By K Kavitha, TRS MP from Nizamabad
The brand ambassador from Telangana, first of all, need not be from the state, which in this case is not even the point. In this, BJP only has to look at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat which has filmstar Amitabh Bachchan as brand ambassador.
Mr Bachchan is not from Gujarat but has done a good job of representing the state. Having said that, we looked at two things while choosing a brand ambassador for our fledgling state — popularity and also the fact that she has roots in the state. Sania Mirza, apart from being a star athlete and sportsperson has deep roots in Telangana, her greatgreat-great-grandfather was the first in her family to settle in Hyderabad. Her popularity is not just across the country but also internationally and will help put our new state on the map and have quick recall value.
If any other sportsperson from the state had objected to this appointment, I could have understood their feelings. There is reason if some of them think they were better suited or may have commented out of sheer insecurity. But to see the criticism coming from political parties, especially BJP, is ridiculous and unfortunate. I would like to add here that the TRS government has resolved to take care of all sports personalities from the state.
The Telangana unit of BJP should be aware that despite us being a new state we got only one horticultural institute in the Union budget and barely any help from the Centre in helping us to be on our feet. To raise these kinds of objections when the state government wants to establish its presence internationally through icons, who are instantly and internationally recognisable, is just unkind. It is a non-issue and has been raised to distract from the fact that we are making an effort to move forward. It has been raised to demoralise the new state and its popularly-elected government.
The brand ambassador from Telangana, first of all, need not be from the state, which in this case is not even the point. In this, BJP only has to look at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s home state of Gujarat which has filmstar Amitabh Bachchan as brand ambassador.
Mr Bachchan is not from Gujarat but has done a good job of representing the state. Having said that, we looked at two things while choosing a brand ambassador for our fledgling state — popularity and also the fact that she has roots in the state. Sania Mirza, apart from being a star athlete and sportsperson has deep roots in Telangana, her greatgreat-great-grandfather was the first in her family to settle in Hyderabad. Her popularity is not just across the country but also internationally and will help put our new state on the map and have quick recall value.
If any other sportsperson from the state had objected to this appointment, I could have understood their feelings. There is reason if some of them think they were better suited or may have commented out of sheer insecurity. But to see the criticism coming from political parties, especially BJP, is ridiculous and unfortunate. I would like to add here that the TRS government has resolved to take care of all sports personalities from the state.
The Telangana unit of BJP should be aware that despite us being a new state we got only one horticultural institute in the Union budget and barely any help from the Centre in helping us to be on our feet. To raise these kinds of objections when the state government wants to establish its presence internationally through icons, who are instantly and internationally recognisable, is just unkind. It is a non-issue and has been raised to distract from the fact that we are making an effort to move forward. It has been raised to demoralise the new state and its popularly-elected government.
