`DMDK is one-Captain army; my husband taught me oratory'

For this former champion sportsperson, the rough and tumble of politics is an energizer. Born to Kannaiah and Hamsaveni in a family of five in Sembedu, Vellore, Premalatha Vijayakanth says she is a fighter who will struggle until the very end to achieve her goals. Party rebels point their fingers at `Anni' (sister-in-law) for aligning with the PWF and for the rebellion.Denying any stellar role for herself in the party, Premalatha, in an exclusive interview to Julie Mariappan, says vast numbers of neutral voters will support the DMDK front
Your party seems quite unstable.Your MLAs have joined AIADMK and DMK.
Captain's DMDK is not an offshoot of other parties, like the AIADMK or the MDMK. Those who parted ways are selfish and have done it for personal gain. It's the end of their chapter. Those who stand by the leadership prosper.
DMDK was wavering between PWF and DMK for months. Your comment.
DMK? We were very firm from the beginning (to lead a front). Only the media blew things out of proportion. So many people meet Captain and discuss matters. What can we do if people spread rumours that the meetings are for alliance talks.
But Vijayakanth himself reportedly told poll aspirants during interviews about his talks with DMK on number of seats.
Is it wrong to seek suggestions? He seeks opinions from our cook, driver and security guard on his newly released films. Having said that, I wish to state that as a political leader, Captain takes the final decisions on his own and does not rely on others. There is none in the party , including me, who can reject his decision.
Given past record, the DMDK-PWFTMC combine enjoys a vote share of 15%-20%. Do you think the front can take on the Dravidian giants and unseat Jayalalithaa?
Look, Jayalalithaa's power is an illusion. You take AIADMK and DMK's past record and see the polling percentage during their defeat. It was meagre. Our alliance has got good vote share, and there are neutral voters who are upset with the rule of Dravidian parties. Youngsters and first time voters are certain that they would not get bribed, and they crave for an alternative. We have confidence that all these sections will favour us.
What went wrong with DMDK's talks with BJP?
There were no hectic parleys with the BJP. Only media made it appear so. We were together in 2014 elections and our rapport with the BJP was really good. Tamilisai (state BJP president) is our neighbour and calls me Akka (sister).They sought an appointment with Captain for Javadekar to pay a courtesy visit. We neither confirmed our alliance until then, nor did we say that we were not with the NDA. They cannot join our alliance now, as we cannot have them in the company of Left parties and others.
How is your campaign going?
When I meet people, I find that they are deprived of even small basic needs like water, power, buses, ration commodities, and toilets in government schools. The entire system is corrupt, and there is nothing to improve per capita income or development of the state. The DMK and the AIADMK are responsible for this. There is corruption in road laying, constructing buildings and even for jobs. Quality has taken a beating. Why do they loot? To bribe voters during elections and keep them in poverty .
But the constituents, including the DMDK, aligned with either one of the Dravidian parties until the last election. How do you explain that to voters?
We were firm on not aligning with anyone since we floated the party in 2005. Captain made a choice in 2011, after a majority of the party wanted to align with the AIADMK. He was certain on realizing poll promises and preferred to keep mum for the first three months so as to give time to Jayalalithaa to prove herself. But the AIADMK leader, who came to power with a promise to control price rise, chose to hike bus fare, power tariff and milk price. Milk is an essential commodity, how could she do that?
Instead of offering reasonable replies, she degraded him on the floor of the Assembly. He has not visited the Assembly since then. Moreover, the Assembly is only serving to praise Jayalalithaa and not to discuss people's problems. Captain walked out of the alliance when she could not deliver her promises.
You are a decade-old party up against big giants. How do you manage to organise meetings on such a large scale?
Ours is a four-decade old party . Our fan clubs are very strong and have been so since the days of `Sattum Oru Iruttarai' (a 1981 film by Vijayakanth).
Vijayakanth's speech is unclear for many. Does he have any health problems?
Anyone's work will differ from the time they are 25 years old to when they turn 50. None can emulate an action star like Captain, his delivery of pages of dialogue, or his fiery speeches in political meetings.
He has achieved a lot and there is no need for him to prove himself on speaking. I learned everything from my husband -the determination , confidence, courage and public speaking. Can anyone ask Jayalalithaa why she cannot walk even a few steps? Everyone has age and health related issues. Let us not criticize or mock.
Kalaignar is 93 years old and wheelchair bound. Can anyone understand his speech? Captain suffers from sinus.