Why Vijay chose Jana Nayagan over Karuppu as his final film
Director RJ Balaji, in a recent interview, said Karuppu was once discussed as Vijay's final film before politics. The choice of Jana Nayagan instead underlines how closely cinema and campaign messaging intersected.
When Karuppu released on May 14, and went on to become one of Tamil cinema's biggest box office successes so far this year, a question quietly resurfaced: What if this had been Vijay's farewell film?
It almost was.
Director RJ Balaji revealed that Karuppu was originally intended to be Vijay's last film before he transitioned into politics. "This was supposed to be his last film. We had two or three meetings over a period of time, discussing things and deciding which film to make as his final project," Balaji said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India.
Vjay eventually called Balaji and mentioned certain reasons for turning down the project — reasons Balaji felt were justified. "I felt his reasons were justified. I said, 'Sir, I absolutely respect your decision,'" Balaji recalled. Despite Vijay's decision not to do Karuppu, Balaji thanked him in the film's opening credits, because Vijay's questions after the narration made the script better.
So Vijay passed on Karuppu and chose Jana Nayagan instead. This leaves us with a big question: Why Jana Nayagan over Karuppu?
Looking at how Karuppu has performed — and what Jana Nayagan represents — the reasons become clearer.
The case for Karuppu
On paper, Karuppu would have made for a fitting farewell. It is a fan-service film that celebrates everything that made Tamil cinema's mass heroes beloved — devotional fantasy, courtroom drama, nostalgic callbacks to Suriya's films and a protagonist who fights for the marginalised. In this case, with Suriya headlining the film, the film paid a hat-tip to many of his films. If Vijay had chosen Karuppu, then it could have ended up as a great tribute to Vijay with all the fan-service moments.
The film tells the story of a guardian deity disguised as a lawyer fighting judicial corruption. It is the kind of role that would have reminded audiences of Vijay's range and given him one last thunderous send-off before he walked into politics.
The box office has only underlined that argument. Karuppu crossed Rs 300 crore worldwide so far— numbers that would have given any farewell film a triumphant finality. For a man who spent 33 years building one of Tamil cinema's most loyal fan bases, going out on that kind of commercial high would have been a clean, satisfying full stop.
But Vijay chose something else. And the reasons are worth examining.
Jana Nayagan: More than a farewell film
Jana Nayagan, directed by H Vinoth and produced by KVN Productions, stars Vijay alongside Pooja Hegde, Bobby Deol and Mamitha Baiju, with Gautham Vasudev Menon, Prakash Raj and Priyamani in key supporting roles.
The trailer features a number of scenes that reference Vijay's entry into politics, as he bids farewell to Kollywood. Vijay plays Thalapathy Vetri Kondan — a former police officer and guardian figure — with political references tied to his own party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), subtly woven into the story. The character's name, Thalapathy Vetri Kondan, abbreviates to TVK — the same initials as his political party. It is not subtle. It is not meant to be. It is deliberate and a calculated move. Perhaps this was one of the reasons why the censor board blocked the film's release, scheduled for January 9. Its release was timed just months ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections, which took place on April 23, with results announced on May 4.
Just like Sreeleela's character in Bhagavanth Kesari, Mamitha Baiju's character in Jana Nayagan seems hesitant to join the Indian Army, with scenes showing her being physically trained. Both films place the protagonist as an agent of social change, intertwining politics and social reform — though Jana Nayagan arguably does it on a grander scale.
That scale is the point. Karuppu is a brilliant commercial film. No doubt about it! But it is a film about a devotional deity fighting judicial corruption — not a film about political reform, women's empowerment or social justice.
Jana Nayagan, from everything the trailer signals, is all of those things simultaneously. Here's where the film's political intentions come to the fore.
The political calculation
Vijay's election campaign was built on two pillars: the safety and empowerment of women, and the failures of the then MK Stalin-led DMK government. His speeches consistently targeted what he called the deteriorating law and order situation in Tamil Nadu, promising that women would be safer under his governance.
Jana Nayagan speaks directly to that campaign messaging. The film's central narrative — a man fighting to make a young woman stronger and more independent — mirrors Vijay's political positioning almost beat for beat. The trailer features political satire, takes digs at dynasty politics and includes sequences reprimanding corrupt politicians. With some changes to the original Bhagavanth Kesari script, H Vinoth appears to have added enough political scaffolding to make the film function simultaneously as a commercial entertainer and a party manifesto.
Had Jana Nayagan released in January 2026 as originally planned — just months before the Tamil Nadu elections — it would have served as perhaps the most effective piece of political campaigning in Tamil cinema history. A superstar's farewell film, seen by millions of fans, carrying a message that aligned precisely with his election platform. The synergy was too powerful to ignore.
It sort of did when the film was illegally leaked online, that too, in HD. And sections of people watched the film and even shared clips on social media platforms.
Why a remake over an original?
The more uncomfortable question is why Vijay chose a remake — or at the very least, a film with such glaring similarities to Bhagavanth Kesari — over RJ Balaji's original script.
From the factory fight to the jail sequence, several scenes in Jana Nayagan appear almost frame-to-frame identical to Bhagavanth Kesari. Although the makers added political elements, social media users have openly called it a scene-to-scene remake, especially the Vijay-Mamitha Baiju track, sharing screenshots to point out the similarities. Director H Vinoth has maintained a deliberately ambiguous stance on the matter, neither fully confirming nor denying it.
The answer, perhaps, is that the story of Bhagavanth Kesari — a protective guardian transforming a hesitant young woman into someone capable of standing up for herself — was the exact emotional and political narrative Vijay needed. The story was already proven. It's success in Telugu spoke for itself. What H Vinoth needed to do was dress it in political colours.
Karuppu would have given Vijay a brilliant last film. Jana Nayagan gave him something he needed more — a last film that could also become his political campaign.
That Jana Nayagan is still awaiting release, having faced a full film leak and CBFC certification delays, is a different story altogether. But the choice Vijay made — between a rousing original and a politically loaded remake — was never purely about cinema.
It rarely is, when a superstar is also running for office.
When Karuppu released on May 14, and went on to become one of Tamil cinema's biggest box office successes so far this year, a question quietly resurfaced: What if this had been Vijay's farewell film?
It almost was.
Director RJ Balaji revealed that Karuppu was originally intended to be Vijay's last film before he transitioned into politics. "This was supposed to be his last film. We had two or three meetings over a period of time, discussing things and deciding which film to make as his final project," Balaji said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter India.
Vjay eventually called Balaji and mentioned certain reasons for turning down the project — reasons Balaji felt were justified. "I felt his reasons were justified. I said, 'Sir, I absolutely respect your decision,'" Balaji recalled. Despite Vijay's decision not to do Karuppu, Balaji thanked him in the film's opening credits, because Vijay's questions after the narration made the script better.
So Vijay passed on Karuppu and chose Jana Nayagan instead. This leaves us with a big question: Why Jana Nayagan over Karuppu?
Looking at how Karuppu has performed — and what Jana Nayagan represents — the reasons become clearer.
The case for Karuppu
On paper, Karuppu would have made for a fitting farewell. It is a fan-service film that celebrates everything that made Tamil cinema's mass heroes beloved — devotional fantasy, courtroom drama, nostalgic callbacks to Suriya's films and a protagonist who fights for the marginalised. In this case, with Suriya headlining the film, the film paid a hat-tip to many of his films. If Vijay had chosen Karuppu, then it could have ended up as a great tribute to Vijay with all the fan-service moments.
The film tells the story of a guardian deity disguised as a lawyer fighting judicial corruption. It is the kind of role that would have reminded audiences of Vijay's range and given him one last thunderous send-off before he walked into politics.
The box office has only underlined that argument. Karuppu crossed Rs 300 crore worldwide so far— numbers that would have given any farewell film a triumphant finality. For a man who spent 33 years building one of Tamil cinema's most loyal fan bases, going out on that kind of commercial high would have been a clean, satisfying full stop.
But Vijay chose something else. And the reasons are worth examining.
Jana Nayagan: More than a farewell film
Jana Nayagan, directed by H Vinoth and produced by KVN Productions, stars Vijay alongside Pooja Hegde, Bobby Deol and Mamitha Baiju, with Gautham Vasudev Menon, Prakash Raj and Priyamani in key supporting roles.
The trailer features a number of scenes that reference Vijay's entry into politics, as he bids farewell to Kollywood. Vijay plays Thalapathy Vetri Kondan — a former police officer and guardian figure — with political references tied to his own party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), subtly woven into the story. The character's name, Thalapathy Vetri Kondan, abbreviates to TVK — the same initials as his political party. It is not subtle. It is not meant to be. It is deliberate and a calculated move. Perhaps this was one of the reasons why the censor board blocked the film's release, scheduled for January 9. Its release was timed just months ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections, which took place on April 23, with results announced on May 4.
Just like Sreeleela's character in Bhagavanth Kesari, Mamitha Baiju's character in Jana Nayagan seems hesitant to join the Indian Army, with scenes showing her being physically trained. Both films place the protagonist as an agent of social change, intertwining politics and social reform — though Jana Nayagan arguably does it on a grander scale.
That scale is the point. Karuppu is a brilliant commercial film. No doubt about it! But it is a film about a devotional deity fighting judicial corruption — not a film about political reform, women's empowerment or social justice.
Jana Nayagan, from everything the trailer signals, is all of those things simultaneously. Here's where the film's political intentions come to the fore.
The political calculation
Vijay's election campaign was built on two pillars: the safety and empowerment of women, and the failures of the then MK Stalin-led DMK government. His speeches consistently targeted what he called the deteriorating law and order situation in Tamil Nadu, promising that women would be safer under his governance.
Jana Nayagan speaks directly to that campaign messaging. The film's central narrative — a man fighting to make a young woman stronger and more independent — mirrors Vijay's political positioning almost beat for beat. The trailer features political satire, takes digs at dynasty politics and includes sequences reprimanding corrupt politicians. With some changes to the original Bhagavanth Kesari script, H Vinoth appears to have added enough political scaffolding to make the film function simultaneously as a commercial entertainer and a party manifesto.
Had Jana Nayagan released in January 2026 as originally planned — just months before the Tamil Nadu elections — it would have served as perhaps the most effective piece of political campaigning in Tamil cinema history. A superstar's farewell film, seen by millions of fans, carrying a message that aligned precisely with his election platform. The synergy was too powerful to ignore.
It sort of did when the film was illegally leaked online, that too, in HD. And sections of people watched the film and even shared clips on social media platforms.
Why a remake over an original?
The more uncomfortable question is why Vijay chose a remake — or at the very least, a film with such glaring similarities to Bhagavanth Kesari — over RJ Balaji's original script.
From the factory fight to the jail sequence, several scenes in Jana Nayagan appear almost frame-to-frame identical to Bhagavanth Kesari. Although the makers added political elements, social media users have openly called it a scene-to-scene remake, especially the Vijay-Mamitha Baiju track, sharing screenshots to point out the similarities. Director H Vinoth has maintained a deliberately ambiguous stance on the matter, neither fully confirming nor denying it.
The answer, perhaps, is that the story of Bhagavanth Kesari — a protective guardian transforming a hesitant young woman into someone capable of standing up for herself — was the exact emotional and political narrative Vijay needed. The story was already proven. It's success in Telugu spoke for itself. What H Vinoth needed to do was dress it in political colours.
Karuppu would have given Vijay a brilliant last film. Jana Nayagan gave him something he needed more — a last film that could also become his political campaign.
That Jana Nayagan is still awaiting release, having faced a full film leak and CBFC certification delays, is a different story altogether. But the choice Vijay made — between a rousing original and a politically loaded remake — was never purely about cinema.
It rarely is, when a superstar is also running for office.
