CHANDRA SHAKER REDDY: PEOPLE LIKE HIM MAKE POLITICS WORK by Mihir Srivastava

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Chandra Shaker Reddy, 50, is a man in control. He knows the city of Hyderabad like the back of his hand. He is emotionally driven but pragmatic; a doer, gets things done, fast, helps people selflessly. A family man who has a large extended family of friends. 

Chandra Shaker is a natural leader, the go-to person for many, and he never disappoints those who seek his positive intervention in their lives. He goes out of the way to help friends when they are in dire straits, can go to the extent of escorting a friend to the US when the latter was hounded by some powerful people for personal vendetta.   

When you meet him, Chandra Shaker never seems to be in a hurry, but a lot is happening all the time. He calls himself ‘arrogant’ for he isn’t demonstratively friendly, though he cares—always.

Very attached to his family, and this firm rooting has given him wings to fly. From a humble family, he did most of his schooling and college in Hyderabad. A science graduate, he was attracted to the opportunities that the US had to offer. There are many in his extended family, who have made it big in America and are scattered all over the land of opportunities.

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Chandra Shaker has been supporting athletes to go abroad to train and participate in events, The state has produced exceptional players like P V Sindhu. He believes by supporting talent there will be many more like Sindhu, they will bring back many laurels. And he does it silently, like a gardener planting the saplings.

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Soon after college, he went to the US in 1999 and stayed there for good five years, mostly in Chicago, and managed a tech company and also did some trading. An effortless entrepreneur, he was doing very well in the US. But he longed to get back home. India is an unfinished agenda, and he wanted to be part of the growth story back home after the liberalisation, and India emerging as the fastest growing big economy. 

He missed his hometown, Hyderabad, which was transforming fast, a rich city of Nizams was becoming a technology hub. Chandra Shaker returned to India, and to become part of the growth story.

His ideological leanings are for the Congress party; a liberal man, he is for wholesome development, where the growth should percolate to the poorest of the poor irrespective of their caste, creed or religion.

Soon after his return, he joined hands with the rising star in Andhra politics. Yeduguri Sandinti Rajasekhara Reddy or popularly known as YSR—who became a prominent politician after having gained strength by negotiating faction-ridden, at times violent, politics of Kadapa.

Chandra Shaker participated in YSR’s 1,450-km padayatra (walk) in 2003 that changed the political contours of the state politics and the fortunes of the Congress party. In 2004, YSR steered Congress to spectacular victory after a gap of ten years, and then again in the next elections, consecutively.

YSR's focus was development in rural areas, particularly Naxals dominating, and by initiating several welfare programmes and irrigation schemes, at a time when there was an unprecedented rise in suicides of the impoverished farmers. Chandra Shaker recollects his association with YSR as ‘magical’. He has got some magic of his own too.  

YSR soon acquired the stature of a tall leader, whose influence was far and wide, beyond the confines of the state of Andhra. YSR’s end was as sudden as his rise in the national polity—in the helicopter crash in 2009.

Chandra Shaker had lost not just a mentor, but a direction. However, he kept himself going, is a loyal member of the party, and supports the needy on his own accord.

He believes in the immense potential of the generation next. A healthy childhood will lead to a healthy nation; therefore, education, sports and vocational training is imperative to tap into the huge demographic potential of the state. He believes that the greatness of a nation is also determined by how players perform in the international sporting events, win world cups and Olympic medals for India.

Chandra Shaker has been supporting athletes to go abroad to train and participate in events. The state has produced exceptional players like P V Sindhu. Chandra Shaker believes by supporting talent, both men and women, there will be many more like Sindhu, they will bring back many laurels . And he does it silently, like a gardener planting the saplings.

His extended family is his strength, so are his friends. There is no concept of a cousin, they are all brothers and sisters, sometimes from a different mother. Chandra Shaker is close to everyone, for he is there when they need them the most—a bad weather friend. I have yet to find an individual who has such a positive influence in some many lives, in such subtle ways, yet is so humble about it.

Chandra Shaker gets strength when he lends a helping hand. A strong believer in God—the merciful, and the best way to be a believer is loving all the creations of God. The pace of life may seem sedate, but things keep happening to this multifaceted man.

He tries new things, and is a good learner. He even produced a movie, and his movies give a graphic depiction of how state machinery functions, pulls and pressures, extraneous considerations, play of the money power. He feels that by highlighting the negative aspects by way of movies, you make people aware, and help them see the other side of the picture, which is mostly hidden from them. He wants the people to make informed decisions about their future.

Chandra Shaker seeks best from life, and gives back to life in equal measure. People like him should join politics for a better tomorrow.