Mulayam anar, Akhilesh rockets for Diwali fireworks

The ongoing political upheaval in Uttar Pradesh seems to have brought fortunes for cracker dealers. The firecracker market on Diwali has crackers named after SP leaders instead of filmstars.

So, this festival, you can buy Ram Gopal mirchi bomb, Amar Singh sparklers, Akhilesh rockets, Mulayam anar and Shivpal charkhi.

These crackers are already on sale in Allahabad and Varanasi and will be available in the rest of the state from Dhanteras (Friday).

Shahid, a cracker wholesaler in Lucknow, said that these ‘political crackers’ would be launched in the market just a few days before Diwali.

“If we put them on sale now, we may have to face police action, as these are named after the ruling party leaders, so we’ll launch them on Dhanteras,” he said.

Talking about the idea of having political leaders on the cover of cracker boxes, Mr Shahid said, “The battle among the SP leaders is grabbing headlines since one month; people are intrigued about what’s happening. We thought, instead of Katrina sparklers and Salman bombs, why not go for Amar Singh sparklers and Ram Gopal bomb And believe me, they are already selling like hot cakes in other centres.”

He added they are named as per the role of leaders in the recent SP crisis. “Ram Gopal is bombarding the party with his letter bombs. Akhilesh’s popularity is soaring like a rocket. Mulayam is trying to illuminate the party and the family, while Shivpal keeps the controversy going round in circles,” he explained with a chuckle.

In fact, people are choosing firecrackers according to their preference of the leaders.

“I still prefer to go with Mulayam and actually feel sorry for what is happening in his party and family. So I bought Mulayam ‘anars’ but my sons like Akhilesh and have bought Akhilesh rockets and Ram Gopal bombs,” said Shiv Shankar Singh, a businessman in Allahabad.

Having political leaders on the cracker covers is also infusing the feeling of patriotism among people.

“Made in China crackers will not have Akhilesh Yadav and Mulayam Singh Yadav on their cover so when people see these crackers, they immediately notice and buy them on the assumption that these are made in India,” said a seller, adding many are specifically asking for indigenous firecrackers to boycott Chinese goods.