Ministerial Berth Should Not Deprive TV Audience Of Sidhuism Until He Makes A Mess Of Multitasking

It is time for the admirers of Navjot Singh Sidhu to raise a Patiala peg or two and exclaim thoko taali (clap hard) in his trademark style.

The advocate-general of Punjab has advised the newly-elected Congress government in the state that the feisty Sardar can extend his role as a prime-time television entertainer despite being a cabinet minister.

Sidhu’s resolve to continue his stint on television had kicked up an unusual controversy after the formation of the Amarinder Singh government recently. But now, he has a chance to set an example for other entertainers on how to do multitasking while holding a constitutional post.

The cricketer-turned-comedy show judge-turned-politician has been appearing on Comedy Nights with Kapil --- a television gag show that features him as a couplet-cracking celebrity and helps him earn, to quote his words, his “bread and butter”.

After becoming a minister, he had betrayed no intention of quitting the show. Far from it, he announced boldly that he would fly to Mumbai, take part in the shooting at night and return to Punjab ‘even before anybody gets up’.

Sherry, as Sidhu is popularly known, apparently saw nothing wrong in juggling his twin roles. But his grand plans caused a rumpus with his opponents asking him to stop taking part in the television show apparently because of ‘conflict-of-interests’. As the row snowballed, Chief minister Amarinder Singh thought it judicious to seek the opinion of the advocate-general on the matter.

The controversy brings to mind the intermittent demands made over the years by different people to make Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan the next President. But then, will Big B be able to don the greasepaint and face the arc-lights if he would keep getting tempting offers of movies such as Piku and Pink after becoming the first citizen of the country? In the light of Sidhu’s case, will the artiste in him set aside the protocols, fly to Mumbai and take part in film shoots before returning to the Rashtrapati Bhawan to discharge his routine constitutional duties?

The answers to these hypothetical questions may not be known unless an active professional such as Bachchan or Sidhu is indeed elected as the President, or even the Prime minister? Ronald Reagan in the US and a few Chief ministers back home in our southern states showed no inclination to return to the celluloid world after getting the reins of their respective governments in the past.

Way back in the late 1970s, the then Prime minister Moraraji Desai had offered to make renowned danseuse Rukmini Devi Arundale the President after the demise of the incumbent Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed. But she chose to decline it politely to concentrate on things she loved.

Given the example of Sidhu’s case, who knows she might have agreed had she been assured beforehand that there would be no bar on her to pursue her passion for Bharatnatyam while holding the august office?

An artiste is, after all, an artiste first and anything else afterwards. It holds true for Sidhu or, for that matter, any other entertainer who has an intrinsic urge to perform on any creative platform for mass adulation -- with or without the icing on the cake in the form of remuneration.

Sidhu has been regaling the television viewers for many years. His wisecracks may sound puerile to many but there are hordes of couch potatoes who lap up each every pearl of wisdom he drops on and off his television shows. Long before the stand-up comedians saw an opportunity in the idiot box, Sidhu had built his reputation as an entertainer par excellence with readymade one-liners, crazy rhymes and impromptu limericks, all of which collectively came to be known later as “Sidhuisms”.

The 53-year-old star-minister was once also known as a hard-hitting opening batsman of Team India who gave nightmares to Australian great Shane Warne but all his exploits on the cricket pitch paled into insignificance after he took guard for his second innings as a master blaster on the goggle box.

While most of his colleagues from his playing days walked into oblivion or remained confined to commentary boxes after retirement, Sidhu found a tailor-made career - something far more lucrative than cricket, which not only provided bread and butter but also jam, jelly, fruits omelettes and what not to him.

As a matter-of fact, Sidhu’s alternate career well-nigh eclipsed his cricketing past, however glorious or inglorious (he had once quit a Test series midway in England!) it might have been. Although he keeps appearing as a commentator every now and then the audience today prefers to listen to his innovative 'gems' more than his interpretations of exquisite cover drives and square cuts.

As an entertainer possessing an amazing gift of the gab, his stardom has reached a new level with Comedy Nights with Kapil where his primary job is to sit through the antics of a handful of stand-up comedians (mostly in drags), and go ballistic with “Sidhuisms” on demand primarily to extol the virtues of film stars and other celebrity guests on the show. Of course, he tickles a few funny bones in the audience in the process but it is he who invariably laughs the loudest all the way to the bank.

It is, therefore, hardly surprising that Sidhu does not want his association with the comedy show to be rudely interrupted becauase of his ministerial assignment. His detractors may ask him to stop taking his new responsibility as an extended session of a laughter challenge but Sidhu is confident of doing justice to both his roles.

As of now, the critics would do well to let him carry on instead of trying to curb the natural instincts of an inveterate motormouth. They should rather wait until he ends up making a mess of both his careers.