Click to play videoKurnool: Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister and Telugu Desam Party chief Chandrababu Naidu is working hard on an image change.
After his huge defeat to the Congress in the previous elections, Chandrababu Naidu is selling himself as a pro-poor leader and striving to get the alliance game right.
In 2004, Chandrababu Naidu lost the election primarily because he was perceived as pro-rich and pro-urban.
The quest for the image change is also reflected in the TDP manifesto which has many populist promises.
"Aren't politicians meant to be pro-poor? I am only trying to bridge the gap between the rich and poor," says Naidu.
But in the 2009 elections Naidu needs more than just an image change. His his rival YS Rajashekara Reddy is a formidable opponent and so Naidu embarked on a quest for allies.
He reversed TDP's traditional stand of a unified Andhra Pradesh and now supports separation for the Telangana region.
The new stand also gave him an ally in Telangana Rashtriya Samithi chief Chandrasekar Rao, who deserted the TDP in 2000 after differences with Naidu.
"It's an alliance that worked in 2004 elections also and got votes for Congress. This time also it will work," Naidu says.
The entry of Telugu mega star Chiranjeevi's Praja Rajyam Party meant the TDP needed to unleash it's own star power.
Funded by legendary film start NT Rama Rao in 1981, the party since Naidu's take over in 1995 has relied on organisation strength.
But now the party has unleashed the NTR lineage and Rao's son Balakrishna and grandson junior NTR are its crowd pullers
"I have the stars in my family. So I will definitely use them for the party's advantage," says Naidu.
This time, the battle for Andhra Pradesh is as fierce as it gets.
For the TDP not only has its traditional opponent, the Congress to fight but also Chiranjeevi's Praja Rajyam and Naidu is relying on two of his most important assets - his grand alliance and his meticulous campaign plan including the promise of distributing free colour TVs.
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