Sandalwood ready to bulldoze way to bleed blue

BANGALORE: Karnataka bulldozers launched their team jersey and released the theme song for the upcoming Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) 2011, at a press conference on Saturday at Hotel Lalit Ashok.AKK Entertainment and Karnataka Bulldozers owner — Ashok Kheny, along with the CCL brand ambassadors Shriya Saran, Madhuri Bhattacharya and the Karnataka Bulldozers ambassador actor Ambareesh launched the team jersey and the theme song that is sung by mainstream Bollywood singers.The star-studded afternoon saw great enthusiasm and vigour for the tournament from the leading Sandalwood-stars-cum-CCL-players and captain Kiccha Sudeep who walked the ramp in the newly launched blue jersey. “CCL is a small change from our profession and a great combination of cricket and films,” said Sudeep. He said, “Success is not just about winning but about doing what we want.”The song Karnataka Bulldozers Gellabeku that was released on the occasion is composed and sung by the popular Bollywood playback singer Sonu Nigam in the lead with Kunal Ganjawala and Sowmya Rao. The celebrity calendar along with another song Dhoom Dhamaka Dum Maare was also released at the event. Shivaji fame Shriya Saran who is the brand ambassador thinks that CCL is a beautiful marriage of the two most popular professions in the country.Later, speaking at the promotion event at Forum Mall, Shriya said, “I want the best team to win. But I support South because of my close association with it.” Said Ashok Kheny,“The idea of participating in the CCL is to promote the rich culture and sportsmanship that the state is blessed with apart from highlighting the leading stars of the Kannada film fraternity.” He added that the blue colour of the jersey will give energy and virtue to the team as this colour symbolises strength. Calendar girl and brand ambassador Madhuri Bhattacharya said, “I am honoured to be a brand ambassador of CCL though my heart beats for Bangalore. It is my home town, and I secretly want them to win.”The brand ambassadors later went to Forum Mall for the promotion of the tournament and auctioned three tickets worth `200, `3,000 and `5,000 each. The collected money will go for charity and the winners will get an opportunity to see the match with the celebrities on June 4. The opening ceremony of CCL on June 4 will see about 1,200 folk artists performing live with Sonu Nigam at Chinnaswamy Stadium where the first match will be played by Karnataka Bulldozers and Mumbai heroes, the latter led by Salman Khan in the captainship of Suniel Shetty.