CHENNAI: Politicians in Tamil Nadu are generally infamous for seeking personal publicity even in times of crisis. Actor Rajinikanth is not yet a full-fledged politician. But that did not stop his fans from putting the actor's photo and promotional message in the masks they are distributing to the poor.
The fan club functionaries said they are distributing the masks for free as their contribution in the fight against COVID-19. But Rajinikanth's photo and his political message is what dominates the attention when one looks at these masks. The text in Tamil reads 'Arasial Maatram Aatchi Maatram, Ippothu Illaiyel Eppothum Illai'. This loosely translates to 'Political & regime change, never if not now.'
A senior functionary in the Tiruchy district unit of the actor's fan club Rajini Makkal Mandram told The New Indian Express, "Earlier, we were spreading our leader's message through pamphlets and wall posters. But due to the lockdown, we had to stop those. So in the relief materials we are distributing to the poor, we thought we will publicise our leader and his message."
The fans seem to have missed a nuance in their zeal to promote their leader. Unlike the posters and pamphlets, a mask sits on the face of a human. And the fans seem to have not spared a thought on how fair it is to publicise their leader in this way.
Members of the Rajini Makkal Mandram have in recent weeks distributed such masks to economically disadvantaged sections in about 12 districts in the state. Some of them are sanitary workers who are on the frontline of the battle against COVID-19. Another Tiruchy district unit functionary, 'Royal' Raju, takes pride in saying, "It is the Tiruchy district unit that first started distributing such masks. On seeing us, other district units have also started now. We have received much appreciation from the public since everyone likes our leader."
A few of the fan club members said they are yet to begin distributing these masks in Chennai and they are planning to start it in a few days. However, the headquarters of the fan club should be aware of activities of the district units. As per the internal protocol, the fan club members have to take photos and send emails on a daily basis on all work they do under the banner of Rajinikanth's fan club.
T Koodalarasan, a veteran journalist and political observer, said, "This amounts to extracting political mileage even during a crisis. If they want to serve the society, they should do it without any kind of publicity on the materials they distribute."
He says Rajinikanth's fans have learnt from the Dravidian parties on how to use every opportunity to extract political mileage. "They seem to be following the Dravidian parties. But if Rajinikanth is really serious about bringing a change, he should make his fans aware that they should not behave like this during a crisis of this scale," he said.
A youth wing functionary of the fan club, however, said, "All others are distributing things like rice etc. But we are giving masks which are important in fighting the coronavirus. And we are doing it with the money from our pockets. Please see the brighter side."