Evolution of an introverted star

If anything is striking about Vijay’s journey from flop hero to political leader, it is his zeal for aiming higher, writes Mahesh Subramanian.

About 35 years ago, when Vijay expressed his wish to become an actor, his father, S A Chandrasekar, also a director, was not keen on the idea. As a typical Indian father, he tried to discourage his son’s ambitions. But that didn’t deter the son, who was firm in his zeal. He enacted the popular monologue from Rajnikanth’s ‘Annamalai’. Watching his intense performance, SAC decided to facilitate his son’s cinema pursuits, becoming Vijay’s main architect and mentor.

The early years were not easy for the young actor. His films (mostly B-grade potboilers made by his father) flopped miserably, attracting criticism from the press. In 1996, a breakthrough came with ‘Poove Unakaga’. It was a silver jubilee hit. The film helped Vijay shed the soft-porn tag and transition into a star. From here on, Vijay became picky in choosing his roles. He struck gold the following year with ‘Kadhalukku Mariyadhai’, a remake of the Malayalam romantic drama, ‘Aniyathupravu’. It became one of Vijay’s biggest blockbusters. And a new star was born.

Vijay’s winning streak continued with films like ‘Priyamudan’, ‘Ninaithen Vandhai’ and ‘Thulladha Manaum Thullum’. The same press which once mocked him claimed he was the next superstar. This was perhaps when SAC realised that his son’s influence had the potential to extend beyond cinema. In 1999, he made ‘Nenjinile’, a shoddy attempt at an unemployed Vijay getting involved in the Mumbai underworld. From this movie on, a trend began — supporting characters began singing songs praising Vijay. A line in the song ‘Madras dosth nee’, ‘Teenage governmentin chief minister nee’ translates to ‘You are the chief minister of the teenage government’.

Until then, Vijay, known as a romantic hero, moved on to experimenting with macho, larger-than-life action thrillers. In ‘Thamizhan’, Vijay’s character creates awareness about basic legal rights. He becomes a hero, and there are even stamps featuring him. The film, however, flopped. But Vijay was adamant about becoming an action hero.

He succeeded with ‘Thirumala’ (2003). Although not a big hit, the film shaped Vijay’s rough macho roles that helped him tap the rural youth market. Close on the heels of ‘Thirumala’ came ‘Ghilli’, which catapulted him into Rajnikanth’s league. Until ‘Pokiri’, Vijay quoted Rajini’s dialogues or paid tribute as a fan. As a top-billed hero now, his aims were higher. His idol changed to MGR, as if to lay a foundation for his future political entry! From naming his movie after a popular MGR film (‘Vettaikaran’) or playing an MGR song in the title credits (‘Villu’), and casually humming one before taking on the goons (‘Bigil’), many references followed. By the mid-2010s, Vijay’s films had heavy political themes. In 2013, ‘Thalaivaa’, a pastiche of ‘Nayagan’, ‘Thevar Magan’ and ‘The Godfather’, was released. The film’s tag, ‘It’s time to lead,’ ruffled the feathers of the then chief minister J Jayalalitha. The film was unofficially banned. The caption was dropped, and Vijay had to request the chief minister to release the film. This obsequious gesture was mocked by both DMK and AIADMK during campaigning.

In 2014, another blockbuster, ‘Katthi’, arrived. It saw Vijay in a double role — a petty thief and a social activist fighting for farmers against corporate exploitation. DMK was displeased with ‘Katthi’ as Vijay’s character spoke about the 2G scam in the climax. After Jayalalitha’s demise and with another stalwart, Karunanidhi staying out of politics owing to poor health, the clarion call for Vijay’s political entry became apparent in ‘Mersal’. Although the movie was a revenge action drama, his characterisation and dialogues were highly political to stir his fans.

After irking DMK and AIADMK, Vijay must have thought it was time to provoke the BJP. Dialogues from ‘Mersal’ mocking digital India and criticising the ‘hurried’ implementation of GST resonated with the audience, besides inviting the wrath of the BJP. As if this was not enough, the film had a song ‘Aalaporaan Thamizhan ulam ellame’ (A Tamilian is going to rule over the world).

If there is one thing striking about Vijay, it is his zeal to aim for greater heights. A shy, reticent college dropout carved a niche, and established himself as the highest-paid actor, only to quit and become a CM-designate within two years of forming a party.