Rajinikanth posing as alternative to Dravidian majors?

Tamil superstar Rajinikanth’s speech on Dravidian icon E V R Periyar and his categorical refusal to apologise for his “controversial comments” have led to frenzied speculation on the ideology that the actor would profess in his avatar as a politician.

Rajinikanth refused to apologise for his statement that Periyar had led a rally in 1971 in Salem that paraded “nude images” of Lord Ram and Sita. RSS ideologue S Gurumurthy and BJP MP Subramanian Swamy lapped up on this, which highlights the road that the 69-year-old actor would travel in his political journey. He is expected to launch his party this year.

Several outfits, including Dravidar Kazhagam (DK) founded by Periyar, have refuted Rajinikanth’s claims and demanded his apology. However, the actor has just stood by his words, ruling out expressing regret for his remarks, putting him on a collision course with both the DMK and the AIADMK.

Periyar, the legendary social reformer with Kannada roots, is a much-revered figure in Tamil Nadu who inspired a slew of reforms that ensured social justice, the harbinger of the Dravidian reformist movement. DK’s offshoots, the DMK and the AIADMK that have been ruling the state alternatively since 1967 have implemented these reforms.

Rajinikanth’s “open talk” on Periyar is being interpreted by political observers as his own way of defining “spiritual politics”, a terminology coined by the superstar himself when he announced his political entry on the last day of 2017, which would be an alternative to the Dravidian ideology.

No political party has mustered the courage in the recent past to take on Periyar except the BJP, which received more brickbats than bouquets. The BJP made it clear it views Periyar as its ideological opponent and would never accept his “anti-God” stand.

Rajinikanth’s infatuation for the BJP is an open secret. The actor had cheered almost every controversial move of the Narendra Modi government including demonetisation and repealing of Article 370.

Some feel that the BJP, which has failed miserably in projecting itself as the alternative to the Dravidian majors, who swear by Periyar, has now outsourced the “job of overthrowing the Dravidian parties” to Rajinikanth by propping him up.

But senior journalist R Bhagwan Singh feels the actor might have taken on Periyar on his own and not necessarily at the behest of the BJP.

“Rajinikanth is taking the war into the enemy’s camp. He is doing it on his own and he is driving a dent in (Dravidian) politics, which will be beneficial to the BJP in the long run. Rajinikanth has only stated facts and he hasn’t chickened out despite an uproar. By taking on Periyar, Rajinikanth will end up helping BJP and catering to a large constituency that still opposes his atheist ideals,” he told DH.

But to target Periyar in a state obsessed with spirituality and ideals propagated in equal measure by the social reformer is a risky proportion, that too for a newcomer to politics like Rajinikanth.

Prof Ramu Manivannan, Head of Department of Politics and Public Administration, University of Madras, feels BJP is using Rajinikanth.

“BJP has only one choice and that is to use Rajinikanth. But Rajinikanth cannot sustain the hard politics of Tamil Nadu. To me, Rajinikanth is not a political material. Anyways, I think both Rajinikanth and BJP are misreading Tamil Nadu’s conviction on social justice by taking on Periyar,” he told DH.

Only time can tell whether Rajinikanth will be successful or not in taking the “alternative to Dravidian politics” cudgel from the BJP which has so far been unsuccessful.