• C. Joseph Vijay, known as “Thalapathy,” was sworn in as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister on Sunday after days of political uncertainty over majority proof
• His party TVK won 108 of 234 assembly seats, securing a governing majority only after support from four smaller parties pushed the tally to 120
• Vijay unveiled a nine-member Cabinet mixing veteran politicians, former bureaucrats, and first-time legislators
• In his first address, Vijay warned of a Rs 10 lakh crore state debt and promised a white paper on finances before major decisions
• The 51-year-old actor has appeared in 69 films and is the first Tamil Nadu CM without prior political experience

After days of political suspense that had all of Tamil Nadu watching, C. Joseph Vijay — the superstar known to millions simply as “Thalapathy” — was sworn in as Chief Minister on Sunday morning, stepping from the silver screen into the highest office in the state. The ceremony, held at Chennai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium under tight security, was attended by Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, who flew in from Delhi, along with film personalities, industrialists, and a sea of jubilant supporters.

The oath-taking capped a week of genuine uncertainty. Vijay’s newly formed Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) had pulled off a stunning victory over the incumbent DMK — led by M.K. Stalin — winning 108 seats in the 234-member assembly. But that left him 10 seats short of a majority, and Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar refused to invite him to form a government until he could prove he had 118 legislators behind him. Vijay met the governor four times in as many days before finally receiving his appointment letter on Saturday night, after securing support from the Communist Party of India, CPI-M, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, and the Indian Union Muslim League — each holding two seats — bringing the alliance to 120 MLAs. Congress, with five seats, had pledged support almost immediately after results came in.

Some constitutional experts had argued the delay was unnecessary, pointing to precedent where governors invite the single largest party to form a government and allow them to prove their majority on the floor of the house. But the governor’s office maintained it needed formal proof of a stable majority before acting.

A Cabinet Built to Govern

Nine ministers were sworn in alongside Vijay, and the lineup reads like a deliberate statement about what kind of government he intends to run.

The most experienced hand in the room belongs to K.A. Sengottaiyan, a ten-time legislator whose political career stretches back to the 1970s. He first entered the assembly in 1977 during M.G. Ramachandran’s AIADMK government and later became a close associate of former Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, handling major portfolios including Revenue and School Education. Expelled from the AIADMK in 2025 following a falling-out with party general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami, Sengottaiyan eventually found his way to TVK — and now to the Cabinet table, where he’s expected to oversee the Public Works Department.

N. Anand, popularly known as “Bussy” Anand, is widely regarded as one of Vijay’s closest political associates and is tipped for the Municipal Administration portfolio. He played a central role in building TVK’s grassroots structure and previously served as an MLA in Puducherry after winning from the Bussy assembly constituency in 2006.

Aadhav Arjuna, considered one of TVK’s principal strategists, also joins the Cabinet. A former basketball player and ex-President of the Basketball Federation of India, Arjuna had a brief stint with the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi before becoming one of the party’s most visible faces. The Villivakkam MLA-elect is expected to head the Sports Development portfolio — a fitting assignment.

Perhaps the most talked-about appointment is 29-year-old S. Keerthana, the first woman MLA elected from Sivakasi and the youngest face in the Cabinet. A former political consultant and digital campaign strategist, she has worked with election teams linked to M.K. Stalin, Mamata Banerjee, and N. Chandrababu Naidu. Her elevation is being read widely as a signal that this government intends to take women’s representation seriously.

Former IRS officer and doctor K.G. Arunraj resigned from government service to enter politics under Vijay’s banner, serving as TVK’s General Secretary for policy and propaganda before winning from Tiruchengode. He’s expected to oversee Commercial Taxes and Registration. R. Nirmal Kumar, who ran TVK’s IT and social media operations and was instrumental in post-poll negotiations with Left parties, also earned a ministerial berth — a former BJP functionary who joined TVK in 2025. Actor, comedian, and television anchor A. Rajmohan, who served as the party’s propaganda secretary, won from Egmore and is likely headed to the Adi Dravidar Welfare Department.

Senior advocate and TVK treasurer P. Venkataramanan — considered the party’s prominent Brahmin face and the man who administered the party pledge at TVK’s maiden state conference in 2024 — took oath as well, likely to handle School Education. Rounding out the nine is dentist-turned-politician K.T. Prabhu, who made headlines by defeating Naam Tamilar Katchi founder Seeman in Karaikudi.

Vijay himself is expected to retain the Home, Police, and Public Administration portfolios — a clear sign that the first-time politician intends to keep a direct grip on governance and law and order as he finds his footing.

“I Am One Among You”

When Vijay addressed the crowd after taking his oath, it was an emotional moment — and he didn’t try to hide it.

“Greetings to everyone who resides in my heart,” he began, before tracing his journey from the son of an assistant film director — someone who understood poverty and hunger firsthand — to the chair of Chief Minister. “I am not someone who comes from a royal political background. I am one among you. I feel like your son, your brother, your younger sibling. It is because you felt the same way that you brought me to this position,” he said.

He didn’t shy away from the hard realities either. Tamil Nadu, he revealed, is carrying a debt burden of nearly Rs 10 lakh crore. “I will release a white paper on the state’s financial condition before moving forward with major decisions,” he announced, asking for patience as his government takes stock of what it has inherited.

His promises were direct: women’s safety, eliminating narcotics, stronger ration distribution, healthcare, drinking water, and roads. On corruption, he was unambiguous. “Vijay will not commit any mistake, and he will not allow wrongdoing,” he said, adding that not even “a single paisa” of public money would be misused on his watch. And to anyone hoping political maneuvering might destabilize his government early: “There is only one power centre here.”

A Legacy in the Making

The comparisons to M.G. Ramachandran — the matinee idol who formed his own party and became Chief Minister in 1977 — have followed Vijay since he launched TVK in 2024 and announced he was retiring from films to focus on politics full-time. Like Ramachandran, and like his successor Jayalalithaa, Vijay has converted screen stardom into political capital in a state where cinema and power have always been intertwined.

But there’s a meaningful difference: neither Ramachandran nor Jayalalithaa arrived in office without political experience. Vijay does. The 51-year-old star of 69 films has never held elected office before Sunday. His TVK didn’t exist two years ago. And yet his party just demolished a duopoly that had governed Tamil Nadu for decades.

“Whether they are friends or enemies, all eight crore people of Tamil Nadu are my people,” he told the crowd. For a man who spent decades playing heroes on screen, the real test has just begun.

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• Tamil superstar C. Joseph Vijay is being sworn in as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister on Sunday at Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai.
• His party TVK won 108 seats in the April 23 elections, becoming the single-largest party in the 234-member Assembly.
• Vijay secured support from Congress, CPI, CPI(M), VCK, and IUML to cross the 118-seat majority threshold with 120 MLAs.
• The swearing-in ends an unbroken era of Dravidian politics — only DMK and AIADMK had ever governed Tamil Nadu before TVK.
• Lok Sabha Opposition leader Rahul Gandhi is among the national leaders expected to attend the ceremony.

Tamil Nadu is waking up to a new political era. C. Joseph Vijay — the superstar actor who launched his party less than a year ago — is being sworn in as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu on Sunday morning, ending an unbroken stretch of Dravidian party dominance that had defined the state’s politics for generations.

The ceremony is set for 10 a.m. at Chennai’s Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, with more than 5,000 guests expected in attendance and heavy security deployed across the city. Lok Sabha Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi is among the national leaders making the trip to witness what political observers are already calling a watershed moment in Tamil Nadu’s modern history.

How Vijay Got Here

Tamil Nadu went to polls across all 234 constituencies in a single phase on April 23, with the results declared on May 4. The contest was a fierce four-way fight between the incumbent DMK, the AIADMK alliance, Naam Tamilar Katchi, and Vijay’s freshly minted Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam — and TVK stunned the state by emerging as the single-largest party with 108 seats.

It wasn’t a clean majority on its own. The magic number was 118, and the days that followed the result were a whirlwind of political negotiations. Vijay also had to vacate one of the two constituencies he’d personally won, as Election Commission rules bar any individual from holding two seats simultaneously — bringing TVK’s effective tally to 107.

Then the pieces fell into place. Congress, which won five seats, was first to extend unconditional support. The CPI and CPI(M) followed, contributing two MLAs each. The Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi and the Indian Union Muslim League rounded out the alliance with two members apiece. In total, Vijay’s camp assembled 120 legislators — comfortably clearing the threshold.

On Friday, Vijay formally staked his claim at Raj Bhavan, submitting letters of support and personally visiting the CPI state headquarters to thank Left party leaders for backing him. By Saturday, Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar had officially appointed him Chief Minister-designate and set the swearing-in for Sunday morning. TVK workers erupted in celebration outside the party’s Chennai headquarters — crackers, sweets, and the kind of scenes that blur the line between a political victory and a movie release.

Which, for Vijay, makes a certain kind of sense.

The Historic Weight of the Moment

Since the DMK first came to power in 1967, Tamil Nadu has never been governed by anyone outside the Dravidian political family. The DMK and AIADMK traded the state back and forth for nearly six decades — an arrangement so entrenched it seemed almost structural. TVK is now only the third major political force to break through, and it did so in its very first election.

The Governor has directed Vijay to prove his majority on the floor of the Assembly before May 13, a formality at this point given the numbers he’s secured.

Joining Vijay at Sunday’s swearing-in as ministers are senior TVK leaders including K.A. Sengottaiyan, Aadhav Arjuna, N. Anand, Arun Raj, Nirmal Kumar, Raj Mohan, and Venkataramanan.

For a man who turned a career playing heroes on screen into an actual mandate to govern one of India’s most politically sophisticated states, the 10 a.m. ceremony is the beginning of an entirely different kind of role — one with no script, no retakes, and 72 million people watching.

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