From ‘Naalaiya Theerpu’ to Tamil Nadu CM: How Thalapathy Vijay turned rejections into historic success

Today, Thalapathy Vijay has become one of the most beloved Tamil Nadu actors and politicians. In fact, he has already accomplished the impossible: he is now the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. But it wasn’t easy for Vijay to get to where he is today. Ever since he entered the industry, he has faced many challenges, struggled, and received much negative feedback about his competence. However, with determination and motivation, Vijay turned all these impossible events into possibilities.

How Vijay overcame criticism in cinema

At the beginning of his career in Tamil movies, when Vijay made his debut film ‘Naalaiya Theerpu,’ nobody took him seriously. He was criticized for his looks, his performance, and there was doubt whether he would become an actor in films in the future. Many critics claimed that Vijay only became a hero in the film industry because he was the son of director S. A. Chandrasekhar. Initially, the reception for his movies was average, but the young artist was always trolled by others. Despite all the criticism and trolling, Vijay kept on acting. He experienced one of his career breakthroughs in the movie ‘Senthoorapandi’ with Vijayakanth. In addition, movies such as ‘Poove Unakkaga’ allowed him to connect with his audience. Through the years, Vijay has made himself an incredible commercial superstar through action films such as ‘Thuppakki,’ ‘Kaththi,’ ‘Mersal,’ ‘Leo,’ and others, defying every critic out there along the way.

Vijay slowly built his political foundation

Even when Vijay was ruling the film industry, he showed an interest in social work and politics. His fan clubs and welfare programs kept him in touch with the masses of Tamil Nadu. He helped the youth and flood victims and addressed major public issues. Vijay formally announced Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam in 2024. His foray into politics made many people laugh, who felt that his film fame would be no good in the election race. Political analysts believed that he would only lose out to the established political parties by splitting their votes.

Vijay turns political impossibility into a historic victory

The Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections held in 2026 revolutionized the political arena of Tamil Nadu. Vijay’s party created history by capturing major seats and becoming the largest party in Tamil Nadu. Winning the election was not free from conflicts. After overcoming all the hurdles, Vijay was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu.