7 lakh FB views and counting, goodold Sherry is Youth Cong’s new mascot
FORMER CRICKETER, WHO HAD LAST TWEETED BEFORE PUNJAB POLLS, REACTIVATES TWITTER ACCOUNT; TO DEBUT SOON ON FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM
CHANDIGARH : “I am back with a bang, bright as a button...shall stay connected to you like a livewire attached to a high voltage pole.”
Cricketer-turned-politician Navjot Singh Sidhu had last tweeted in January 2017 before the Punjab elections. Nearly two years later, his Twitter account #sherryontop is buzzing again with Sidhuisms after getting deactivated.
On Friday evening, the Indian Youth Congress got it reactivated following a huge response to the Punjab minister’s Facebook Live on demonetisation on Thursday. “Sidhu’s interaction with youth has already clocked over 7 lakh views across pages of IYC and ‘Amethi, Rae Bareli ki Kahani’ (page dedicated to Congress president Rahul Gandhi and his sister Priyanka). And it is still counting. Even the pormo announcing it got over 2 lakh views,” says Vaibhav Walia, the national in-charge of the IYC’s social media.
Sidhu has started his new Twitter innings with some straight drives against Prime Minister Narendra Modi on demonetisation and batting for Rahul as country’s next prime minister. In a day, videos and posts packed with his signature bombast got him 10,000 new followers, taking the figure to 4 lakh. A feat, he did not forget to announce with some bluster. “Thanks a ton ...my twitter handle has gone berserk, like a taxi meter.”
He says people can now get a daily dose of Sidhuisms. “My Sidhuisms are like a honeybee. They have small bodies packed with both honey and sting. And social media is very powerful. A one-liner on Twitter can say more than an epic,” he adds.
But comedy is serious business for Sidhu, who says Rahul wants to make a youth policy based on suggestions from young voters before the 2019 Lok Sabha polls and he was encouraged by Congress chief’s close aide, party joint secretary Krishna Allavaru, to be part of interactions with the youth.
Before Sidhu, senior party leaders Sam Pitroda, Jairam Ramesh and Manish Tewari too were roped in by the Youth Congress as part of its new series of interactions with the youth on social media. But the response to 54-year-old Sidhu has made him Youth Congress’ new mascot. “His popularity is immense. He got a great response as he had not been active on social media for long. So, we got his Twitter handle reactivated and he has promised to open his account soon on Facebook and Instagram too,” Vaibhav says.
And Sidhu is back to doing what he loves best, being before the camera. On Saturday morning, he posted a promo, “Chipke rehna guru, ho raha hoon shuru (stay tuned, I am starting off)” with hashtags #demonetisation, #JawabdoModi #chowkidarchorhai. In the evening, he shot a new video hitting the Modi government on note ban. “Ab hogi jaan jaan ki baat; videsho mein chupe kaale dhaan ki baat; ab nahi hogi sirf maan ki baat (we will talk about people; black money stashed in foreign banks; not just about PM’s own thoughts),” he belted out more Sidhusims.