The Uttara Kanara constituency on the sylvan Konkan coast is huge, but it is one small unnamed island off its coast that has captured the attention of youth in the constituency. For it is there that Real TV’s reality show Sarkar Ki Duniya is being shot.
The serial produced by Alva brothers Niret and Nikhil, sons of Congress candidate and veteran leader Margaret Alva, is about a group of people stuck on an island. “And except those who star in the show, the rest of the 100 or so crew members live in Karwar. Three hotels in the area have been booked solid for a year, imagine the business,” Deepak Vyangkar, Karwar block president of the Congress, said.
“Madam (Margaret Alva) has said there are plans to build a film city in Karwar,” Vyangkar grinned. Karwar is the administrative headquarters of Uttara Kanara.
The filmy connection is underscored when actor Salman Khan, the maverick “freelance” poll campaigner, arrives just an hour before campaign is scheduled to end for the second phase of elections. As he waves to the crowd and mouths his practiced speech, Alva admits that her filmy connections are due to her sons.
“I am happy to welcome Salman, and I hope that Karwar will vote for change,” she said. Khan is expected to appeal to the 1.3 lakh Muslims voters in the area, a sure shot way to counter Rahmatullah Qazi, a candidate backed by the United Muslims Forum of Uttara Kanada.
Santosh, a student of business administration, bunked classes to see Salman Khan. He’s heard of the island but has not seen the crew of Sarkar ki Duniya. He is also sceptical about the purpose of a film city in the island. “I would rather see more industry and infrastructure projects,” he said.
Alva’s opponent is MP Ananth Hegde, who was pulled up by the election commission after he made provocative remarks about members of the minority community. To counter Alva’s Salman Khan, Hegde organised a Mane Habba or home festival where he got the heads of the two most powerful mutts or temple trusts in the area — the Ramachandrapura Mutt and the Swarnaballi Mutt — to bless him.
His campaign is on expected Hindutva lines.
Sandip Patil, a shopkeeper, best captured the mood of the campaign. “In Karwar, there are only two ways of getting a crowd, either get a film star or a religious leader,” he said.
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