Actor-turned-politician Vijay, founder of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), continued his political outreach on Tuesday, a day after his party emerged just short of a majority in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
As part of his public engagements, Vijay paid tribute to prominent social reformers by garlanding the statues of Periyar E. V. Ramasamy and Dr. B. R. Ambedkar. The move is widely seen in political circles as an effort to position himself within the state’s long-standing Dravidian and social justice tradition.
Meanwhile, reactions to the evolving political scenario continued to pour in. Actor and Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) founder Kamal Haasan weighed in on social media, emphasizing that elections are only one aspect of democratic life. In a post on X, he referred to DMK leader M. K. Stalin as someone resilient in both victory and defeat.
“In democratic politics, elections are but one part. My dear friend, the leader of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Mr. @mkstalin, is not one to exult in victory, nor to wilt in defeat. He will fight again. He will win again,” Haasan wrote.
Earlier in the day, Vijay arrived at the TVK headquarters in Chennai, where he was joined by senior party leaders, including General Secretary Aadhav Arjuna, at the Panaiyur office.
Despite being a newcomer to state politics, TVK secured 108 seats in the 234-member Assembly—falling 10 seats short of the 118 required for a simple majority. The party is now expected to explore alliances to form the government.
Vijay is scheduled to meet newly elected MLAs later today to chart the party’s next course of action.
Security has been tightened outside Vijay’s residence in Nilankarai and at the party headquarters in Panaiyur, as large crowds of supporters gathered to celebrate the party’s strong debut. Several supporters described the outcome as a “much-needed” shift in the state’s political landscape.
(With inputs from ANI)