Gabbar Vs Gabbar On Phone Screens As TMC, BJP Line Up For Bengal Assembly Polls With Hilarious AI Videos

By Tarak Chatterjee

Asansol: Gabbar Singh, packs of dogs, 'Didibhai'. When the high-profile lineup of world leaders, CEOs, and AI experts were signing the New Delhi Declaration on AI Impact at the AI Summit last week, little could they have imagined the impact this technology was already having in poll-bound West Bengal.

The dates for the Assembly elections in the state are yet to be announced, nor has any party announced the names of its candidates. But already, campaigning has started in full swing. And it is being fought virtually, on cell phone screens, using videos generated by AI.

In Pandabeshwar Assembly constituency of West Burdwan district, on the outskirts of the industrial city of Durgapur, workers of rival parties, the ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), are already going hammer and tongs at their presumed rival candidates.

Assuming that sitting MLA Narendranath Chakraborty will be repeated, local TMC activists are busy visiting various localities, conducting public relations while the MLA initiates developmental work. Local BJP workers, assuming former MLA Jitendra Tewari will again be fielded from Pandabeshwar — he had lost to Chakraborty in 2021 — are attacking the TMC MLA by highlighting irregularities in the area.

TMC Floods Social Media With AI Videos

That is not where the story ends, though. The poll war has now hit social media, with both camps attacking each other using AI generated satirical videos, drawing guffaws from residents. First off the block, TMC has hit the airwaves with a slew of videos depicting Jiten as the infamous highwayman Gabbar Singh from the film Sholay.

In another video, Jiten can be seen running away in fear of a pack of dogs chasing him. In others, he can be seen genuflecting at the feet of party leaders to be allotted the ticket, or called "Habol", a mildly disparaging name hinting stupidity in Bengali.

Said Chakraborty, "Gabbar Singh is a tyrant, a robber who plunders the peace of the people in Sholay. It is against him that the people fight. That's the fight for truth. That's why people see Gabbar as the symbol of evil."

Regarding the rampant use of AI, he said, "This is the era of AI. We have to move forward with technology. Just as [Trinamool Youth Congress President] Abhishek Banerjee has created digital warriors in every block, similarly, our workers and supporters have learnt AI and started using it."

Former fashion designer and Asansol Dakshin MLA Agnimitra Paul of the BJP hasn't been spared. She is being mocked for not knowing the names of roads and clubs she has been visiting of late, as part of her own outreach. On the soundtrack can be heard the song "Didibhaiyer Dekha Nai (No Sight Of Sister)".

BJP Launches Rival Gabbar

Now, BJP supporters have begun catching up. They have launched copycat AI video mocking Chakraborty, also as Gabbar Singh, this time threatening to stop disbursing money under the state government-run scheme, Laxmir Bhandar.

Denying AI usage, Jiten Tewari said, "We haven't instructed anyone to make any such AI video. However, we don't have complete control over party workers and supporters who make some for the campaign. Personally, I'll never post a picture or video of a tyrant, a sand and coal thief like Naren Chakraborty, from my own personal social media handles."

For locals, the videos give the feel of a return to the olden era of comics. They are enjoying watching and sharing sarcastic toons in the midst of the election campaign. For them, sharp humour will always be appreciated, and perhaps, win the day.

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