Here’s something that says a lot about Sudeep’s popularity. The film personality ranks 62nd among the top 100 in the Forbes Celebrity List of 2013. Actor Darshan comes in close at 65.
Sudeep is now all set to extend his charm off screen too. He has been roped in by Bangalore Traffic Police (BTP) as a brand ambassador. His first campaign is targetted at autorickshaw drivers.
Sudeep shot for an advertisement that will be circulated by BTP on Sunday wearing an autorickshaw driver’s uniform.
It is this image which will be spread across the city to raise awareness among the nearly 50,000 autorickshaw drivers in Bangalore and will ask them to follow traffic rules.
“I am doing this for a social cause. I hope our campaign will help nurture better autorickshaw drivers. I once played the role of an autorickshaw driver (Ranga SSLC) on screen and now I am doing so off screen but for a very real purpose,” he says. Sudeep has also been brand ambassador for the Income Tax Department.
“I have been requested by the department to raise awareness among citizens on their duty to pay tax regularly,” Sudeep explains. Incidentally, the actor was recognised as one to be regular with his own tax payments,a reason why they wanted him to be the face of the campaign.
The BTP has been trying to rope in a few popular celebrities as brand ambassadors. While Rahul Dravid was chosen to promote use of helmets by riders of two-whellers, Dharmadikari Veerendra Hegde was roped in for an ambulance awareness programme.