A day after declaring that he would stand for the Lok Sabha elections on a Samajwadi Party ticket, actor Sanjay Dutt had the crowds cheering wildly as he promised to practise "Gandhigiri" and give them "jadu ki jhappi" (magical embrace) at a party rally in this Uttar Pradesh capital Saturday.

A bearded Dutt, the Samajwadi Party candidate for the prestigious Lucknow seat, was flanked by his wife Manyata and party activists at the rally.

The Bollywood actor won over the crowds by repeatedly referring to "Gandhigiri" (practising non-violent methods) and said he would give "jadu ki jhappi" to the people of the constituency - referring to his mega hit film "Lage Raho Munnabhai".

"I love the people here, and will do my best to work for them," Dutt told the ecstatic crowds, as they pushed and edged each other to try and get near the star and shake hands with him.

Dutt Friday night had said in Mumbai that he would contest the polls on a Samajwadi Party ticket, ignoring the disapproval of his sister and Congress MP Priya Dutt.

The Samajwadi Party had earlier this week named Dutt as their candidate to fight against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) veteran leader and former prime minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee from Lucknow.