Mumbai: They can be super heroes, politicians, magicians, and even militants on the silver screen but when it comes to the real business of politics Bollywood heroes still have to work on their roles. We take a look at all those actors who couldn't make it as the friendly neighbourhood neta and some who almost did.
Sanjay's political career seems to have hit a road block after Supreme Court disallowed him from contesting polls.
Not only does Sanjay not have a ticket, he also lacks the experience. But at least Sanju baba has got the look right – white kurta pajama straight out of a political movie and now he also has the post of General Secretary of the Samajwadi Party to hold on to.
And that brings us to the question: are actors really cut out to be politicians?
Long before Sanjay tried switching from Gandhigiri to netagiri, Bollywood's comedy king Govinda took the plunge. But with just 10 per cent attendance in Parliament and no contribution to his constituency, his political ambitions remain dashed.
The next in line is Punjab da puttar, Dharmendra, who after getting elected as a BJP MP from Bikaner in 2004 chose to make his presence felt onscreen rather than Parliament. Dharmendra's political role was perhaps his biggest flop!
Also starring in this political potboiler is Rajesh Khanna who was a member of Parliament for Congress between 1991 and 1996. And as if his inactivity in the political arena wasn't enough, his poor choice of films, namely his recent sleaze flick Bewafa added to his party leaders' embarrassment.
Jaya Bachchan has been a member of Rajya Sabha for Samajwadi Party but little can be said of her as far as being a politician is concerned. The only question she is known to have asked in three years was about the Income Tax Department notice sent to her husband Amitabh Bachchan.
But some actors have managed to be politically correct. Dream girl Hema Malini has made her presence felt in the political arena as an MP in Rajya Sabha for BJP. When she is not acting in movies or giving dance performances, she makes it a point to attend party meetings. Maybe husband Dharmendra should have taken a cue from her!
Sunil Dutt, Vinod Khanna, and Shatrughan Sinha are the only three actors who have managed to create goodwill as actors turned politicians.
One of the most respected of the lot, Sunil Dutt is known for his work in his north west Mumbai constituency and was a MP for Congress for five sessions.
Vinod Khanna as the MP for BJP still continues to take part in his party's activities, alternating it with hosting book launches for Opposition members and shooting for blink-and-you-miss-it films.
And last but not the least Shotgun Sinha, aka Shatrughan Sinha, the first from the film fraternity to be a Cabinet minister with the Government of India and by far the most successful of all.
Moral of the story: be it the role of neta or abhineta, end of the day, it's your work that speaks for you.
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