Chennai: Actors aspiring to enter politics in this part of the country is very common. It is considered an evolutionary process. And there are certain rules laid for it.
Once you make your debut on screen, give some controversial statements, attach a title for yourself and finally voice your opinion on all issues under the sun (however nonsensical it may be.)
Talking about giving themselves some title, the best in the business is Sarathkumar. He chose to call himself ‘Puratchi Thilagam’ (borrowed from Puratchi Thalaivar MGR and Nadigar Thilagam Sivaji). He can be even forgiven for that but not for his film Thalaimagan, a movie on journos, that spoke about everything other than what it had to.
Move over Sarathkumar, we have STR. Going a step above Sarath, Simbu chose to name himself STR ( a la NTR & MGR).
Ask a social media strategist as to what the golden rule for any film personality to trend online, he would instantly reply, “Say something on day one, make a U-turn the next day. More power to you when you give a fresh twist to it another day.”
If you still don’t believe me, check out with Simbu a.k.a. STR. He is very special, for, there are enough engrossing, engaging and entertaining scenes involving him in real life and hardly anything on reel. This morning, confused whether I should gift my mom a saree or carry paal in an anda (container) to a theatre nearby (Simbu’s Vandha Rajavaathaan Varuven has hit the screens today and the actor had asked his fans to do the above things), I finally skipped all and preferred watching TR’s Veerasamy.
The ‘big’ daddy of Simbu, TR would sleepwalk the journey of Silambu to Simbu to STR which he has done infinite times in his media meets.
And if any actor decides to enter politics, including STR, the immediate guide available will be Veerasamy. You either give up watching movies or change your notion on taking a political dive after a glimpse. (A secret admirer of TR, I am hoping for a sequel to the epic soon.)
Mightily impressive were a few yesteryear TR classics, where the man himself would try humour in the company of vintage S S Chandran, who till his demise was puzzled why he was given the title ‘Nagachuvai Selvar’. And, for both of them, comedy was a distant cousin.
Talking of politics, I am afraid of various opinion polls that I have to come across in the next couple of months before the general elections. The best part is that they come with disclaimers. Opinion polls are so ‘precise’ that they end up giving numbers to various political parties that when put together easily go past 100.
The pollsters’ way of arriving at numbers may even put a social media tracker to shame – inflated and exaggerated generally, like a hero’s entry scene in a Telugu movie. What is more difficult is to watch debate shows on TV with anchors and participants speaking on opinion polls from their belly.
And don’t be surprised if a celebrity knocks on your door soon. After all, once in five years they realise we exist! Till then sit back and watch Veerasamy. May be to politically educate ourselves to counter those who come seeking our votes.