Actor-politician Kamal Haasan has announced support to the DMK-led alliance for the Erode seat, which is headed for polls after Congress lawmaker Thirumagan Everaa passed away.
Of all the political variables at play in Tamil Nadu, Haasan was probably the most unpredictable. The reason? His was a new party — Makkal Needhi Maiam — having entered the fray in the parliamentary elections of 2019. While the party’s electoral constituency was a largely urban one — fizzing out after the initial 3.4 per cent haul — the man himself proved to be an enigma. Haasan lent his voice towards political issues on and off, but he seemed serious about retaining his celluloid ambitions.
Haasan’s recent hit Vikram, directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj and distributed by Red Giant Movies, revived what seemed like a flailing string of sub-optimal performances at the box office.
Haasan, at last, was in his element.
With his Bigg Boss reality show chugging along just fine, it was anyone’s guess if Haasan was indeed giving the cream of his brain to his political journey.
Going by his recent moves, the ace actor could just be coasting: Haasan has said he will support Congress candidate EVKS Elangovan in the bypolls.
Again, two reasons could have been behind the move. Haasan had recently participated in Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Bharat Jodo Yatra. Going by his interactions with Gandhi, it appeared that the cross-country walkathon had captured the imagination of, among lakhs of several others, Haasan’s too.
The second reason, possibly, hits closer home. Haasan’s dwindling resources and time for his political journey might lead him to side with a large alliance like the DMK.
Nevertheless, the move does run counter to his earlier statements about the two Dravidian parties and why he wouldn’t hitch his truck with either of them: he didn’t want to ‘grease his palms’.
Haasan’s party is technically lending its weight to a Congress candidate, which is undoubtedly part of the DMK-led alliance in Tamil Nadu. Clearly, there is no doubt who the Big Brother in that alliance is — the DMK.
For Haasan, the flip flop from the statement he made ahead of the 2019 elections (about not wanting to ‘grease his palms’) should be the least of his worries.
In politics, public memory is short, despite the nuggets of reminders that social media handles throw up now and then. The larger question ahead for Haasan is: Where is his party Makkal Needhi Maiam headed? And whether he has any plans for the party, which would celebrate its fifth birth anniversary in February.
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