Kochi: It reads less like a political campaign leaflet and more like a resume. For the BJP, the Kerala Assembly polls seem to double up as a high-stakes' job application' season for aspiring MLAs. And if you're looking for Sobha Surendran, the party's fierce state general secretary, you'll find her right at the top of a sharply drafted, highly professional CV for the Palakkad constituency.

But Sobha isn't introduced merely as a politician. She is presented as the "Jhansi Rani of Kerala." What follows is a carefully curated profile of Sobha, presented under the striking titles like "The Fearless Agitator: Standing for Dharma and Justice" and "A Record of Increasing Trust."

The document, polished to read like a corporate CV, meticulously catalogues every facet of her political and personal life, including her struggles and defining moments. Central among them is her 11-day hunger strike as "she stood firmly with devotees" during the 2018 Sabarimala women entry controversy, which culminated in her arrest. It is framed as a story under the title "Strength in the Face of Adversity," designed to hook the devotee-voter before they even finish the first page.

The tone is set early and decisively; this is not just campaign material, but perhaps the BJP's most refined and stylised campaign experiment yet. Politics meeting professional PR and branding is not new but for the first time in a Kerala Assembly election, the BJP has rolled out detailed "resumes" for all 98 of its candidates. These profiles, available in English and Malayalam, list everything from education and family background to political journey, party roles, and electoral track records. 

But what truly sets them apart is branding. Each candidate is given a distinct identity - sometimes a nickname, sometimes a larger-than-life descriptor - drawn from public perception, political endorsements, or local familiarity. The idea is simple: make candidates instantly recognisable, relatable, and memorable.

This shift toward professional political branding is no accident. Ever since Rajeev Chandrasekhar assumed office as the BJP's state president, the party has undergone a massive facelift. Chandrasekhar, the technocrat-turned-leader known simply as "RC", is described in these new profiles as "A Leader for a New Kerala" who sits at the "intersection of technology, entrepreneurship, and politics." 

His influence was already felt during the 2025 local body polls in Thiruvananthapuram, where the party deployed dual-QR-coded voter slips to guide people to polling booths via Google Maps and deliver video messages directly to their phones. The same tech-first thinking now powers the resume campaign.

Banking on the power of persona
The genius of this campaign lies in how it weaves local familiarity into a professional framework. In Manjeshwar, K Surendran is introduced as "Hamara Bada Fighter", a nickname famously given to him by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His profile frames him as a "Voice for the Devotees" and a "leader forged in adversity," specifically highlighting his role as a "relentless street fighter" who endured "coordinated campaigns of character assassination and persistent legal harassment" during the Sabarimala women entry controversy. 

By blending these emotive descriptions with a structured resume format, the BJP is attempting to appeal to the traditional devotee while simultaneously appearing sophisticated enough for the modern, tech-savvy voter.

The profile approach also allows the party to manage the narratives of its various heavyweights and new recruits with surgical precision. In Poonjar, PC George is marketed as "Poonjar Aashan", a profile that celebrates his "formidable reputation for his outspoken and combative style" and his controversial advocacy for a "Hindu nation" in 2022. While his son, Shone George, is presented in Pala as the more approachable "Kochettan".

Kazhakkoottam candidate V Muraleedharan is branded as "VM - The Organisational Architect," a title that underscores his image as a strategist and builder within the party. His profile leans into moments of confrontation, invoking attacks on his Kannur residence and an assault by Trinamool workers in West Bengal, all woven into a narrative framed as "Facing Adversity with Resolve". 

Thrissur candidate Padmaja Venugopal appears as "Pappi Chechi," with her profile titled "A Bold New Chapter," explaining her exit from the Congress due to "disappointment with the internal functioning and culture" and how she brought with her "the legacy of Karunakaran" to the BJP.

The strategy also embraces a distinct local warmth through an "Ettan" brigade of candidates. In Kannur, C Raghunath is "Raghu Ettan", while Kummanam Rajasekharan is "Rajettan" in Aranmula. K Balakrishnan is "Balettan" in Chelakkara, and PK Krishnadas is "Dasettan" in Kattakada. 

Even those involved in recent friction, like B Gopalakrishnan in Guruvayur, is rebranded as "Gopu Ettan", the "champion of grassroots causes." The list is rounded out by figures like former IPS officer R Sreelekha in Vattiyoorkavu, known as "Lekha", and the youth-centric Dr Robin Radhakrishnan in Kundara, titled "Doctor Machaan".

A digital blueprint
According to Abhijith Radhakrishnan, BJP's social media head in Kerala, this move is a collaborative effort to change how the party connects with the public. 

"Ever since Rajeev Chandrasekhar took charge, the BJP has been undergoing a facelift, which is not regarding ideology but in the way the party has been connecting to the people. So when we present our candidates, we need to do it in a professional way that others have not done. Their life achievements are turning into their resumes. It was PM Modi who called Surendran a 'Bada Fighter' and Amit Shah who called Sobha a 'Jhansi Rani of Kerala.' PC George is known by the name 'Poonjar Aashan' locally. So we are using these names to make them more familiar to the voters," he said.

He added that the resumes are not just informational, but are strategic building blocks for a wider digital campaign. "Each profile will be broken down into social media posts, cards, and videos, turning static resumes into dynamic campaign content," he said.