Actor-Politician Vijayakanth Dies At 71
Chennai:
DMDK founder-leader and popular yesteryear Tamil actor Vijayakanth died in Chennai on Thursday following an illness. He was 71 years old.
Earlier in the day, the party informed through a post on its official X handle that Vijayakanth was admitted to a hospital and put on ventilator support after he complained of breathing problems.
His body was brought to his residence and will be taken to the DMDK office shortly.
Earlier, in November, Vijayakanth was admitted to MIOT Hospital in Chennai as his health deteriorated.
Suffering from cough and throat pain, he was under the observation of doctors for 14 days.
Widely known as ‘Captain’, Vijayakanth’s life is marked by a successful career in the Tamil film industry.
He featured in 154 movies before venturing into politics.
While holding a position at Nadigar Sangam (officially known as the South Indian Artistes’ Association (SIAA)), Vijayakanth brought revolutionary changes to the South film industry.
He founded Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazgam in 2005.
In 2006, DMDK contested in all assembly seats and bagged a lowly 10 percent of the total vote share. However, none of the party’s candidates, apart from the founder-leader came out on the winning side.
