On Wednesday, veteran actress Moushumi Chatterjee joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the presence of senior party leaders including BJP general-secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya, and Mukul Roy in the national capital. The BJP general-secretary expressed hope that Chatterjee’s presence will boost the prospects of the party in West Bengal.
According to various media reports, Chatterjee is likely to contest the upcoming general elections. Earlier, Moushumi Chatterjee had contested the 2004 Lok Sabha elections on Congress ticket from Kolkata north-east seat but was defeated.
In West Bengal, the saffron party has been working in the directions to induct famous personalities from different fields. The BJP has emerged as the principal opposition to the ruling Trinamool Congress in West Bengal. Many artists including Rupa Ganguly, Rimi Sen, and Babul Supriyo have already joined the BJP, and now Moushumi Chatterjee seems to have followed the same suit.
The BJP clearly wants to cash on the popularity of these artists. They enjoy huge fan following and are very influential. In the eastern state, these artists are role model for people of all ages. They have support base cutting across the caste and religion lines. Political parties get instant vote banks whenever celebrities join them.
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West Bengal politics has witnessed a sharp turn of events in the last few years. Ever since the BJP stormed to power in the centre in 2014 with Prime Minister Modi’s popularity increasing consistently, the party has also made substantial gains in the state of West Bengal. There was a time when BJP was a non-entity in Mamata ruled state but now it is way ahead of Congress and the communists to become the main opposition party. In such a case, the presence of famous celebrities and artists would further increase the reach of the party as they are natural influencers and crowd pullers.
Born on April 26, 1948, in Kolkata, Moushumi Chatterjee went on to become a popular name in Bollywood and the Bengali film industry. She has appeared on silver screen with famous Bollywood actors such as Rajesh Khanna, Shashi Kapoor, Jeetendra, Sanjeev Kumar, and Vinod Mehra. At her peak, she was one of the highest paid actresses in the Hindi cinema. Moushumi Chatterjee is one of the few actresses who won a Filmfare award for debut movie; she got it for Anuraag in 1972. Some of her famous Hindi films are Roti Kapda Aur Makaan, Benaam, and Manzil. Chatterjee was last seen in 2016 blockbuster- Piku- also starring Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone. She has worked in over 100 films, and now she is set to start her new political innings with a new party. Chatterjee asserted that she wants to work for the BJP and seeks to strengthen it. The Bengal actress is a staunch supporter and admirer of PM Modi.
