Actor and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) chief Vijay charted history in Tamil Nadu on Monday by surpassing the ruling party Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and strong opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) in numbers. His cousin, actor Vikranth Santhosh, couldn’t have been happier. (Also Read: Trisha Krishnan heads straight to Vijay’s home from Tirupati on her 43rd birthday as TVK leads in TN election. Watch)
Vijay’s cousin posts unseen childhood pic
After voting in April, Vikranth didn’t hide the fact that he voted for his cousin Vijay when he posted a picture of a yellow whistle with ‘whistle podu’ (blow the whistle) written on it. Not only is it a reference to a song from The GOAT, but the whistle is also TVK’s election symbol. As soon as Vijay’s TVK took the lead on Monday, he posted the news on his Instagram stories with fire emojis. He also re-posted a picture of the actor-politician dressed in his white shirt and tan trousers ‘uniform’ with ‘Vijay wave’ written on it, posted by his wife, actor Maanasa.
Later, when it was clear that TVK is potentially winning this election and his cousin might just become the next Chief Minister of TN, he shared an unseen childhood picture of him and Vijay with the latter’s mother Shoba. He wrote, “I can’t be more happier @actorvijay anna (elder brother) ..You have created history !!! What a proud moment (hugging and love emojis) Whistle satham therikudhu (the place is exploding with whistles) (heart on fire emojis) #mudhalvarvijay #tnelection2026 #tvk.”
Vikranth’s mother Sheela acted in Pandian Stores (2018) and his brother Sanjeev is an actor-filmmaker. He married Maanasa in 2009, and they have two sons born in 2010 and 2016. Vikranth debuted as a lead actor with Karka Kasadara (2005) and was last seen in Bun Butter Jam, Madharaasi and the Kannada film Mark in 2025. This year, he starred in the JioHotstar web series LBW: Love Beyond Wicket.
Vijay’s foray into politics
In February 2024, Vijay left fans surprised when he announced that he would contest in the 2026 elections. He launched the TVK party and held his first public rally in October 2024. Since then, the actor has toured many regions of TN to hold rallies and share his manifesto directly with the people. His rallies have seen massive turnout, with a tragedy taking place in Karur due to a stampede that left 41 dead.
Vijay refused to form an alliance with any central or regional party before he contested his debut election, even as many around him did. Filmmaker Sundar C contested in alliance with AIADMK, while Kamal Haasan’s Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) joined hands with the DMK right before the election. With Vijay potentially becoming the next Chief Minister of TN, he is expected to take a step back from cinema. His final film, Jana Nayagan, is yet to be certified by the CBFC, having been delayed since January.