Actor-turned-director Ragavendra Lawrence fanned rumours about his political entry on Friday by appearing on social media to ask his followers whether he should enter politics. This comes amid speculations that he could be the TVK candidate for the Trichy East seat won and vacated by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay.
"Should I enter politics? Should I not? Do I have the qualifications for it?" he asked his followers.
After rumours about him contesting from Trichy East went viral, Lawrence told reporters last Sunday that he would clarify it soon.
“If I want to contest the Trichy East constituency by-election, I must first enter politics. You all know about the social service I have been doing. I am continuing that work as much as I can. After that, the Jallikattu protest took place. I participated in it,” he said, adding that he considered his reactions to Seeman’s criticisms as his first step into the world of politics.
He also mentioned Rajinikanth’s political entry, stating there were suggestions that Rajinikanth should not enter politics. “I wanted to support him, and there were great expectations. When I told my family about it, my mother told me not to enter politics. Then, Covid happened, and Rajinikanth dropped his move to enter politics,” he said.
Lawrence added that his friends told him about Vijay’s political foray and had worked with the actor. “He is a great worker. I told my mother about it again. Even then, my mother had said no to politics. I had talked to my friends about it. Now the elections are over and Vijay has scripted history. I spoke to my mother about how the public voted for the TVK candidates, as they were Vijay’s men. I told her that people will give a chance to good candidates. My mother accepted that and told me maybe I should think about politics,” he said.
Vijay resigned from the Tiruchirappalli (Trichy) East Assembly constituency on May 10, 2026, and chose to retain the Perambur seat. Having won both seats in the recent assembly elections, he was legally required to vacate one under electoral rules. While other names, including that of actor Trisha’s made the rounds, the TVK is yet to confirm any such statements.
