Adversaries of Dravidian parties despised the use of films and screen popularity for political gain, and Congress leaders like K. Kamaraj questioned the possibility of movie stars forming governments.
He launched his own Dravidian party after personal differences with the leaders of DMK, and rose to power as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu mostly with the help of his movie fans and low level cadres.
[5] One of the major platforms of the Dravidian movement was to achieve political change by means of awareness within the society in everyday life.
[7] Tamil cinema, like its counterparts in other languages in India, is known as a melodramatic entertainment form plotted around twists of fate set in exaggerated locales, and filled with songs and dances.
Although a few stars from other southern states have tried to use film popularity as a stepping stone in politics, such as N. T. Rama Rao (Andhra Pradesh), Rajkumar (Karnataka) and Prem Nazir (Kerala), it was in Tamil Nadu that it was most prominent, with five of the seven Chief Ministers from Dravidian parties hailing from the Tamil film industry.
[7][8] In a state such as Tamil Nadu, where no single caste is predominant, film stars were considered people with wide acceptability to lead.
[10] With the end of the era of silent movies in the 1930s many stage actors joined the Tamil cinema, and brought the ideologies of Gandhian philosophies with them.
— Professor Robert Hardgrave Attempts made by some Congress leaders to use stars of Tamil cinema, however minimal, were limited since this media remained inaccessible to the rural population (who were in the majority).
[7] With the introduction of electricity to rural areas in the 1950s Dravidian politicians could implement movies as a major political organ.
[11] In post colonial India, Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) was the first – at the time the only – party to take advantage of visual movie media.
[11] Actors and writers of guerrilla theatre, who were inspired by the ideologies of Periyar, brought the philosophies of Tamil nationalism and anti-Brahminism to celluloid media.
[8] Nevertheless, as the party's political aspirations grew, the movies based on Dravidian social reformation themes were replaced with stories that would enhance star popularity.
According to Murasoli Maran one of the techniques followed by the censors was to make sure that the coherence of the movie was lost so that it was a box office failure.
The most commonly used pun was Anna which is the word for older brother in Tamil and also was the popular name for DMK chief C. N. Annadurai.
[13] During his initial days with Dravidar Kazhagam, Annadurai wrote dramas which promoted social reforms and non-Brahmin self-respect ideologies.
[10] According to Professor Robert Hardgrave Jr, the popularity of their movie dialogues made both Annadurai and Karunanidhi "stars in their own right.
A talented singer and actor, he was called a Nadipisai Pulavar (acting and singing poet) by the popular masses.
Improvements in technology in the film industry, including playback singing, along with personal problems ended the career of Ramaswamy.
[16] Although it was DMK movies that brought Sivaji to the limelight he found that the responsibilities that the party threw at him limited his acting career.
Being one of the most popular stars of Tamil cinema in the 1950s and 60s, he raised funds for DMK and acted in movies glorifying Dravidian ideologies.SSR was the first elected member of legislative assembly among actors in India in 1962.Personal problems led to a fall in his film career and in politics.
Sensing trouble in all quarters SSR made a highly political movie, Thangarathinam, to coincide with the 1967 election campaign to prove his loyalty to the party.
His films such as Nadodi Mannan (Vagabond King, 1958), Enga Vitu Pillai (Son of our House, 1965), Nam Nadu (Our Nation, 1969), Adimai Penn (Slave Girl, 1969) and Engal Thangam (Our Gold or Our Precious, 1970) displayed a stereotypical image of a philanthropic, mundane hero made out of a vagrant who becomes a king.
Unlike other DMK actors, MGR used his screen popularity in social works as well, which included financing the poor, running orphanages and participating in disaster relief.
[7] In contrast to Parasakthi, MGR's movies made less reference to social justice but dwelled more on contemporary political scenarios.
[10] The movies typically included references to Dravida and MGR would be clad in red and black (the DMK flag colours).
[10] The fictionalised account of the troubled relationship between Karunanidhi and MGR was later portrayed in the Tamil film Iruvar (The Duo) in 1997.
[7] Rajinikanth, one of the highest paid actors in India, supported the DMK and its ally Tamil Maanila Congress in the 1996 elections.
[22] His movie Muthu (1995) makes an indirect reference to the then AIADMK head and Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Jayalalitha.
He briefly made an entry into politics in 2020 with the intention of contesting the 2021 TN assembly election, eventually withdrawing due to his poor health.
[28] Vijayakanth, a mainstream lead actor who was active in films between the 1980s and 2000s, had earlier converted his fan clubs into social service organisations, initially in a "typical, Dravidian, for-the-Tamils" fashion.