Ahead of the Movie Artists Association (MAA) elections in Tollywood, candidates have started making their election promises. Actor-producer Manchu Vishnu, who is among those contesting elections for MAA, released a note and a video on what his plan of action would be if he gets elected as President. Vishnu has announced that he will bear the entire cost of constructing a building for MAA, which has been pending for over the last 12 years. Earlier, when Manchu Vishnu was the Vice President of MAA, he had promised that he would contribute 25% of the funds required for the building. He has now said that since the building plans did not materialise, he could not contribute.
Vishnu has also said that he would give priority to MAA members in films. “There are 24 crafts and their respective unions or associations in the film industry. Most of these unions give work to their members, but when it comes to acting, several actors without a membership are acting in the industry,” he said.
He added that while encouraging talent from outside, he would also give priority to MAA members and add new ones to the existing body, thereby 'expanding the family'. He recounted the history of MAA, narrating how the association was formed and renamed as MAA in 1993 in Hyderabad.
This time, actor Prakash Raj, who hails from Karnataka, is also contesting. He's a prominent actor in the Telugu industry, but his roots have triggered a local vs outsider debate. Banking on this, Vishnu has been pitching himself as a 'local' candidate. Earlier, on June 27, Prakash Raj announced his panel with 27 members, calling the team 'CineMAA Biddalu'. Several people, including Nagababu, Bandla Ganesh and others have extended support to him.
This time, MAA elections have become a hot topic, as usually the number of candidates is limited to a couple of members. However, for this round, there are five people in the race, including Prakash Raj, Jeevitha Rajasekhar, and Hema among others.
The MAA elections are tentatively scheduled to be held in the month of September, but the exact date will be decided after the General Body meeting of the current board. There are about 900 members in MAA, and currently senior actor Naresh is the President.