Pongal releases turn theatres to political testing grounds ahead of TN polls

Chennai: Tamil Nadu's Pongal releases moved beyond the routine box-office contests, turning cinema halls into an early political testing ground ahead of the assembly election. Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam president Vijay's ‘Jananayagan' and the DMK-backed ‘Parasakthi' are at the centre of the cine-politico debate.Vijay's ‘Jananayagan' is set for release on Jan 9, followed a day later by ‘Parasakthi', produced by Aakash Baskaran, a close associate of deputy chief minister Udhayanidhi Stalin, after its release was advanced from Jan 14. With ‘Parasakthi' built against the backdrop of an anti-Hindi agitation and ‘Jananayagan' presented as Vijay's final screen appearance amid political rallies, the Pongal window turned into a test of narrative reach and mobilisation as election approaches.Trade discussions around screen allocation added to the politics of the contest. Tiruppur Subramania, head of the Tamil Nadu Theatre Owners Association, said that Jananayagan may open in 500 to 600 screens across Tamil Nadu, while Parasakthi could secure 400 to 450 screens, out of a total of 1,200. Other releases are expected to share the remaining screens.TVK functionaries, however, framed the issue in political terms. Loyola Mani, joint secretary (propaganda) of TVK, accused DMK of creating hurdles for Vijay. "DMK is causing difficulties not just for Vijay's movies but even for public meetings, conferences and welfare activities by party cadres," he said. Drawing a historical parallel, he said M G Ramachandran faced similar resistance before becoming chief minister. "By doing this to Vijay, they are pushing him closer to the CM chair," he said.The producers of ‘Parasakthi' rejected allegations of political intent. The production house, Dawn Pictures, clarified that the Pongal release was announced two years ago and that advancing the date followed feedback from theatre owners and exhibitors.Tiruppur Subramaniam, however, said the overlap would benefit exhibitors. "It is a good thing from theatre owners' perspective as we get a chance to screen two movies, which will bring in more audience to theatres," he said. He added that advancing ‘Parasakthi's' release would not affect ‘Jananayagan'. "We will divide screens like we did in the past, just as when Vijay's ‘Varisu' and Ajith's ‘Thunivu' were released during Pongal," he said.EOM