Vijay’s blockbuster opening: How cinema powered the superstar’s rise in Tamil Nadu politics

At Tirupattur successful Sivaganga district, the counting of votes for the Assembly elections played retired similar a Vijay film.

During the last circular of counting, predetermination officials declared that the campaigner belonging to the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) won by a azygous ballot implicit his rival.

Now, instrumentality that in: a specified azygous vote.

This is beauteous overmuch a country from Vijay’s ain 2018 film, Sarkar. For those not clued into Tamil cinema, this film, directed by AR Murugadoss, revolves astir a affluent firm nonrecreational who visits Chennai for a azygous time to formed his vote... lone to find that his ballot has been compromised. The peeved CEO — who, interestingly, is named Sundar Ramaswamy, which made fans gully parallels to Google’s Sundar Pichai — decides to enactment backmost to combat his case, contention elections and presume governmental powerfulness successful a storyline that tin hap lone successful reel life.

Or truthful we thought, till the counting time of Tamil Nadu elections 2026, which resulted successful a stunning debut for the actor-turned-politician arsenic TVK emerged the azygous largest enactment with 108 seats. This unexpected effect for a party, founded conscionable implicit 2 years ago, is not conscionable a reflection of the star’s charisma but besides his determination to discontinue a thriving movie career, 1 that had him earning much than ₹200 crores per project. Much similar fashionable personalities and erstwhile Chief Ministers MG Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa, who were some movie stars turned politicians too, 51-year-old Vijay excessively banked heavy connected the ample instrumentality basal that helium has been cautiously gathering implicit 3 decades.

This triumph is besides not conscionable for his stirring governmental speeches and an electoral manifesto that promises galore fiscal benefits to the people. It is besides the effect of message-laced commercialized cinema that projected Vijay arsenic the saviour of the masses, and which was astir apt amplified by the respective governmental hurdles and reddish portion helium faced astatine the clip of merchandise of these films.

“Vijay would person been conscionable different actor, but each task landed successful immoderate controversy,” says movie shaper G Dhananjayan, “However, from Thalaivaa till the caller Jana Nayagan, his enactment has been pulled by governmental forces — truthful overmuch that helium decided to get into nationalist beingness himself. I would accidental that politicians person driven him to politics.”

Dhananjayan says Kaththi (2014) was Vijay’s astir governmental film. “He brought up issues that plagued farmers. It signalled that Vijay is aligned with the people,” says the producer, who adds that signing Sarkar was yet different measurement successful the governmental ladder done cinema, “Destiny guided him to prime the benignant of stories that marked his introduction into politics.”

Time to lead

Rewind to 2002, and you person Thamizhan, successful which Vijay plays a lawyer whose extremity is to dispersed consciousness astir the instrumentality to the communal man. In this movie, helium pulls up respective nationalist servants — including a autobus conductor who denies tiny alteration to a elder national and Corporation officials who neglect their authoritative duties. Then determination is Thalaivaa, the 2013 movie that 29-year-old Mohamed Ashik, a fan, recalls with fondness. “Watching that movie and its almighty scenes gave maine goosebumps,” says Ashik, astir the movie which had sequences showcasing Vijay glorifying the value of unity and redeeming radical stuck successful riots.

Beyond the film’s content, Thalaivaa – which translates to ‘leader’ – is remembered for the challenges Vijay faced to get it released. Its tagline – ‘time to lead’ – reportedly irked the past Tamil Nadu Government led by Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, frankincense starring to a two-week hold successful its release. “Back then, watching Vijay and the Thalaiva team acquisition truthful galore hurdles conscionable to merchandise their movie gave its other hype, and hence, watching it FDFS volition stay peculiar to me,” describes Ashik, who hails from Kandalurkottai successful Pudukottai district. “Many friends of mine, who are regulars astatine Vijay FDFS instrumentality celebrations, voted for Vijay, with immoderate adjacent urging the elders of the location to bash the same,” adds Ashik, who is besides the admin of aggregate societal media pages similar @Vijayfanstrends (500k followers) and ActorVijayUniverse (213K followers), too TVK-related societal media accounts.

The hitmaker

All this brings america to the opening of 2026, erstwhile Vijay’s Jana Nayagan was acceptable to deed screens. Said to beryllium a dense governmental movie with affectional undertones, this movie – directed by H Vinoth – was expected to beryllium Vijay’s swansong earlier helium turned to politics.

The film, primitively slated for a festive merchandise connected January 9 up of Pongal, was postponed owed to the hold successful granting a censor certificate by the Central Board of Film Certification and a consequent ineligible battle. To complicate things, Jana Nayagan was leaked successful High Definition connected April 10 connected piracy sites, with clips making their mode to societal media platforms. This, however, created a monolithic affectional outpouring for Vijay.

“It evidently brought astir a question of sympathy successful his favour,” says filmmaker Rathna Kumar, a self-confessed instrumentality and the co-writer of deed Vijay films similar Master and Leo. “In fact, we saw however overmuch enactment helium got from wrong the manufacture during those pugnacious times. They whitethorn not person tweeted astir his governmental entry, but erstwhile they realised that this had affected the lives of truthful galore workers — and that it wasn’t conscionable astir wealth but besides emotions — they had to condemn it.”

The merchandise of Jana Nayagan, whenever it happens,will present clasp peculiar meaning to Vijay’s fans — for, it nary longer stars Vijay the superstar; Vijay the person volition instrumentality charge. Witnessing this play unfold on with thousands of his fans volition beryllium Vijay’s father, SA Chandrasekar, who introduced the histrion successful 1992’s Naalaya Theerpu (which translates to ‘tomorrow’s judgement’).

“Voters did not spot him arsenic a thalaivan (leader). They saw him arsenic annan (a brother),” said a beaming Chandrasekar aft the predetermination results.

In the adjacent fewer weeks, Vijay has respective important decisions to make. He volition person to negociate for seats, possibly walk a level trial and if each goes good - the newly-minted person volition person an full State looking astatine him with a batch of hope. Unlike his idealistic films, problems mightiness not get resolved wrong a fewer sequences oregon the runtime of a song, but would request a much measured and applicable approach. Will this governmental signifier beryllium a blockbuster?

(With inputs from Bhuvanesh Chandar)