Come May 16, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance will have more seats from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh than any formation mustered by the Congress, notes T V R Shenoy.
There will be 2,364 counting halls as compared to 1,002 halls in 2016 in 822 assemble constituencies, a more than 200 percent increase, in view of the COVID guidelines, according to the Election Commission which had drawn flak from the courts over the conduct of polls during the pandemic.
With Tamil Nadu's economy getting increasingly debt-ridden with each passing budget, any concession to the Centre on the tax front, the state government has argued, would only help forgotten 'minor parties' to start hoping of a revival, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
For now, the BJP's strategy for Khushbu seems to be one of denial -- denying the rival Congress in the state and also at the national-level a Muslim voice acceptable to Hindu audiences and TV news-watchers. This is much less than the induction of DMK veterans like Duraiswamy and Selvam, who still have a greater chances of winning assembly seats,, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Experts foresee possible scenarios: A BRS government with less majority, a BRS government with BJP and AIMIM support, or a Congress government.
Why did Kamal Haasan name the leaders he did?
Though the DMK clinched the deal with the Congress after a logjam over seat allocation and identification, cadres of both parties are yet to forget the mental agony they underwent all these days, according to political analysts in Chennai. The high commands of the two parties will find it a tough task to prevail on them to go for election campaign straightaway, they said
Legendary icon Rajnikant was given the Best Actor award for 2005 for his role of a psychiatrist dealing with a lady suffering from split personality, while Kamal Haasan bagged the award for year 2006, for his movie Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu where he tracks down two psycho serial killers.
The actress is busy with four different language movies -- Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam and Hindi!
Taking a veiled swipe at the Congress party, he said one of the things he found when he came to Delhi was that those who got opportunity to rule the nation for "many, many years, loved to keep things in a pendulum mode".
The meeting has sparked speculation that the actor will join the Aam Aadmi Party.
A possible, easier and less-complicated way for the Centre would have been to approach the SC with the same queries much earlier, before a ground-swell of popular sentiments and consequent political tensions had built up in Tamil Nadu, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Announcing his decision on Twitter, Rajinikanth said, "In the ensuing state assembly elections, with the tremendous support of the people, Tamil Nadu will have an honest, upright, transparent, corruption-free, secular spiritual political setup." "A marvel, miracle, it will happen," he wrote in Tamil. "We will change, we will change everything. If not now, then never."
A look at the reception pictures.
Rajinikanth's visible electoral strength is his constant mouthing of the term, 'aanmiga arasiyal', or 'spiritual politics', without he having to explain what it is. By implication, it is all that what Dravidian politics is not about. It may imply anti-corruption, being against Periyar's forgotten anti-god, anti-Brahmin dictum, but also ends up covering 'Tamil pride', which begins with Tamil language where, as a Maratha from Karnataka, he has more to defend himself. However, in the contemporary national context, aanmiga arasiyal is seen as a front for Rajini to market his brand of 'soft Hindutva' but identified even more with the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in political terms, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The IMD has warned of heatwave to severe heatwave conditions in parts of West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar, Jharkhand, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Karnataka and Uttar Pradesh during the next five days.
To claim that Tamil Nadu was waiting for a messiah of the 'spiritual' Rajini kind is misplaced, if not mischievous, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The actor makes a comeback to films with a double role in the Tamil flick, Ponnar Sankar.
The Tamil actor has worked even harder and got himself six-pack abs for Gowtham Menon's new film Vaaranam Aaiyiram, where his character ages from his teenage days until his 70s.
The Hottest Videos of the Week!
Tripartite talks to break the deadlock over the release of Kamal Haasan's 'Vishwaroopam' began in Chennai following Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa's offer to broker peace with the protesting Muslim groups and the actor.
However, "we don't know who is Krishna and who is Arjuna," added the actor, who has said he would launch his political party and contest the 2021 assembly elections in Tamil Nadu.
Rajini said his contemporary Kamal Haasan possibly knew what that something was.
Kamal Haasan has filed a complaint with the Competition Commission of India (CCI) against the Tamil Nadu Theatre Owners Association wifor restricting the release of his film Vishwaroopam in theatres last year.
In a brief one minute video clip, Rajinikanth thanked all those who welcomed his political plunge.
Overall, the Thalaivi trailer is a convincing experience, says veteran Tamil Nadu politics watcher N Sathiya Moorthy.
South India is likely to give surprise verdict. Senior Delh-based journalist K G Suresh analyses if Modi matters
We have come to expect a lot from Vidyasagar's compositions, especially if it is a film starring Vijay. Kuruvi's album, however is quite a letdown.
The EPS camp believes that the BJP was already arm-twisting the AIADMK into conceding more seats in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections 'than they deserve' observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
With more and more TV channels preferring to air dubbed serials, the Tamil serial industry is slowly going out of business.
DMK working president and Opposition Leader MK Stalin, who pressed the Centre to immediately promulgate an ordinance to hold the sport and that AIADMK should also press Centre for it, said that "Tamils will not forgive" the two if such an urgent step was not taken.
After the stupendous success of his Tamil film Subramaniapuram, actor/producer/director Sasi Kumar is playing the lead in Nadodikal, a film that tells the story of four youngsters and an incident that forces them to travel from place to place.
Vettai will be Madhavan's first film in Telugu cinema.
'Petta response is so overwhelming and awesome.. Thank you Thalaivar fans!'
Cloud Nine Movies' Thamizh Padam, conceived in the best tradition of spoofs, is rip-roaring entertainment.
A week after a fiery exchange of words between Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and Leader of Opposition Vijayakanth in the Tamil Nadu Assembly, around 1,000 Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam functionaries and workers, including the actor-politician's close friend Ibrahim Rowther joined the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Tuesday.
Reacting to a police case registered against him following a complaint by Vadivelu in connection with the attack on the comedian's residence and office on Sunday, DMDK chief Vijayakant, said: "Vadivelu is acting on DMK's instigation, as Karunanidhi and the party are unable to bear the rise of DMDK." Vadivelu's house was attacked allegedly by around 40 DMDK workers a day before he was to depose in a local court in a case involving him and a DMDK functionary.
The Congress leader said he has traversed across the country, "but I have not seen violence, hatred anywhere. But I see it on television all the time."
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief J Jayalalithaa, who is eyeing a larger role for herself in the national politics after Lok Sabha polls, was on Monday presented a cake resembling Parliament by her party colleagues on her 66th birthday.
After the singer's son S P Charan performed the funeral rites amid Vedic chants by priests, 24 police personnel gave a gun salute and later the body was lowered into a deep pit and buried.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances