It’s song and dance for them

MiD DAY unveils closet poets and musicians among Karnataka's politicians

It's song and dance for them

Did you know?
M P Prakash has acted in award-winning Kannada movies like G K Masterara Pranaya Prasanga and Avaste,u00a0 based on Jnanpith awardee U R Ananthmurthy's novel and Suresh Heblikar's Kaadina Benki. His literary work Surya Shikari is a non-detailed text book for arts students of Gulbarga University and postgraduates of Karnataka University.

Dharam Singh: Straight from the heart
Ask Dharam Singh for his most cherished moments and you'll be surprised to know they aren't related to politics.
"I used to lounge around with revolutionary poets at one of the hotels in Hyderabad and those are the moments I cherish most," he says.

Singh, who has compiled the couplets of famous poets, is planning to release them soon.

"Urdu zubaani, zinda dilli zubaani poetry is best written in Urdu," he says, adding that Urdu played a major role during the freedom struggle.

The slogan Inquilab Zindabad is a case in point.

Different strokes

S Bangarappa: Well tuned
Former chief minister S Bangarappa devotes time to music u00c3u00a2u00c2u0080u00c2u0094 Carnatic and Hindustani which he learnt from his guru, Sangameshwara Gavayee. Bangarappa goes gymming in the mornings and also makes time for swimming and badminton.

Subhash Bharani: Singing his way to success
Policeman-turned-politician Subhash Bharani famously silenced a mob when he was the superintendent of police in Chikmagalur in 1983, by singing.

Now Karnataka's special representative in New Delhi, he's lent his voice to poet Nagin Ahmed's romantic poetry, due to be released in April.

"Music comes naturally to me," he says, "But I sing for pleasure more than publicity or recognition."
Though he wanted to sing for films during his college days, he focused instead on civil service. "But now, I can think about it again," says Bharani.

Krishna Palemar: Going wild
BJP MLA Krishna Palemar is a keen nature and animal-lover and has four dogs as pets. There's a squirrel which eats groundnuts out of his hands every evening, he says. He's also interested in Yakshagana which he had performed a couple of years ago in Mangalore. He learnt it without the help of a godfather.

C Motamma: On a song
Who would have thought that art could help a minister handle a portfolio? Former women and child development minister C Motamma does. "Folk music and poetry helped me while handling my portfolio as I could understand a woman's heart and emotions," said Motamma who has released a folk album, O Gini.

"I'd love to sing in more albums and I'm waiting for invitations," she says.

Motamma has organised many musical evenings in Malnad and is now planning to float a socio-cultural forum to promote folk music in Karnataka.

H Vishwanath: Only words
Former education minister H Vishwanath of the Congress is also a well known writer. His book, Halli Hakkiya Haadu, stirred up a controversy for its account of S M Krishna's alleged romance with cinestar B Sarojadevi.