Vijayaraj Alagarswami (25 August 1952 – 28 December 2023), known by his stage name Vijayakanth, was an Indian actor, film director, film producer, philanthropist and politician. He worked in Tamil cinema in a career spanning four decades. He ventured into politics in the later part of his career and founded his own party Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam.
Vijayakanth served as the president of the Nadigar Sangam (actors association) from 2000 to 2006. He is credited with bringing the association out of debt and establishing a charitable trust that paid pension to low-income members of the film industry. He was likened to former Tamil Nadu Chief MinisterM. G. Ramachandran for his humanitarian work and for his role in supporting impoverished personnel from the Tamil film industry. He accepted deferred remuneration for certain films to help struggling film producers and also preached for food equality on film sets, demanding that all the crew members must be given the same quality meals that he was served.
Vijayakanth was born as Vijayaraj Alagarswami in Madurai on 25 August 1952.[2][3][4] His parents were K. N. Alagarswami and Aandal.[5] Vijayakanth grew up idolising M. G. Ramachandran and displayed passion towards community and societal issues.[6] During his young age, his father was concerned about Vijayakanth as he showed less interest towards studies and was more interested in cinema.[7] His father ran a rice mill at Keeraithurai where Vijayakanth went on to work and surprised him with his administrative skills.[8]
Vijayakanth married Premalatha on 31 January 1990 and had two sons. His son Shanmuga Pandian starred in the Tamil films Sagaptham (2015) and Madura Veeran (2018).[9][10]
In 1978, Vijayakanth engaged in a photo shoot in Rasi Studios in Madurai with the aim of acting in films, which helped him garner attention.[11] He later gave credit to the chief photographer R. Asaithambi, indicating that the photographs eventually helped him earn a spot in the film industry.[12] Vijayakanth traveled to Chennai to pursue his passion in acting, even though he did not have any cinematic background.[6] He was cast in a supporting role as Rajnikanth's younger brother in En Kelvikku Enna Bathil (1978) by the director P. Madhavan, for which he received an advance of ₹100 (equivalent to ₹2,700 or US$32 in 2023).[13] However, he was later replaced by Ceylon Manohar after the director was unimpressed with Vijayakanth's acting.[14][15] He claimed to have lost several film opportunities during the early stages of his acting career largely due to his darker complexion.[16][17][18] In 1979, Vijayakanth made his first film appearance in M. A. Kaja's Inikkum Ilamai (1979), when he was first credited with his screen name "Vijayakanth".[19] The film was a critical and commercial failure.[20] Though his subsequent films Agal Vilakku (1979), Neerottam (1980) and Saamanthippoo (1980) also did not perform well at the box office, his film Doorathu Idi Muzhakkam was screened at the International Film Festival of India.[21] The later film was lauded by viewers and became a turning point in his career.[22]
In the 1990s, Vijayakanth established himself as an action icon with a consistent box-office appeal. He was best known for low-budget films that often featured gravity-defying stunts in which he would single-handedly dispatch his enemies.[44] Rowther produced many of his films and played an instrumental role in Vijayakanth's rise as an actor in the early 1990s. He also assisted Vijayakanth in choosing the film scripts.[45] Rowther and Vijayakanth combined for many of the films including Pulan Visaranai (1990), Captain Prabhakaran (1991), Bharathan (1992), Rajadurai (1993), Sakkarai Devan (1993), En Aasai Machan (1994), Gandhi Pirantha Mann (1995), Karuppu Nila (1995), Ulavuthurai (1998), Dharma (1998) and Simmasanam (2000).[46]Pulan Visaranai, which was directed by R. K. Selvamani and featured R. Sarathkumar as the antagonist, became one of the most popular crime thrillers of the time.[47][48][49] He later starred as an honest cop in the hit flick Sathriyan, produced by Mani Ratnam.[24] After the success of Pulan Visaranai, he collaborated with Selvamani for Captain Prabhakaran (1991), which was Vijayakanth's 100th film.[50] The film became one of the highest grossing films in 1991 and ran for over 500 days in theaters.[51][52] He got the sobriquet "captain" after the success of the film.[53][51]
Vijayakanth collaborated with director AR Murugadoss in Ramanaa, in which he underplayed an action hero and anti-corruption crusader.[74] The film won a Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Film of the year and the film became commercially successful.[75] In 2003, he had two releases, Chokka Thangam, a family drama and Thennavan, a political film. In 2004, he appeared in a comedy-drama, Engal Anna which was a commercial success.[76] However, his next films Gajendra and Neranja Manasu, which were released in the same year, received negative reviews.[77] Later, he did a special appearance in Suriya's film Maayavi (2005).[78] In 2006, he acted in three action films, Sudesi, Perarasu and Dharmapuri, all of which failed to deliver at the box office and received negative reviews from critics.[79] The following year, he starred in Sabari (2007) and his 150th film was Arasangam (2008), which was about a police officer who discovers and unravels the mystery behind a terrorist plot.[80] He acted in the drama Mariyadhai (2009), in his second colloboration with director Vikraman, followed by the action film Engal Aasan (2009), in which he co-starred with Vikranth.[81][82]
2010 to 2015: Later projects
In 2010, Vijayakanth acted and directed the film, Virudhagiri, a remake of the French film Taken.[83][84] After a hiatus of five years, he made a cameo appearance in his son Shanmuga Pandian's first film Sagaptham in 2015.[85] In November 2015, he started acting in Arun Ponnambalam's Thamizhan Endru Sol, alongside his son. The film was later suspended due to Vijayakanth's political commitments and his deteriorating health.[86] In 2022, director Vijay Milton attempted to rope in Vijayakanth in a short role for his film Mazhai Pidikatha Manithan alongside Vijay Antony.[87] The film later went ahead without Vijayakanth due to his health issues.[88] In a film career spanning more than 30 years, he acted in 154 movies.[89]
Political career
On 14 September 2005, Vijayakanth announced the formation of Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam (DMDK), a regional political party at Madurai.[90][91] His party contested in all the 234 seats in[92][93] As per the results, the party secured higher number of votes than the winning margins of candidates in about 25 constituencies.[94] The party contested without an alliance in the 2009 Indian general elections and secured about 10.28% of the votes in Tamil Nadu.[95][96] In the 2011 Tamil Nadu legislative assembly elections, the party contested as a part of the AIADMK-led alliance.[97][98] Vijayakanth led the party's campaign for the elections despite opposition from other party leaders such as S. Ramadoss, the founder of Pattali Makkal Katchi, who expressed his dissatisfaction with people from the film industry entering politics.[99][100] During the runup to the elections, Vijayakanth developed a feud with actor Vadivelu, Vijayakanth's co-star in a number of his films.[101][102] This led to attack of Vadivelu's residence by men, whom Vadivelu claimed were from Vijayakanth's party and subsequent legal cases.[103] This was refuted by Vijayakanth.[104] Vadivelu subsequently campaigned against Vijayakanth in the elections.[105][106]
In February 2016, Vijayakanth lost his position as the Leader of Opposition in the Tamil Nadu assembly after ten of his party MLAs resigned from the assembly.[117] For the 2016 Tamil Nadu legislative assembly elections, he led the People's Welfare Front alliance.[118] During the election campaign, he criticised actor Rajinikanth, which caused backlash from the supporters of Rajinikanth.[119][120][121] He was also criticised for making obscene gestures in public, often towards journalists.[122][123] This led to several memes targeting him in the social media.[124][125] He lost the election from Ulundurpet to R. Kumaraguru of the AIADMK and his party-led alliance failed to win any seats in the assembly.[126][127] Despite being part of the winning alliance, his party fared poorly and failed to win any seat in the subsequent 2019 Indian general elections.[128] In the 2021 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election, his party secured just 0.43% of the total votes polled.[129][130] He continued to serve as the general secretary of DMDK till his death in December 2023.[131] He was often known for his "open and bold stance" during his political career.[132]
During his film career, Vijayakanth accepted deferred remuneration for certain films to help struggling film producers and also preached for food equality on film sets, demanding that all the crew members must be given the same quality meals that he was served.[133][134] He was involved in philanthropic work and offered food and meals through his office.[135] He had also assisted several actors by offering consultancy and required financial help.[136] In 2000, Vijayakanth was elected as the president of South Indian Film Artistes' Association and served till 2006. He is credited with bringing the association out of debt.[137][138] He led the establishment of a charitable trust that paid pension to low-income members of the film industry.[139][140]
Since the mid-2010s, Vijayakanth faced health issues, as his speech slurred and he was unsteady during some political rallies and speeches. In 2017, he remarked that thyroid problems affected his vocal cord.[143] In 2020, he tested positive for COVID-19, after which he had limited public appearance, often sporting a face mask.[144] In 2022, he underwent surgery to amputate three of his toes due to complications from diabetes, which confined him to a wheelchair.[145] He was admitted to a hospital in November 2023 due to liver-related issues and subsequently contracted COVID-19 again while in the hospital.[146][147]
Vijayakanth subsequently died on 28 December 2023, at the age of 71.[148][149][150] His death was condoled by various political leaders,
[151][152][153] and members of the film industry.[154][155][156] The Tamil Nadu state government announced full state honours for his funeral.[157] His body was kept in state at his residence in Saligramam, later at his party headquarters and at the Island Grounds for the public to pay their tributes.[158] On the evening of 29 December 2023, his body was taken on a public procession and his last rites were performed. He was buried with state honours in a sandalwood casket at the campus of the DMDK headquarters at Koyambedu in Chennai.[159][160] On 3 January 2024, Indian Prime MinisterNarendra Modi wrote a tribute to Vijayakanth on his website.[161][162]
Vijayakanth was credited as "Puratchi Kalaignar" (revolutionary artist) and "Captain" in the film titles as he often appeared in roles as a law enforcer, vigilante, or a village head.[166][167][168] In 2014, an ex-serviceman lodged a complaint against Vijayakanth at the Madras High Court for using the title "captain", arguing that the term is attached to the Indian Army, is an insult to servicemen and is illegal for common people to use it.[169] He was listed amongst the top 20 best Tamil actors of all time by Cinemaholic in 2022.[170] He was likened to former Tamil Nadu Chief MinisterM. G. Ramachandran for his humanitarian work and was often referred to as "Black M.G.R.".[171]
Pamela Price; Arild Engelsen Ruud, eds. (2010). Power and Influence in India: Bosses, Lords and Captains. New Delhi: Routledge India. ISBN978-0-415-58595-8.
External links
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Vijayakanth.
Пам'ятник батькуA Statue for Father Жанр наукова фантастика і науково-фантастичне оповіданняdФорма оповіданняАвтор Айзек АзімовМова американська англійськаОпубліковано 1959 «Пам'ятник батьку» (англ. A Statue for Father) — науково-фантастичне оповідання американського письменни...
Kunstverein Ingolstadt e.V. Rechtsform Verein Gründung 1959 (Vorgänger-Verein: 1920er Jahre) in Ingolstadt Sitz Ingolstadt (⊙48.76297611.42204Koordinaten: 48° 45′ 46,7″ N, 11° 25′ 19,3″ O) Zweck Förderung von Kunstverständnis und Kunstpflege Vorsitz Hubert P. Klotzeck Personen Adam Langer (Kurator) Mitglieder ca. 250 Website www.kunstverein-ingolstadt.de Der Kunstverein Ingolstadt ist ein gemeinnütziger, eingetragener Verein und fördert das...
Atletismo nosJogos Pan-Americanos de 2019 Provas de pista 100 m masc fem 200 m masc fem 400 m masc fem 800 m masc fem 1500 m masc fem 5000 m masc fem 10000 m masc fem 100 m com barreiras fem 110 m com barreiras masc 400 m com barreiras masc fem 3000 mcom obstáculos masc fem Revezamento 4×100 m masc fem Revezamento 4×400 m masc fem Provas de estrada Maratona masc fem 20km marcha atlética masc fem 50km marcha atlética masc fem Provas de campo Salto em distância masc fem Salto trip...
PT Naikilah Perusahaan MinangDidirikan1 November 1937; 86 tahun lalu (1937-11-01) di Padang Panjang, Minangkabau, Hindia BelandaPendiriBahauddin Sutan Barbangso Nan KuniangKantor pusatJalan Ahmad Yani, Padang Panjang, Sumatera BaratWilayah layananSumatra-JawaJenis layananAntarkota dan Pariwisata (dioperasikan oleh Vircansa Tour Bus)KelasEkonomi, Bisnis dan EksekutifRute terpendekBukittinggi - PadangRute terpanjangBukittinggi - BandungJenis bahan bakarSolarOperatorPT Naikilah Perusahaan M...
For other units with the same regimental number, see 98th Regiment of Foot (disambiguation). 98th (The Prince of Wales's) Regiment of FootActive1824–1881Disbanded1881, amalgamated with 64th Foot to become The Prince of Wales's (North Staffordshire) RegimentCountry United KingdomAllegianceBritish CrownBranch British ArmyTypeInfantryRoleLine InfantrySizeOne battalionMarchGod Bless the Prince of WalesEngagementsFirst Opium WarSecond Anglo-Sikh WarCommandersColonel ofthe Reg...
South Korean military law enforcement service This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these template messages) This article relies largely or entirely on a single source. Relevant discussion may be found on the talk page. Please help improve this article by introducing citations to additional sources.Find sources: Military Police Republic of Korea – news · newspapers · bo...
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed.Find sources: Gotta Kick It Up! – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (August 2021) (Learn how and when to remove this template message) American TV series or program Gotta Kick It Up!Promotional advertisementWritten byMeghan Cole (story)Nancy De Los Santos (tel...
Topographic map of the city of Huelva and the lugares colombinos in 1735. Saltes Island is pictured at top on the Odiel river Saltes Island (Spanish: Isla Saltés) is a fluvial islet in the Huelva River estuary, in the province of Huelva, Andalusia, Spain. It is part of the Odiel Marshes biosphere reserve. Geography Saltes Island is the southernmost island in the Odiel Marshes Natural Park, the second-largest wetland in Andalusia. It lies at the confluence of the Odiel and Rio Tinto rivers....
Moussa Mara Moussa Mara (* 2. März 1975 in Bamako) ist ein parteiloser Politiker aus Mali, der zwischen 2014 und 2015 Premierminister von Mali war. Leben Mara wurde 2013 Minister für Stadtplanung im Kabinett von Premierminister Oumar Tatam Ly. Nach dem Rücktritt von Ly am 5. April 2014 übernahm er am 9. April 2014 als dessen Nachfolger das Amt als Premierminister von Mali.[1] Am 11. April 2014 stellte er sein Kabinett vor, dem Abdoulaye Diop als Außenminister und General Sada Sam...
Five of the original main cast members: top row (L-R) Murray, Burton and Lenz; bottom row (L-R) Bush and Lafferty One Tree Hill is an American television series created by Mark Schwahn for The WB in 2003. After Season 3, The WB and UPN merged to form The CW, which then became the broadcaster for the show in the United States. Schwahn served as executive producer while also writing and directing for the show, including the premieres and finales of all seasons. The show began with nine main cha...
Insignia of a Knight Bachelor Sir Michael Berry Savory (born 1943) was Lord Mayor of London for 2004–2005.[1] Savory was elected to Common Council in 1980 and as an Alderman in 1996. He served as Aldermanic Sheriff in 2001–2002 and 677th Lord Mayor in 2004–2005. He is currently Managing Partner of the Muckleburgh Collection in North Norfolk.[2] Knighted in the 2006 New Year Honours for services to the City of London,[3] Sir Michael was a City stockbroker for fort...
Catholic Private University LinzKatholische Privat-Universität LinzTypePrivate universityEstablished1978; 45 years ago (1978)LocationLinz, AustriaWebsitehttp://ku-linz.at/ picture of Catholic Private University Linz The Catholic Private University Linz is one of four universities in Linz, the capital of Upper Austria, with approximately 500 students enrolled. Its roots go back to 1672 and it is a Papal faculty since 1978. It is an accredited private university but its tuiti...
President of Ireland since 2011 For other people named Michael Higgins, see Michael Higgins (disambiguation). His ExcellencyMichael D. HigginsHiggins in 20229th President of IrelandIncumbentAssumed office 11 November 2011TaoiseachEnda KennyLeo VaradkarMicheál MartinPreceded byMary McAleeseMinister for Arts, Culture and the GaeltachtIn office15 December 1994 – 26 June 1997TaoiseachJohn BrutonPreceded byBertie AhernSucceeded bySíle de ValeraIn office12 January 1993 – ...
Penn at the 2016 Cannes Film Festival The following is a complete list of the filmography of American actor Sean Penn. Acting credits Films Year Work Role Notes 1981 Taps Cadet Captain Alex Dwyer 1982 The Beaver Kid 2 Larry 'Groovin' Larry' Short film Fast Times at Ridgemont High Jeff Spicoli [1] 1983 Bad Boys Michael 'Mick' O'Brien Risky Business Unknown Uncredited cameo Summerspell Buddy 1984 Crackers Dillard Racing with the Moon Henry Hopper Nash 1985 The Falcon and the Snowman And...
Not to be confused with Sodium bisulfate. Sodium bisulfite Names IUPAC name Sodium hydrogen sulfite Other names E222, sodium bisulphite Identifiers CAS Number 7631-90-5 Y 3D model (JSmol) Interactive image ChEBI CHEBI:26709 Y ChEMBL ChEMBL1689285 N ChemSpider 571016 Y ECHA InfoCard 100.028.680 E number E222 (preservatives) PubChem CID 23665763 RTECS number VZ2000000 UNII TZX5469Z6I Y CompTox Dashboard (EPA) DTXSID8034902 InChI InChI=1S/Na.H2O3S/c;1-4(2)3/h;(H2,1,2,3)/...
County board of the Gaelic Athletic Association in Ireland Mayo GAAIrish:'Dominant sport:Gaelic footballGround(s):MacHale Park, CastlebarCounty colours: Green RedCounty teamsNFL:Division 1NHL:Division 2BFootball Championship:Sam Maguire CupHurling Championship:Christy Ring CupLadies' Gaelic football:Brendan Martin Cup The Mayo County Board of the Gaelic Athletic Association (GAA) (Irish: Cumann Luthchleas Gael Coiste Maigh Eo) or Mayo GAA is one of the 32 county boards of the GAA...
Baseball player Andrew BaldwinPitcherBorn: (1982-10-20) October 20, 1982 (age 41)Duluth, MinnesotaBats: RightThrows: Right Andrew Scott Baldwin (born October 20, 1982) is a former professional baseball pitcher. He was originally drafted by the Philadelphia Phillies in the fifth Round of the 2004 Major League Baseball Draft. Baldwin's uncle, John Hiller, was a relief pitcher for the Detroit Tigers. Amateur career High school Baldwin graduated from Hood River Valley High School in 2000. ...