- The man who built the sets for films like Devdas and Bajrangi Bhaijaan is claiming to become the next Bihar Deputy Chief Minister. Know everything about the political leader who is also known as ‘Son of Mallah’.
- Mukesh Sahni’s film career
- Mukesh Sahni also produced these films
- A political turn
- Mukesh Sahni’s family
The man who built the sets for films like Devdas and Bajrangi Bhaijaan is claiming to become the next Bihar Deputy Chief Minister. Know everything about the political leader who is also known as ‘Son of Mallah’.
Mukesh Sahni, the Vikassheel Insaan Party (VIP) chief, is currently making headlines after the announcement of the schedule of the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections. Having come to prominence by forming an alliance with the Tejashwi Yadav-led Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, Sahni is projecting himself as the next Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar.
But do you know that the leader, who is also known as the ‘Son of Mallah’, worked on several hit Bollywood films, like Bajrangi Bhaijaan and Devdas, before entering politics?
Mukesh Sahni’s film career
Before entering politics, Mukesh Sahni worked as a Bollywood set designer in Mumbai and tried to build his social identity through the Nishad Vikas Sangh. During a period of financial hardship, he moved from Darbhanga to Mumbai and began working in cosmetics. Later, his company, Mukesh Cineworld Private Limited, designed sets for films like Shah Rukh Khan‘s Devdas and Salman Khan‘s Bajrangi Bhaijaan. It is said that there were times when Mukesh Sahni worked three shifts to build film sets.
Mukesh Sahni also produced these films
Mukesh’s story wasn’t limited to building film sets. He had a big dream and a desire to achieve something. After spending seven years in Bollywood, he dreamed of producing films and became a Bhojpuri film producer. He produced the Bhojpuri film Ek Laila Teen Chhaila. Although the film flopped at the box office, his career took off in a different direction.
A political turn
His political journey began in 2014, when he did not contest the elections himself but supported the BJP and Narendra Modi. In the 2015 Bihar Assembly polls, Sahni once again supported the NDA. However, the Grand Alliance defeated the BJP in that election, and Mukesh Sahni subsequently parted ways with the NDA. In the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, he became part of the Grand Alliance, contesting four seats, but faced defeat. In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, Sahni fought from Khagaria but was comfortably beaten by Lok Janshakti Party’s (LJP) Mehboob Ali Kaiser.
In 2020, when his alliance with the RJD failed, Sahni returned to the NDA, and the VIP contested 11 seats. His party won 4 seats, including Gaura Bauram, Alinagar, Bochahan and Sahebganj, but he himself lost the Simri Bakhtiarpur seat at the hands of RJD’s Yusuf Salahuddin by 1,759 votes. Failing to win the election, the BJP appointed him an MLC and offered him a ministerial position in the Nitish Kumar government.
However, in March 2022, three of his MLAs joined the BJP, souring his relationship with the BJP. In 2023, Sahni led a 100-day ‘Reservation Yatra’ across Bihar, Jharkhand, and Uttar Pradesh, demanding reservations for the Nishad community. In the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, he returned to the Grand Alliance and fielded candidates in three seats in alliance with the RJD, but his hopes were not met with success as the party drew a blank after losing the Purvi Champaran, Jhanjharpur and Gopalganj seats.
Mukesh Sahni’s family
Mukesh Sahni still spends most of his time inMumbai;, however, several members of his family live in Darbhanga. Mukesh Sahni’s wife is Kavita Sahni, with whom he has two children, Muskan and Ranveer. Mukesh is now playing a significant role in Bihar politics.
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