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From village to village, singing praises of BJP
He travels from village to village in the blazing sun, sometimes with his troupe, singing from morning to late night and drawing crowds.
He travels from village to village in the blazing sun, sometimes with his troupe, singing from morning to late night and drawing crowds.
Madan Mohan Sahu, a 40-year-old musician from a village in Jharkhand, has emerged as a hot favourite campaigner of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
His popularity extends to Orissa and Chhattisgarh as well. He wears saffron clothes bearing images of the party's lotus symbol and photographs of eminent leaders like Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and his deputy L.K. Advani.
Donning a saffron cap and a 'mridangam' - a percussion instrument like a drum - around his neck, he sings his own songs, mostly in Hindi and Oriya, all in praise of BJP leaders.
"People gather around me when I sing and play the music," Sahu, who is now campaigning for Tribal Affairs Minister Jual Oram of the BJP in Orissa, told IANS.
"I will campaign here for a couple of days, then I will do the same for BJP leader Dilip Singh Judeo in Chhattisgarh."
He has a troupe, the Dance Music Party, consisting of three men and four women. "In some places we all perform. While the men and women dance, I sing and play the music."
Why does he campaign for the BJP only?
"Because it has great leaders like Vajpayee, Advani and Oram. Congress has nothing," he says.
"Why should I campaign for a foreigner in our country?" he asks referring to Italy-born Congress president Sonia Gandhi.
He does not want to campaign for any other party but is ready to do so for individuals - if he likes them.
Sahu's wife died of TB seven years ago.
"She used to campaign with me. She would dance when I sang. It was a big blow. If I get a life partner again, I will teach her to sing and perform like my first wife."
When there are no elections, he performs on other themes.
"I perform musical plays on the streets with my troop, mostly on social causes," he said.
Sahu performs for the party free of cost. "I never charge money. But party leaders have to arrange for my food and accommodation. I perform from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Sometimes even till late night.
"I don't remember in how many villages and towns I have sung, but it must be hundreds."
Sahu, who has studied up to Class 7, has travelled to villages in Orissa, Chhattishgarh and Jharkhand.
"My brothers and sisters don't like what I do, but I don't care. I have the approval of my 80-year-old father Kuldip Singh."
He has set an ambitious target for himself.
"I will have to perform in at least 1,000 places because a large number of BJP contestants have sought my help. After the election I will go to Delhi and will try to meet senior leaders of BJP and seek their blessings."
