VELLORE: While the commuters jostle to climb up into the bus in a hurry to take a seat before others occupy, a man clad in red robes, turban covering the head and playing the damaru eases into the vehicle. Even before the commuters wonder why the man gets into the bus instead of moving into streets, he begins chanting, not a usual prediction but an appeal to vote for his party’s candidate.
Forty-year-old Govindan, hailing from Salem, is an official stage orator of DMK duly acknowledged by party headquarters. He had addressed campaign meetings in several elections earlier. But this time around, he is adopting the novel mode to catch the imagination of the voters.
“I thought of catching the attention of the voters in a different method of election canvassing. It struck I can disguise myself as if a soothsayer and approach the voters. Thus I began this mode of canvassing. People do listen to me when I utter like a real soothsayer,” says Govindan.
He begins the canvassing at 10 am and continues till 7 pm depending upon the locality he moves around every day to garner votes for DM Kathir Anand, the DMK candidate.
Striking an exact cord with a real soothsayer, he goes on to say in long sentences-for the well being of the State, vote for DMK, to keep the prices of essential commodities under check, vote on Rising Sun, to teach a lesson to those who are behind rise of prices of rice, milk and LPG, vote for Rising Sun.
Govindan has been meandering through the breadth and length of Vellore Lok Sabha constituency every day.
For this unassuming person, being an official party stage orator is a great achievement.
Recalling his past, he says he was attracted by the flamboyant eloquence of late party leader M Karunanidhi.
He took the risk of travelling all alone to Chennai from his native village in Nangavalli in Salem to listen his beloved leader’s speech 19 years ago. Since then, he had rarely missed any of the event in which Karunanidhi roared.