Following Jayalalithaa’s death and Karunanidhi’s retirement from active politics, all major players in Tamil Nadu are in disarray and need each other. Alliances are the only way forward as no party can depend just on its core support or, indeed, its superstar leaders
Tamil Nadu politics is taking an interesting turn after the entry of the two super stars — Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth. After their appearance together recently on the occasion of the 101st birth anniversary of former Chief Minister MG Ramachandran, who himself was a super star, speculations are ripe whether the two actors will work together in politics, where both are novices.
No doubt, Tamil Nadu has moved on from the days when movie fame meant an automatic route to political success. Even in days of MGR, there were actors like Sivaji Ganesan, who was equally popular, but could not make it to politics. Also, voter awareness, caste politics and media scrutiny has changed the political climate.
The two actors have ventured into politics, eyeing the vacuum created after the death of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) supremo J Jayalalihtaa and the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) chief M Karunanidhi taking a back seat due to health reasons. Both have now moved to the next stage after long hesitation.
The question now is whether they can work together or take separate waysIJ And, even if they work together, can they deliverIJ While Haasan has been more forthright saying, “If he (Rajinikanth) joins politics, it won’t be difficult for us to discuss politics. I will join him, provided he enters politics.” But Rajinikanth was vague and merely mumbled, “Time only will tell”.
Whether they work together or not, challenges for them are many. Rajinikanth knows this that they cannot simply depend on their super star status. He had said in September, “It takes little more than stardom to be a successful politician. I really don’t know the secret, but I think Haasan knows it.”
The first challenge for both is to build a cadre. This is one of the most difficult challenges as one cannot build cadres in a day or a few months. With Tamil Nadu politics wobbling with instability and lack of leadership, even Assembly election cannot be ruled out along with the 2019 lok Sabha poll or even earlier. Therefore, time is short, though both have the advantage of their fan clubs spread all over the State. They have to organise these clubs to convert them as their political workers.
The second is to find an alternate narrative to woo the voters. What will they offer to the electorateIJ Also, Tamil Nadu is a highly political State with years of Dravidian politics entrenched into it. Rajinikanth is talking of spiritual politics. How can he sell this to the electorateIJ
As for Kamal Haasan, he is an atheist, closer to the Dravidian ideology, but he has left leanings. Both have to spell out their ideology, their stand on a number of key issues, like Cauvery water, National Eligibility and Enterance Test examination, Hindi imposition and other issues clearly, and also how they want to change the political culture of the State. They also have to clarify their views on the established regional and national parties and their stand on Dravidian culture.
Interestingly, both have been talking of corruption but can that be an issue in a State which is rotten with corruption for many yearsIJ Both the major political parties, the AIADMK and the DMK have faced allegations of corruption. How do they propose to check corruptionIJ While Kamal Haasan has asked his supporters to tweet examples of corruption in the State, Rajinikanth has called the system rotten, which needs change. Beyond this, we know very little of what they stand for.
Third, and most importantly, both actors need a lot of funds to run a party. With huge funds at the disposal of the AIADMK and the DMK, they need enormous amounts of money for the elections, be it the 2019 lok Sabha poll or the next Assembly election.
Rajinikanth is a Maharashtrian with no base in Tamil Nadu, while Haasan is a Brahmin, whose community has lost political influence today. So, both need to find backers in caste as well as money and muscle power. While the BJP is ready to back Rajinikanth, Haasan has been hobnobbing with the left and the Aam Aadmi Party. He is also friendly with the DMK.
Fourth, both stars know that it may be foolhardy to try to take up the challenge on their own if they combine together without arithmetic. They will have to look for alliances. Tamil Nadu has a changed political atmosphere today. While Haasan may get support from the DMK alliance, Rajinikanth can depend upon the BJP for funds and the national clout, although the BJP has only a toehold in the State.
The DMK has cadre and money, but no leader. Also, it is not clear which way the party will look for alliance. Will it dump the Congress and go with the BJPIJ In any case, all players need each other and alliance is the only way forward for them, including Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan.
The electorate will be watching for an alternative narrative, their programmes and alliances before they make up their mind and not simply vote based on their super star status.
(The writer is a senior political commentator and syndicated columnist)