Indian celebrities, whether actors, cricketers, or athletes, enjoy a special place and position in society. People adore them, follow them, and some even try to do things like them. This limelight and public attention benefit these celebrities in many ways. Talking about Bollywood actors, in particular, there is a special place that the acting community enjoys in society. Common people are always in the awe of the actors and there’s always an aura around the Bollywood stars who rule the hearts of the people. In the age of social media, the popularity of these superstars can go only one way and that is upwards.

This popularity is the region behind these actors and actresses getting so many endorsements and advertisements. The environment around these celebrities is such that they act as a crowd magnet. People are always on their toes to emulate their favorite stars and in the pursuit, they tend to do anything their favorite actor or actress asks to do. This obsession or attraction towards film actors and actresses have remained the same across the generations. India is a country of over a billion and anyone rising to the highest level has the luxury of having millions of supporters and fans.

This support is the reason that many actors and actresses join politics after their acting sting. The huge fan following helps them in establishing a strong base for themselves and their parties. India has had a history of Bollywood celebrities campaigning for a political party or joining politics themselves. We’ve put together a list of 8 such actors.

Hema Malini

Legendary Bollywood actress Hema Malini, who featured in some of the most famous Bollywood films including Sholay, is one of the most popular Indian film actresses to join politics. The actress has been surrounded by controversies in later parts of her career. She entered politics by joining the Bharatiya Janata Party in 2004. This was after she campaigned actively for Late actor Vinod Khanna. The legendary actress was elected as the Mathura MP in 2014 and was also a Rajya Sabha member for BJP.

Smriti Irani

Smriti Irani the actor of indian small screen

Smriti Irani has been in the news for more than two decades now. The TV actress gained popularity after becoming every common household’s favorite while playing the role of ‘Tulsi’ in Ekta Kapoor’s famous TV serial ‘Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’. The actress entered politics in 2003 and became the vice-president of the Maharashtra Youth Wing the very next year. The graph of Smriti’s political career started to rise after joining BJP. After failing to emerge victorious from Congress’ fortress Amethi in the first attempt, she got a historic victory in the 2019 elections from the same seat. She is also the Union Textile Minister currently.

Raj Babbar

Raj Babbar the actor who played Bharat in Mahabharat

The veteran actor is mostly known for playing negative roles in Hindi cinema. He entered politics by joining the Janata Dal in 1989. Babbar is a three-time member of Lok Sabha and a two-time member of the Rajya Sabha. A few years after joining Janata Dal, the actor switched to the Samajwadi Party. But, he was soon suspended from the party and finally joined the Congress party. He is currently the President of Congress’ Uttar Pradesh unit.

Amitabh Bachchan

Amitabh Bachchan the Big B and Angry young man

From Sholay to Coolie and Deewar, Amitabh Bachchan has established himself as one of the greatest in the Indian film industry with extraordinary performances year after year. From his youth days, the actor has ruled the hearts of his supporters and it remains the same even now. It was in 1984, that the Shehanshah actor thought of trying his hands in politics. He contested the Lok Sabha election from Allahabad, his hometown. Unlike his acting, politics didn’t bear any fruits for Mr. Bachchan and he resigned from his candidature after three years.

Jaya Bachchan

Jaya Bachchan

Amitabh may be the frontrunner when it comes to films but it is Mrs. Bachchan who performs the best when it comes to politics. After a successful career in the film industry and memorable roles in movies like Silsila, Zanzeer, and Guddi, the senior actress joined politics in 2004 and got a kick start as a Samajwadi Party MP. She represented Uttar Pradesh in the Rajya Sabha till 2006. In 2018, she was elected for her fourth term in the Rajya Sabha from the SP. Mrs. Bachchan is known for her bold statements and fiery speeches in the parliament.

Paresh Rawal

Paresh Rawal the versatile actor

Paresh Rawal is one of the most versatile and noted actors of Hindi cinema. He is also a noted theatre artist. The actor has played different roles that include dark characters as well as grey characters. The notable actor joined the mainstream politics by entering the Bharatiya Janata Party and served as the MP from Ahmedabad East Constituency in the 2014 general elections. However, it came as a shock when he opted out of the race and decided to not contest the elections in 2019.

Kamal Hassan

our lovely chachi Kamal Hassan

Kamal Hassan is one of the most reputed actors of India who has worked in both Hindi as well as Tamil films. Hassan is known for his extraordinary acting in movies like Hey Ram, Dashavatar, and Vishwaroopam. The legendary actor doesn’t shy away from expressing his opinions. He launched his political party Makkal Needhi Maiam in February 2018. He is going to contest 40 seats in the upcoming elections including one from Puducherry. 

Sunil Dutt

Late shri Sunil Dutt

Sunil Dutt can be considered as one of the tallest figures both in the Indian cinema as well as Indian politics. The late actor, producer, and director joined Congress in 1984 and was elected for five terms from the Mumbai North-West constituency. The late actor and politician also served as the Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports from 2004 to 2005. Congress rode on Mr. Dutt’s popularity and trust among the people to get victory several times.