In November 2018, Vijay walked into Tamil Nadu’s political imagination through a film called Sarkar. The character Vijay played, Sundar Ramaswamy, was a successful NRI businessman who flies back home for one reason: to vote. He arrives at the polling booth and is told his vote has already been cast in his name. What follows is a two-hour takedown of electoral fraud, political corruption, and a system that treats voters as props. By the end of the film, Sundar Ramaswamy is not just fighting for his vote. He is contesting an election, standing against career politicians, and winning.

It was a fantasy, a crowd-pleasing, interval-block, mass hero fantasy. Eight years later, Vijay took the political plunge, turning his goodwill as an actor into political currency. In February 2024, he announced he was leaving films behind and launching Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).…