Tamil stars become mere puppets in Hogenakkal political show

Actors being stars, any public issue—whether political or not—is taken up by people across Tamil Nadu, where films have long been a strong tributary for the political mainstream.

“Apart from Kamal Haasan and Vijaykanth, others who participated in the fast were whipping up the passion of the public with their speeches. It was obvious that the industry was putting up a show for Chief Minister M Karunanidhi. Actors are incapable of taking these matters with the right seriousness. Unless they are ready to face the consequences, they should not make such statements,” said socio-political commentator and noted playwright Cho Ramaswamy. If they were serious, added Cho, the artistes should have protested against the Chief Minister for putting the project on hold.

In Rajni’s case, his fame and marketability across south India seems to be his undoing. Though other Karnataka-born actors like Arjun and Murali were also present during the fast, it was Rajnikanth and his comments that attracted the public, as well as the attention of the critics.

Despite his off-screen image of a recluse who has intentionally stayed only in the fringes of party politics, Rajnikanth has always been viewed as a potential political star. According to his official biography, the late prime minister PV Narasimha Rao had offered nothing less than the Chief Minister’s chair to get the star into the Congress camp.

In 2002, after he failed to turn up at a previous fast organised at Neyveli following the controversy surrounding the sharing of Cauvery river water, he was forced to stage his own fast in Chennai three days later. Friday’s speech at the fast organised by the South Indian Film Chamber of Commerce (SIFCC) in Chennai must have been an attempt to make amends, but it only resulted in protests directed against him and his films.