Why Kamal Haasan can be next Big Boss of Tamil Nadu after Jayalalithaa
Much more than ever before, Kamal Haasan has begun to go vocal about real life issues and the medium he chose happened to be Twitter and Bigg Boss.
He began to use Twitter to send his short messages to the world and gained immediate attention. A man known for his word play, he knew how to evoke people's interest.
In fact, his active Twitter journey began only in 2016, and though he had much ado with AIADMK's governance and even a spat with Subramaniam Swamy, his message against the murder of a pregnant woman by a pro-Hindu faction leader caught the attention of the people.
Then onwards, Kamal's tweets gained much momentum as he drew on sarcasm, especially about Sasikala. Also, his tweets appeared to be coded messages and people strangely loved them and joked at the same time, that just like his movies, it would take 10 years to understand his tweets.
But Kamal's support for the Jallikattu and Neduvasal protests earned him much respect. Unlike fellow actor Rajinikanth who is considering starting his own political party and just spoke a few words about the system being corrupt, Kamal has been pointing to where the system has gone corrupt.
He has attained more popularity this way than O Panneerselvam or E Palanisamy, who had only mechanical answers for political questions. Kamal even gained the support of DMK's working president MK Stalin, who applauded him and said that his tweets are a reflection of the people's state of mind.
Kamal has thus sown the seeds for his political life through his fiery tweets and made people keen to hear what he has to say.
Enter Bigg Boss
Bigg Boss show's entry into Tamil Nadu and Kamal hosting it has become another feather in the superstar’s cap and an opportunity for communication with the people of the state. The actor hosting the show on weekends and touching upon state affairs has become the talk of the town, though many tried to intimidate him.
In fact, after a participant spoke ill of a co-star, using the term “slum behaviour”, Kamal called a press meet. Though not defending the incident, he posed the large question, that why people who get offended over the term stay quiet when someone is called by a caste name in a derogatory manner.
Nobody could answer that. At that point, Kamal openly stated that there is corruption everywhere, starting a direct battle with the ruling AIADMK’s ministers.
Am against corrupttion.I am not against A party All guilty of it I revolt against Revolutionists are not afraid of death or failure. Are u?
— Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) July 26, 2017
As presumed, the rattled ministers who had no experience in word play fell in his trap. Not knowing how to react, some spoke ill about Kamal’s personal life while others threatened him, only to irritate his fans. The AIADMK had nothing on Kamal to pin him down and people started waiting for his tweet updates.
Hosting the show every weekend, Kamal has only grown as a political figure. His comment to one participant about 5-star prisons, during an expose on how Sasikala allegedly lived a luxurious life in Parapanna Agrahara prison, showed his shrewdness and was much appreciated by the people.
A high school drop out may not perceive Neet problem.But Dengu i know My child almost died of it. Work on it TN Govt. If unable move aside
— Kamal Haasan (@ikamalhaasan) July 20, 2017
In an episode aired on August 5, Kamal boldly criticised the host channel over a “task gig” where participants were asked to act like mentally challenged patients. Yet, the way he drove his point touched the roots of Dravidianism.
"I will not appreciate such task gigs anymore in this show. People who run the channel must realise that the country below the Vindhyas gives more importance to self-respect," he said, eyes blazing.
Now only the actor can make clear whether he was trying to say that north Indians lack self-respect, however his words drove the point home.
Though Kamal has not voiced his opinions on many issues said to be important for Tamil Nadu, the way he hosts Bigg Boss has given many reason to believe that he could be the next Big Boss of state politics - a place left vacant after Jayalalithaa's demise.