SUPERSTAR RAJINIKANTH JOINS POLITICS IN TAMIL NADU

A big star of India’s Tamil-language movies, Rajinikanth, said on Sunday he is launching a political party, adding drama to a heated political scene in a state with a history of film stars becoming chief ministers.

Tamil Nadu, which accounts for the bulk of India’s automobile exports, has been in political limbo since the death of chief minister J Jayalalithaa in December 2016. Jayalalithaa was a popular actress before joining politics.

 

Actor Rajinikanth addresses after announcing the launch of his political party in Chennai, India

The 67-year-old said Sunday to his cheering supporters that his objective is to change the system and bring good governance to Tamil Nadu. He called for a political change and appealed to his fans to bring all sections of society into the fold.

"I do not want cadres. I want watchdogs," New Delhi Television channel quoted Rajinikanth as saying.

Rajinikanth is one of India's most popular stars and many of his 175-plus films since 1975 have broken box-office records, mostly in Tamil and Telugu languages.

Cinema has always influenced Tamil politics by turning actors into popular politicians.

C.N. Annadurai and M. Karunanidhi were both scriptwriters who went on to become chief ministers. M.G. Ramachandran, a top actor-turned-politician, also had a strong screen presence and following among masses.

Born Shivaji Rao Gaekwad, Rajinikanth worked as a bus conductor for three years before joining an acting school. He started in small roles as a villain in Tamil cinema and worked his way up, landing roles in Bollywood, the Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai.

The Indian government honored him with a top national award — the Padma Bhushan in 2000, and the Padma Vibhushan in 2016 — for his contributions to the arts. At the 45th International Film Festival of India in 2014, he was conferred the Centenary Award for Indian Film Personality of the Year.

Over the past five decades, Tamil Nadu has chosen between the two Dravidian parties, both of which claim anti-caste social justice and secularism as their core ideology.

Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party did not win a seat in Tamil Nadu’s 2016 elections. The next state election is due in 2021.

‘I’ll push for spiritual politics without caste or religious leanings,’ Rajinikanth said. ‘If I come to power and am not able to deliver in three years, I’ll resign. Democracy is in a state of distress in the state.’

In Tamil cinema, Rajinikanth often plays larger-than-life characters that project him as a saviour of the masses. The actor, who has been in a few Hindi movies, has created a frenzy among fans ahead of every release.

But opponents say politics would be different.

Subramanian Swamy, a BJP leader, dismissed Rajinikanth’s plunge into politics as ‘media hype’.

Tamil Nadu, a state of more than 70 million people, is sometimes called the ‘Detroit of Asia’. It is home to factories of companies including BMW, Daimler, Hyundai, Ford, Nissan and Renault.