Chennai: The Vijay Makkal Manram fan club of Tamil superstar Vijay has chosen to run candidates for the upcoming local body elections to be held on October 6 and 9 in nine districts.
According to the sources in the Vijay fan association, the actor has given them permission to run in the elections but has been informed that he would not take part in the campaign. However, images of Vijay and the organization's flag will be heavily used during the campaign.
In the 2021 Assembly elections, Vijay's father and actor-director S. Chandrashekhar formed a political party in the name of the Vijay fans association and had announced contesting the elections. Vijay, on the other hand, spoke out against his father's decision and declared that he is opposed to running in the elections and that he would not be involved in the same.
Now, after his fan's association announcing contesting the polls, there is a clear indication that Vijay, the young superstar has thrown his hat in the ring.
" Vijay's fans contesting the elections is a clear indicator that Vijay in the near future will take a call in contesting polls. With Super megastar Rajinikanth announcing that he won't enter politics, Vijay's fans making this announcement will be an interesting turn in the politics of Tamil Nadu, which has always supported actors entering politics," said C. Rajeev of the Centre for Policy and Development Studies, a think tank and a political observer.
From the late Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, C.N. Annadurai, to Chief Ministers such as M.G. Ramachandran, J. Jayalalithaa, and M. Karunanidhi, all had ties to the film industry. M.G. Ramachandran and J. Jayalalithaa were well-known performers from the state while Annadurai and Karunanidhi were prominent scriptwriters.
Stars like Kamal Haasan and Vijaykanth have already entered politics through their own political parties, Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) and Desiya Murpoku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) respectively. The MNM plans to run in rural local body elections, and Kamal Haasan has said he'll be heavily involved in campaigning for the elections.