Rise of Udhayanidhi Stalin: From silver screen star to Deputy CM of Tamil Nadu

Chennai, Sep 29 (IANS) Udhayanidhi Stalin, the son of Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, who has been appointed the Deputy Chief Minister, is already in the league of leaders from South India who tasted success in cinema as well as in politics, after making a foray into public life. 

Udhayanidhi Stalin, who is the Minister for Sports Development and Youth Affairs, will take oath as Deputy CM on Sunday during the Cabinet reshuffle, highly placed sources in the CMO said on Saturday.

He is the third Deputy Chief Minister of the state after his father M.K. Stalin and AIADMK leader, O. Panneerselvam (OPS).

He is the third generation leader from the first family of DMK to be in a crucial post in the Tamil Nadu government.

M. Karunanidhi, the DMK patriarch was the Chief Minister of the state for several terms and his son M.K. Stalin became the Chief Minister of the state in 2021.

With Udhayanidhi becoming a minister in the Stalin cabinet in December 2022, he became the third generation leader from the party who has become a minister in the state government.

Udhaynidhi Stalin started his career as a movie producer and later became an actor.

He entered the film industry as a producer and distributor with his production studio Red Giant Movies making films including Kuruvi (2008), Aadhavan (2009), Manmadan Ambu (2010) and 7aum Arivu (2011).

He subsequently made his debut as an actor in the romantic comedy, Oru Kal Oru Kannadi (2012) and since then continued producing and starring in his own films. He stopped his acting career in 2023 to focus on politics.

The DMK family scion is currently the Youth wing president of the DMK and has extensively campaigned across the state during the 2021 assembly elections and the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

Udhayanidhi Stalin, however, is also known for his controversial remarks.

While addressing a conference in September 2023, organised by the Tamil Nadu Progressive Writers Artists Association on the theme of "Eradication of Sanatana", he remarked that "sanatana cannot be simply opposed, but had to be eradicated" and said that it is against social justice and equality.

Besides drawing widespread condemnation from political parties and leaders for his remarks, Udhayanidhi Stalin's statement was also slammed by the Madras High Court.

A senior Supreme Court lawyer, Vineet Jindal, also reported the remarks to the Delhi Police, calling them "provocative, inciting and defamatory".

A letter signed by 262 notable citizens was sent to Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud who was requested to see the Supreme Court take up the case on its own.

The Supreme Court subsequently began an investigation into the remarks and on March 4, 2024, during the hearing of a plea, the apex court rebuked Udhayanidhi Stalin over his remarks and questioned why he had approached the court to consolidate the FIRs filed against him after allegedly misusing his right to freedom of speech and expression.

Udhayanidhi Stalin, however, somehow managed to steer clear of the mess, and with a "good grip" among the DMK leadership as well as grassroot cadres, he single-handedly managed the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

He criss-crossed across Tamil Nadu during the Lok Sabha polls and connected with the party cadres across the state.