Tamil Nadu: Not all actors were successful in politics

In Tamil Nadu, a successful career in the movies often leads to politics. From AIADMK founder MG Ramachandran to the latest entrant Kamal Haasan, many reel heroes have launched their own political parties but not many have been able to make a successful career of it.

If MGR’s AIADMK was a runaway success in the state, some parties floated by actors failed miserably.

MGR, who had pursued a parallel career in films and politics, launched  AIADMK in 1972 after being expelled from the then ruling DMK.

After MGR’s death, his protégé and actress J Jayalalithaa inherited the party and took it to new heights.

DMK’s founder CN Annadurai and his successor M Karunanidhi had connections to tinsel town as movie scriptwriters but they were full-time politicians.

After the success of MGR, Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK) founded by Vijayakanth in 2005 had made an impact in the state politics only to lose its way subsequently.

Sivaji Ganesan, a contemporary of MGR, floated Thamizhaga Munnetra Munnani in 1988 and contested the 1989 state polls in alliance with MGR’s widow Janaki headed AIADMK faction but failed miserably.