MGR, Jaya, now Vijay: TN janta’s crush for heroes

There are few comparison when it comes to politics in Tamil Nadu. The Congress party, in the years after Independence dominated the governments but from the 1960s, it were the Dravidian parties which ruled the roost with the DMK and AIADMK making sure other parties played second fiddle. Another unparalleled feature of TN politics was the supremacy of film icons and the magical influence they had on the masses, while influencing their political choices. It started with MG Ramachandran splitting the DMK and parting ways with his long-time friend and political mentor Karunanidhi in I972.

MGR proved unstoppable, building a demigod like status and winning election after election while making sure that Karunanidhi came nowhere near power till his death in 1987. By then, he had groomed another star to sway the Tamilian’s heart - Jayaram Jayalalithaa, who had with her screen hits and looks, built a support base of her own. Soon, she was all that the DMK had feared - another powerful film-star turned politico who could turn the tables against them. Through the 1990s till her demise in 2016, Tamil Nadu saw Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi repeatedly crossing swords in a frenetic rush for power, which even led to their arrests by rival governments.

There were others like Kamal Haasan and Vijayakanth who did take the plunge into politics, while trying to encash on the Tamilians’ undying frenzy for celluloid heroes turned netas. But their flirtation with politics proved short-lived with Vijayakanth’s DMDK a pale shadow of its original self after his death while Kamal preferred the safe way out with his his Makkal Needhi Maiam not contesting the elections and Kamal himself settling for a Rajya Sabha seat with the DMK’s help. The latest star to don political colours, Joseph Vijay, is obviously of a different mettle and has turned TN politics topsy-turvy with his miraculous performance in the polls.

Launching Tamil Vetri Kazhagam in 2024 after a super stint in Kollywood, where he build a unique image with his next-door boy looks and simple persona, Vijay has sent the two Dravidian parties packing, winning 107 seats in the 234 member TN Assembly. While MK Stalin and Edappadi Palaniswamy look on in awe and dismay, the star of TN politics is set to assume the top post. So where does Tamil Nadu go from here? Hardened politicians have been forced to give way to a bunch of young legislators, most of whom have never been in government. All eyes will be on how Vijay handles administrative tasks and makes sure his and his loyalists’ inexperience does not earn him brickbats. Winning a poll is not the same as running a state’s affairs.