is for Chiranjeevi. C is for change.

Megastar Chiranjeevi has hit the roads with a clarion call for change.
The star-turned-politician, after offering prayers at the famous Sun shrine here in this village on Thursday, made an impassioned plea for bringing about a change in the society on the eve of his much-awaited Praja Ankita Yatra.

‘‘C is for Chiranjeevi. C is for change,’’ he quipped as the crowd that lined up to see him cheered him lustily.

The actor dwelt mostly on the day-today problems that people faced and how successive governments had belied their hopes after garnering their votes.

‘‘The government is supposed to be a trustee of public property. They cannot plunder it,’’ he stressed. He arrived in Srikakulam by a special helicopter at about 4 p.m. and drove straight to the temple. People,mostly youths, came out to greet him and rent the air with slogans in his support.

After praying at the temple, Chiranjeevi came out to address the people, who were everywhere –– on the road, trees and buildings. Though he hit out at the rulers, he refrained from naming anyone in particular. He did not raise any specific issues either. The thrust of his speech was on social justice, minimum facilities needed for a decent living and so on.

Elaborating on what change meant, the actor said even creation of minimum facilities would be a change for the better. ‘‘For instance, a bus to your village, proper treatment at a police station when one goes to lodge a complaint and availability of essential commodities at reasonable prices. What you all want are these small changes, but there is none to bother about them,’’ he said.

‘‘After ascending to power, politicians are turning into self-serving individuals,’’ he said adding that they were not only growing at the expense of the poor but are also helping their kith and kin to grow.

‘‘The State is your property. This belongs to you. It does not belong to the government,’’ he pointed out. Calling upon the youth to be the driving force behind social reform, he said, ‘‘time has come for you to act.’’