india

Updated: Oct 01, 2019 23:19 IST

In a veiled attack on Dravidian parties ruling for more than half a century, actor-politician and Makkal Needhi Maiam (MNM) president Kamal Hassan on Tuesday said students shunning politics has resulted in politics remaining stained.

“You stayed away from politics, thinking it is not dignified and that ‘Karai Veshti’ (dhoti having borders with party colours) is ugly. The result is politics itself is stained,” the versatile actor said playing upon the word ‘Karai’ which in Tamil means ‘stain’.

In Tamil Nadu, ‘Karai Veshti’ is synonymous with a Dravidian neta and a symbol of political power. And, the dhoti with borders of the party colour was an innovation of the DMK, but was followed by every other party except the Left parties. Even smaller outfits are not an exception to this culture of ‘karai veshti’.

Interacting with students of Loyola College, Hassan made it clear that politics is so overarching that it subsumes everything and nothing is free from it be it education or agriculture.

Taking a swipe at the Dravidian parties for engaging in politics over language and inflaming passions, the actor maintained that he was not against any language but was opposed to imposition.

“When we go to a hotel, what to eat is our choice and not that of the hotelier,” he said to drive home his point.

“There is no escape from politics. Your democratic duty does not end with casting your vote. Step into politics to protect pluralism against unilateralism be it the domain of knowledge or in governance,” he reminded the students.

The DMK too rode to power on the massive support of students in the 1965 anti-Hindi agitation.

Hassan’s MNM was launched as an alternative to the two dominant Dravidian parties – the AIADMK and DMK, ruling the state alternately since 1967. Having secured close to 5 per cent votes in the LS poll, it has set its sight on the 2021 assembly elections and has teamed up with poll guru and Janata Dal vice-president Prashant Kishor to face the elections.