Opinion His own hero

Vijayakanth

Captain Vijayakanth announced on Thursday that the DMDK will not be part of any fleet. Till the other day, the DMK was claiming that the DMDK will make up one flank of its alliance that includes the Congress. There was speculation that the BJP was also wooing the DMDK. Captain’s reluctance to ally with the two Dravidian parties may have to do with his own leadership ambitions. It may also be a reflection of the present political uncertainty, where even seasoned politicians are unsure of the electorate’s mood as the state moves towards the May 16 election.

Since the DMDK’s formation in 2005, Captain has been wooed by all Tamil Nadu parties. His chief attraction — the DMDK has held on to its core vote in successive elections. An actor who modelled himself after the AIADMK’s founder, MGR, Vijayakanth has cultivated a base that transcends caste and regional loyalties. Despite his flip-flops on allies and policies, he continues to draw crowds. However, a closer look at the DMDK’s electoral record reveals that the magic may be waning. Captain projected the DMDK as an alternative to the DMK and the AIADMK in the 2006 assembly election and in the 2009 Lok Sabha polls and got nearly 10 per cent of the vote share. Subsequently, he allied with the AIADMK in the 2011 assembly election and won 29 seats. He joined the NDA in 2014 but failed to win any seat in the general election and the DMDK’s vote share fell to about 5 per cent.

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The competing populism of the DMK and the AIADMK and the charisma of their supremos has stalled the emergence of a third force in Tamil Nadu. Two regional challengers, the PMK and Vaiko’s MDMK, failed to capture the state’s imagination and the old horses, the Congress and the Left, are now marginal players. Captain is daring to rewrite this script. It’s anybody’s guess if he can deliver a blockbuster.