'Mission impossible'

Kannada film star Upendra has plans of fielding candidates from his newly launched party in the upcoming state polls in 2018

Elections to the Karnataka Legislative Assembly scheduled for 2018 have got a touch of glamour. Kannada film star Upendra, who has wowed audiences by playing roles that question convention, formally launched his party, Karnataka Pragnyavantha Janata Paksha (the party of the informed citizen) this week. The actor asked journalists attending the launch event to sit on the dais as he sat with his followers in the auditorium to respond to questions on his entry into politics ahead of the state elections. Unlike neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka has not seen many actors shine in politics. Upendra said his party candidates would contest in all the Assembly constituencies in 2018, but described the task of winning elections as “mission impossible”.