Sea of support: Vijay’s TVK rally in Madurai draws massive crowd; positions party as alternative to DMK

NEW DELHI: A sea of supporters thronged Madurai on Thursday as actor-turned-politician Vijay led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam’s (TVK) second state conference, marking the party’s biggest show of strength yet.

The massive turnout set the tone for TVK’s push to establish itself as a formidable third front in Tamil Nadu politics, ahead of the 2026 assembly elections.

'Stalin uncle, hear the noise of the people'

Addressing cadres amid thunderous applause, Vijay sharpened his attack on both the ruling DMK and the opposition AIADMK while positioning TVK as the “true alternative” for the state. Taking repeated jibes at chief minister MK Stalin, whom he referred to as “Stalin uncle,” Vijay accused DMK of hypocrisy on issues ranging from women’s safety to its changing stance on the BJP.

“You ask women to call you appa (father), but there is no safety for women themselves,” he charged, before telling Stalin to “hear the noise of the people.” On the Centre, the TVK chief directed pointed questions at Prime Minister Narendra Modi, demanding clarity on whether his third term was meant “to do good for the people or to plot something against the Muslim community.” He pressed the Union government to retrieve Katchatheevu island, withdraw NEET, and resolve the plight of Tamil fishermen detained by the Sri Lankan navy.

Without naming AIADMK, Vijay accused BJP of using the party once nurtured by M G Ramachandran as a “backdoor to enter Tamil Nadu,” adding that even its cadres were disillusioned. He pledged that TVK would remain “truly secular” and never enter into a hidden alliance with BJP. Vijay, who has often been compared with leaders such as Annadurai and M G Ramachandran, told supporters that TVK had already created “ripples” in state politics. “Many said I will not enter politics, then that I will not get support, then that I cannot conduct a conference. Now they say I cannot win elections. To those analysts, I say — this crowd is not just support, we have already entered every household in the state,” he declared. In a surprise announcement, Vijay confirmed he would contest from Madurai East in 2026. At the same time, he symbolically declared himself a contestant in all 234 constituencies, telling supporters to treat every TVK candidate as if he himself were in the fray. “A lion comes to the ground only to hunt, not to pass time. Even if it is single, it will be the king of the jungle,” he said, hailing his cadres as “lion cubs” and TVK as an “army of common people.”

The rally ended on a symbolic note, with Vijay singing an MGR song from Enga Veetu Pillai and urging people to “take the whip of politics” against both BJP and DMK. Stressing that governance under TVK would prioritise women, youth, farmers, fisherfolk, weavers, the disabled and transpersons, he promised to build a party rooted in people’s welfare rather than political expediency.