Key Highlights
- With zero political experience, he is looking to take on the DMK and AIADMK.
- But will charisma alone be enough to break through the caste-based complexities of the state’s electoral politics?Chennai/Bengaluru: After Tamil Nadu witnessed a political storm in 2017, when the then-ruling AIADMK started breaking apart following the death of its leader and chief minister J.
- Jayalalithaa the previous December, things had settled into an uneasy status quo.
- That changed on 2 February 2024, when Tamil film star Joseph Vijay Chandrashekar, then 50 years old, announced the formation of his political party, Tamilaga Vetri Kazagam (TVK).
- In doing so, he joined the long list of Tamil film stars who have sought a political career on the heels of a successful movie career. Nearly two years on, veteran politicians and seasoned election observers are still wondering whether the box-office wunderkind’s entry into politics will trigger an upheaval in the state’s political landscape. Intentionally or otherwise, Vijay is a political enigma.
