Now, Gabbar pushing people to vote without fear

When the Election Commission gets a Gabbar Singh on its side, “kitne aadmi thheyy” could well mean turnout figures.


That is exactly what the EC banked on when it roped in bahurupias, or impressionists, to spread the good word about the importance and significance of voting and up the turnout figures.

“I’ve been playing Gabbar Singh for a long time now visiting villages, and earning by entertaining people including even shopkeepers. People often get scared because of the legend of dacoit Gabbar Singh,” Shamshad Bahurupia speaks of his performance to TOI at Bandikui, one of 20 villages he and his family troupe have visited in the district as part of the EC’s initiative.

The EC and a civil society group decided on roping in performance artistes on realising that in 2014, more than 21,000 eligible women electors simply did not go to vote. “We thought this was the best way to educate people in the most interior of villages on their voting rights. Come May, 6 we will see the difference in the numbers of voters,” Avichal Chaturvedi, district collector, Dausa is confident.

Gabbar Singh is urban legend born in the early superstar movie Sholay who struck fear and terror among the villagers of Ramgarh. But, this time around, 44 years since the movie, the mimic Gabbar Singh has been drawing out the young and the women.

“This time women, youth and others requested selfies,” smiles Shamshad, explaining that for the purpose they — his family of performance artistes — improvised a skit to make the point how one vote can make a difference.

“In our skit, we show the character of Sethji (played by my brother) who is not allowing his wife to vote. Gabbar Singh enters the village and threatens Sethji and others to allow everyone to go and vote without fear,” said Shamshad.

Another brother and troop member Akram plays a Muslim woman. He says, “I make my entry in a burqa to tell the audience I won’t cook for the family if my husband won’t allow me to vote. It is gratifying that people instantly connect with our effort. I hope they will go and vote.”

Bahurupia, mostly enacted in satire, is a dying form. Shamshad is also hopeful that with this, his art will “get similar assignments from other remote areas”, because Gabbar Singh is the one name that connects countrywide, he says.



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