Amaravati: Telugu superstar and former Union Minister K. Chiranjeevi on Monday called on Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy.
Accompanied by his wife Surkeha, Chiranjeevi called on Reddy at his official residence, where the Chief Minister and his wife Bharati hosted lunch for the couple.
Officially it was described as a courtesy call. Chiranjeevi, whose multilingual period film “Sye Raa Narasimha Reddy” was released earlier this month, reportedly called on Reddy to request him to watch the movie and to thank him for allowing additional shows of the film at theatres in the state.
However, the meeting set off speculation that they discussed politics, especially in the backdrop of the ruling YSR Congress Party’s efforts to get closer to the Kapu community.
Chiranjeevi, who is from the Kapu community, has been staying away from politics since 2014 and is focusing on his acting career. This was his first meeting with Reddy after the latter became the Chief Minister in May.
The “Megastar”, as Chiranjeevi is popularly called by his fans, had entered politics by floating the Praja Rajyam Party (PRP) before the 2009 elections in then undivided Andhra Pradesh. However, the party faced a drubbing, winning just 18 seats in the 294-member Assembly besides drawing a blank in Lok Sabha polls.
Two years later, Chiranjeevi merged the PRP with the Congress and became a minister at the Centre. He campaigned for the Congress ahead of the 2014 elections but as the party faced a humiliating defeat due to the public anger over the bifurcation of Andhra Pradesh, he stopped his political activities.
Chiranjeevi’s younger brother and actor Pawan Kalyan is still active in politics. However, Jana Sena, the party floated by Pawan Kalyan, could manage just one seat in the 175-member Andhra Pradesh Assembly in the recent elections.