Pune: In Bhosari, Pune, there is 'heady' political one-upmanship in progress. There is competition to sport braids (colloquially referred to as shendi), like the Hindu priestly class. Moreover in Marathi, the word 'shendi' also means fooling someone. The story of how two friends turned into foes is now doing the rounds in Bhosari. An NCP probable for the assembly polls and currently a corporator in the Pune Municipal Corporation, Datta Sane is now competing with the sitting legislator Mahesh Landge. He wants a ticket from Bhosari for the forthcoming assembly elections and in order to oust Landge, he has decided to compete with him by growing a 'shendi'.
Sane and Landge were once very good friends and the duo had joined forces against the rebel candidate, Vilas Lande in the 2014 election. Sane had campaigned for Landge and was a major factor in the latter's victory. At that time, both friends wore 'shendis'. After Landge won, they both shaved off their shendis. But after Landge became a legislator, Sane accused him of putting a 'shendi' on people (taking people for a ride). This caused bad blood between them. Now the rivalry has intensified, as Sane wants to give Landge a run for his money. He has shown interest in contesting from Bhosari and has informed the party leadership of his wish.
