Cine stars Uttam Mohanty, Asit Pati join Odisha’s ruling BJD

Odisha Sun Times Bureau
Bhubaneswar, Jan 27:

Riding high on the popularity of Ollywood artistes, Odisha’s ruling Biju Janata Dal today roped in two popular cine artistes into the party fold ahead of the three-tier panchayat elections in the state.

The lead actor of the yesteryears Uttam Mohanty and villain of regional film industry Asit Pati today joined BJD in the presence of party president and Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik at Naveen Niwas.

The two actors hailing from Baripada in Mayurbhanj district have a significant fan following in the state. The party hopes to cash in on the star quotient once again at it has yielded favourable results except for Tatwa Prakash Satapathy aka Papu Pom Pom and Bijay Mohanty.

“I will work for the development of Mayurbhanj. Whatever work Naveen Patnaik would assign me, I am prepared to accept it,” Uttam Mohanty told reporters here.

Notably, Uttam’s wife Aparajita had unsuccessfully contested 2014 Lok Sabha election on a Congress ticket from Cuttack.

The 61-year-old was under fire over his alleged link with chit fund firm Oscar Group of Companies.

Worth mentioning, several actors have joined the BJD in the past including Siddhant Mohapatra, Akash Dasnayak, Anubhab Mohanty, Bijay Mohanty, Mujibulla Khan aka Muna Khan, Prashant Nanda and Arindam Roy.