihar’. I don’t need a certificate for my character, I have done what is right and I dare people to prove me wrong. Swati: Your opinion of Shekhar Suman. Shatrughan: I respect him a lot. I don’t see a point in pointing fingers at others. The people of Patna will decide, who they want on the basis of honesty and credibility. Both of us are from Patna and have common initials - these are the only common factors. As I have said before I have been with BJP for quite a time now, but Mr Suman has joined Congress when it is in power and that is so easy. But what I really like is that we are choosing to practice decent politics and are not indulging in mudslinging; guess that should set an example for others as well. Swati: What are your political ambitions? Shatrughan: Zindagi ki asli ladai abhi baaki hai, mere iraadon ka imtehaan abhi baaki hai, abhi toh naapi hai zameen humne, abhi saara aasmaan baaki hai. (Life’s real struggle is yet to come. The test of my determination is yet to be done. I have just measured the span of Earth, the Sky still remains to be conquered.) I am looking forward to the victory of Bihar. If they win, so will I. I want peace, prosperity and pride for the state. I want them to move forward and will do every possible thing to support them. For the country, I just wish one thing - that it is led by Advaniji. Swati: Your parting words. Shatrughan: Well, I would like to quote a famous poem by Dushyant Verma: Ho gayi hai peer parvat se pighalni chahiye, aaj ye deewar pardon ki tarah hilne lagi, shart lekin ye thi ki ye buniyaad hilni chahiye, hungama khada karna mera maksad nahi, meri koshish hai ki ye surat badalni chahiye, mere seene mein nahi toh tere seene mein, ho kahin bhi aag par aag jalni chaihiye. (If not in my heart, then let it be in yours wherever the fire may be, it must burn, creating only a disturbance is not my intent my effort is that these circumstances should change) Adaptation by: Ankita Shukla