Mahi. V. Raghav’s first film, Yatra, was all about YSR Reddy and his journey from being a mere politician to becoming the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh. The story revolves around YSR Reddy’s love for his people and how much they respected him for the work he did extensively throughout his constituency. His infamous padyatra was the highlight of the movie, which helped him become the Chief Minister of his home state. The journey is very sugar-coated, although spearheaded by Malayalam megastar Mammotty. The second film describes the journey of YSR Reddy’s son, YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, and his tumultuous journey to become the next chief minister of the state.
Spoilers Ahead
Was YS Jagan Mohan’s Father Still The CM Of The State?
The movie begins with YSR Reddy as one of the most revered and generous politicians. As described in the first film, he was good at keeping the promises he made to his party and his state. His popularity was humongous, and there was only one leader who could match up to his stature in the state, Nara Chandrababu Naidu. YSR was all set to be the chief minister of the state for the third time. Jagan Mohan was also accompanying him on all the campaign trails, as he was a Member of Parliament for the party his father was a member of. He was always proud of the work his father carried out.
Was Ysr Worried About His Son?
YSR Reddy was not worried about his son, as he was aware that Jagan would chart his own path for himself. YSR Reddy had a family that was completely in tune with the hectic life he lived serving the state and had gotten comfortable with it. YSR’s last night with Jagan was uneventful, and there were no special words shared between them. It was only a father who was concerned for Jagan’s well-being. The next few days were disconsolate for Jagan and his family as the news of their father’s death in a chopper crash engulfed the family and the state in shock. Jagan and his family had only each other to fall back on, as YSR Reddy was an icon and a good father, and it would be difficult for everyone to move on from this tragedy.
Did YS Jagan Mohan Reddy Want To Become The Next CM?
After his father’s death, all the loyalists of YSR Reddy gathered and decided to appoint Jagan Mohan as the next CM of the state. This was an easy choice, as they wanted someone who had the same vision as YSR to be in the seat and not any leader who would divert from the plan YSR had for the state. Their biggest rival was the opposition leader Nara Chandrababu Naidu who was keen to watch the developments in the ruling government with their main leader gone. He was expecting some mutiny, but Jagan received unanimous support from his father’s party. Jagan was unaware of the developments that had happened in the assembly, but the High Command of the Progress Party, along with Ghulam Nabi Azad, were not happy with them. The high command chose to make a decision based on who would benefit them. Jagan was not made the next chief minister.
Why Did The Party High Command Stop His Yatra?
YS Jagan Mohan Reddy, along with his mother, began the small nonpolitical yatra along the state to meet the grieving families of those who’d lost their lives out of pure shock upon learning of YSR Reddy’s sudden death. YSR was a mentor to Jagan, and he planned to keep his father’s memory alive by visiting people and asking about their concerns. Jagan and his mother’s yatra did not rub well with the Progress Party’s High Command in Delhi. They considered it a political move and a soft launch of Jagan into mainstream politics. Jagan and his mother were asked to appear in front of the Progress Party High Command to explain the yatra. They were not given much chance to talk about their cause, as the High Command asked them to put an end to it without any proper explanation. Jagan began to overshadow the Progress Party’s High Command and the party’s plan for the state and slowly posed a threat to their leadership. Jagan was livid at the fact that the High Command wasn’t respecting his mother, who was close to begging the leadership to not interrupt their work as it would tarnish the image of the deceased YSR Reddy.
What Was The Reason Behind Jagan Mohan’s Split From The Party?
Jagan was livid at the treatment he and his mother received at the hands of the Progress Party High Command. Jagan was also aware of the support he had from within the state party, which was willing to walk away from the Progress Party on his behest, and the loyalty they had towards his father, YSR Reddy. Jagan decided to split from the party and form his own to make way for his political career. Jagan so far had had no high-flying political ambitions, but the high command’s condescending behavior towards his family, who served them well, needed to be taught a lesson.
Jagan walked away with 18 MLAS to form a new party and decided to campaign for by-elections. Chandrababu Naidu, who was happy to witness the drama unfolding, was hoping to find a way to sideline him. The Progress Party High Command and Chandrababu Naidu’s party came together to derail Jagan, but the young man surprised them with the crowds he was able to gather in his rallies. Jagan Mohan was also blessed by the blind man who appeared at the beginning of the film as one of the biggest supporters of YSR Reddy. The blind person’s unadulterated love and respect for his father motivated Jagan Mohan to campaign harder. Jagan was successful, as he was elected as the MLA from Pulivendula.
Why Was Jagan Mohan Arrested?
As his popularity soared, the Progress Party and Chandrababu Naidu’s party were afraid of the kind of support Jagan was receiving from the locals for the exceptional work he had done for his constituency. As a leader of the opposition, he was soon gaining traction in the state for all the right reasons. Jagan Mohan Reddy’s only aim was to carry forward the work started by his father and work towards retaining his father’s legacy. Chandrababu Naidu was not very keen on seeing the progress of this young man.
In 2012, at the height of the power and influence of the Andhra Pradesh state leadership and the Progress Party in the center, Jagan was arrested by the CBI over embezzlement charges. From the film, it is implied that the arrest was concocted by the state leadership and the central government in 2012 to put Jagan on the backfoot.
Who Ran For Office In His Stead?
Jagan was sent to prison, and since he was unaware of how long he would stay behind bars, his mother Vijayamma was asked to run in his stead to get the momentum going. This is a common practice among political parties in India in case their leader is sent to jail. Their family members are asked to take center stage and gather support and votes in the name of the arrested, creating an aura of sympathy around the voters. There were many examples of this trick used by politicians across the country. A similar situation was translated on screen for the Netflix film Dasvi. Vijayamma was more than happy to take up the job for the sake of her deceased husband, YSR Reddy, and her son, Jagan Mohan, who was very confident he would be receiving bail without much hassle.
Did YS Jagan Mohan Reddy Win The State Assembly Elections?
After losing the 2014 Assembly elections, Jagan was made the leader of the opposition. During his rally leading up to the conclusion of the state elections, he refused to offer false promises to the people owing to his father’s values and politics. Jagan had to weather a lot of brickbats from the state CM after being made the opposition leader. He was still considered one of the strongest politicians but faced matters concerning losing his MLAs to the elected party in the state. He witnessed his own people abandoning him, as they never considered him to be someone who had it in him to be the next chief minister. He hoped to have his father by his side, and once he dreamed his father advised him to be patient and have endurance to gain the support of the people. He also heard his father asking him to work for the people instead of aiming to succeed as a politician. This would help him far more than any other attitude. Jagan was surprised to have witnessed his father in his dream, something which had never happened before. His father’s words resonated with him, which helped him make some critical decisions regarding his campaign.
Jagan remained in touch with the values left by his father and only chose to follow them. It helped his father remain in power and stay rooted in their aim of serving people. Jagan, as a leader of the opposition, started his yatra that mirrored his father’s padayatra from the year 2003. He received the same reception as his father only because Jagan chose to tweak around his father’s values, which in turn benefited the people of the state.
YSR Reddy was a god-like figure in Andhra politics; Jagan only wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps with no ambition of becoming a ‘YSR Reddy’ like figure. This yatra was a big setback for the ruling party. The yatra was followed by the next assembly elections in the year 2019, and Jagan and his party won the election with a landslide victory that ousted Chandrababu Naidu and the Progress Party. The movie ends with Jagan becoming the second-generation chief minister of Andhra Pradesh.
