

The recent confrontation between Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy and actor Allu Arjun over the Sandia Theater stampede on December 5 has begun to show signs of calming down, with conciliatory statements and compensation to the victim’s family.
The outpouring of sympathy and support for the family of the 39-year-old mother who died tragically, and her nine-year-old son who survived with life-threatening injuries, is heartening. We can only hope that we as a society bear collective responsibility to prevent such incidents – especially those resulting from the frenzy surrounding movie stars and movie releases.
However, the Arjun vs. Reddy battle reflects a familiar narrative in south Indian politics: the clash between a star and a powerful politician. This story has been repeated many times, both in the political arena and in movie scripts. In the real world of politics, history shows that it is generally unwise for politicians to antagonize superstars, especially those who have reached the peak of their popularity.
MGR vs Karunanidhi
The first notable example from Tamil Nadu where a politician who received a battle star lost is the defining story of Dravidian politics. Late Chief Minister and DMK patriarch, M. Karunanidhi, has antagonized the hugely popular actor MG Ramachandran (MGR), an actor who had a huge fan following.
MGR has worked closely with Karunanidhi in films and was part of the DMK, founded by former Prime Minister CN Annadurai, or ‘Anna’. When Anna died while in office in 1969, Karunanidhi took over as Prime Minister and President of the DMK. A dispute with MGR followed, leading to a split in the party. MGR went on to form his own party, the All India Anna DMK (AIADMK), not only defeating Karunanidhi’s DMK but also keeping him out of power until his death in 1987.
While there were many other factors at play, including the declaration of Emergency, it was the narrative of MGR’s persecution that fueled the rise of the AIADMK. This emotional attachment helped keep Karunanidhi and his DMK party out of power in successive elections, until MGR survived.
Rajinikanth v. Jayalalithaa, 1996
In 1996, late Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa – MGR’s successor and the popular actor who took over the AIADMK – had a showdown with superstar Rajinikanth. The friction between the two leaders, who were neighbors in Chennai’s posh Boys Garden area, escalated when Rajinikanth publicly declared that “even God will not be able to save the country if Jayalalithaa returns to power.”
In the 1996 elections, the AIADMK was decisively defeated, with Jayalalithaa even losing her seat. There were multiple reasons for this defeat and Rajinikanth’s statement helped brighten the mood, but this episode serves as a reminder that a public confrontation with a powerful star is rarely beneficial for a politician in Dravidian politics.
Although Rajinikanth never formally entered politics, he made a film in 1998, padayappawhere the opponent was a woman – was interpreted by many as a veiled reference to the ousted Jayalalithaa. In the years that followed, there was a reconciliation between the two, with Rajinikanth remaining officially apolitical, although he made statements intermittently in favor of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) until Jayalalithaa’s death.
NTR in Telugu politics, Rajkummar in Karnataka
And in the world of Telugu politics, it was the most popular star of the time, N. T. Rama Rao (NTR), who ousted the Congress in 1983. While there was no account of “star persecution” in the assembly battle at that time. , NTR capitalized on the Congress narrative that hurt Telugu pride. This political victory still contributes to the stereotype of star power in Southern politics.
In general, political leaders in Telugu, Tamil and even Kannada politics have been treading carefully when dealing with stars. For example, in Karnataka, Kannada star Rajkumar, who stayed away from politics all his life, played an important role in the Gokak agitation for Kannada in the early 1980s. This movement contributed to the defeat of then Congress Prime Minister R. Gundu Rao and the victory of the Janata Party in the 1983 state elections.
While not all stars have been successful in politics, there are enough historical lessons for southern politicians to avoid friction with a star, especially when he is at the peak of his popularity.
What Reddy could learn from Stalin
Tamil Nadu is currently witnessing the rise of actor Vijay along with his political party. Although Vijay was critical of the ruling KDP, Prime Minister Stalin refrained from engaging in a war of words. Stalin even instructed his party, including his son and Deputy Prime Minister Udayanidhi, to avoid getting involved in a public dispute.
Having witnessed the history of Dravidian politics as an aide to the late Karunanidhi, Stalin realizes that attacking the star politically only enhances his appeal and public influence.
While the Arjun vs Reddy debate is not electoral in nature – at least not yet – it remains unclear how such a public confrontation broke out in Hyderabad, given the tightly intertwined worlds of politics and cinema. With close relationships, including family ties, it is hard to believe it was just a matter of jostling. Whatever the reasons, the date serves as a reminder for Revanth Reddy to avoid star-studded encounters in the future.
(TM Veeraraghav is Executive Editor, NDTV)
Disclaimer: These are the personal opinions of the author