With just two weeks to go for the elections in Tamil Nadu, the political leaders are out on the ground, going across the state, seeking an absolute mandate. In the over-crowded political scene in Tamil Nadu, actor and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) leader Vijay is a rarity. Ever since the election was notified, Vijay has campaigned only thrice, addressing two rallies—twice after he filed nominations in Perambur and Trichy East, where he is contesting and the third from Tirunelveli on Wednesday.
Arriving in Tirunelveli to a cheering, massive crowd, mostly women, Vijay made it a point to send a strong message to the people that it is not merely a political debut for the TVK, but an aggressive, high-stakes pivot. In a state where politicians build a party to reach the people, Vijay posited a radical reversal—by saying that he has already lived in every household for three decades and that the party is simply the formalisation of a pre-existing bond. Reframing the election as a deeply emotional movement rooted in his long-standing kinship with the people, Vijay took the opportunity to promise a leadership that prioritises secularism and integrity over financial gains. For him, the election is not just a standard political contest but a huge step to climb to power in an overcrowded political scene.
In a fiery speech, standing atop his campaign vehicle, Vijay positioned his TVK as the only authentic alternative to the established political parties in the state. He claimed that the DMK- led INDIA bloc and the AIADMK-led NDA alliance are secretly colluding to maintain power.
Vijay’s speech in Tirunelveli was a mixed bag of political attacks on the Dravidian parties with an emotional appeal. He termed both the DMK and the AIADMK alliances as colluding with each other. “Since I began listing their corruption, they have been unable to continue their activities and are furious with me. The people have already created a situation where they cannot return to power. Their mathematical alliance calculations have been buried,” he said.
At the heart of Vijay’s speech was a scathing attack on the DMK, calling it a “kallapetti noottani” or the money-box alliance. He said the alliance built with looted money is falling apart, with its joints and components coming loose. “It appears that even the alliance partners in the DMK camp will not vote for one another....Only the Tamil Nadu Congress is in their alliance. But the actual congress is with us, with the TVK,” Vijay claimed.
He characterised the current establishment under M.K. Stalin as a sophisticated rhetorical manoeuvre and deconstructed the authority of the incumbent Chief Minister Stalin. Despite the DMK’s significant legislative majority, Vijay framed the administration as a corrupt and ineffective “caretaker” government —a term usually reserved for temporary, powerless regimes awaiting an election.
His fans and followers term this rhetoric of Vijay as a masterstroke of delegitimisation. By suggesting that the government lacks real authority, Vijay’s idea was to convey to his followers that the DMK had already lost the moral right to rule the state, regardless of their power and strength in the assembly. In fact, Vijay even articulated that his massive gathering in Tirunelveli was permitted to proceed without bureaucratic sabotage only because the administration has become effectively hollow now. This was an attempt by Vijay to project a power vacuum that he wants to fill. During his 17-minute-long speech, Vijay presented himself as a selfless protector following in the footsteps of iconic Tamil leaders and urged the voters to use their ballots to launch a “whistle revolution” that replaces systemic exploitation with genuine public service.
However, speech, which was supposed to seek votes for his TVK candidates in the Tirunelveli region, went beyond the political rhetoric, only to seek sympathy and call himself a “victim” of the sustained campaign going around to undermine him personally. Vijay said there is a “targeted slander” going on against him, and his personal life has been dragged only to “defame” him, very close to the election.
Though his party colleagues claimed that Vijay would hit the campaign within minutes after the election notification, his public appearance has been very limited and in haste. When the crowd began swelling in Kolathur on March 30, soon after he filed his nomination, Vijay quickly disappeared from the spot, citing the police curbs. The next time he showed up in Trichy East and again said he came into politics despite all the pains, only for the people.
On April 7, when all his party men were expecting to get a glimpse of the star-politician, Vijay once again cancelled the campaign in Saidapet and T. Nagar in Chennai. This time, too, he blamed it on the establishment - “police burbs.” And now in Tirunelveli too, Vijay made sure that his public appearance is very limited. After the Tirunelveli campaign, Vijay, who was supposed to campaign in Cuddalore on Thursday, postponed it once again.
While Vijay and his supporters blame the establishment for his limited public appearance, there seems to be a deliberate attempt to stay away from the traditional politics, not to engage with the people on the ground and not to go for a high-decibel campaign as the established parties do. Vijay and his team of strategists seem to believe that his “cult image” could help him win the election.
In fact, Vijay’s supporters say that he does not need to come out in the hot sun to seek votes, and they will make him win. Near Thirumayam, Jeevan Ramasamy, 32, who runs a restaurant, says, “Vijay can bring the change for youngsters like us. It is enough if he campaigns via Instagram and YouTube.” Jeevan is not alone. With him are the women workers at his restaurant and his group of friends who campaign via WhatsApp and network with the local youth groups. “I am not part of the party. I am not even a member. My brother is a member of TVK. I am working for Vijay,” Jeevan explains.
Jeevan’s style of networking and vote-catching techniques is new in a state where traditional campaigns prove to be the strength for the established political parties. However, Vijay’s limited appearance, the Instagram and WhatsApp campaign by his cadres, and his idea of seeking sympathy and playing the victim card may hold good for the actor-politician now. It remains to be seen if his sparse appearance and hasty election campaign can actually turn into votes.
