May 23, 2026 4:12pm IST
After Thalapathy Vijay, Who Will Be The Tamil Film Industry’s New Box-Office King?
Thalapathy Vijay’s full-time tilt to politics has cast a shadow on the Tamil film industry cinephiles. While superstar Rajinikanth still draws huge crowds to screens when he pairs with in-demand filmmakers and Kamal Haasan’s indefatigable dedication toward his craft still gives young stars a complex, their age remains a deterrent for the legends to unleash their full potential.
Between Thalapathy Vijay and Ajith Kumar, the stars were expected to be the flag bearers of their generation. With Vijay announcing his “retirement” from acting and eventually becoming the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and Ajith Kumar rekindling his passion for motorsport, the baton passed on to Suriya and Chiyaan Vikram. Both enjoy an incredible fan following and are respected for their exceptional acting, but both have also been facing a rough patch for a while. With Suriya’s latest film “Karuppu” finally striking gold, there has been some respite for the actor. The hype for his upcoming projects "Vishwanath and Sons" and "#Suriya47" is unreal.
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The industry is looking forward to the likes of Dhanush, Sivakarthikeyan, and Simbu among others, too. However, they are yet to prove themselves in terms of consistency and mass following. The lingering question of who will lead the Tamil film industry looms, confusing the industry.
Quality matters
Veteran exhibitor Tirupur Subramaniam opines that comparing stars is unfair and that everyone has their own unique strengths. He says, "It's true that Vijay's films enjoyed a huge opening. But he is currently the Chief Ṃinister of Tamil Nadu. Suriya has delivered a big success now and we are hopeful of other big stars, too, coming up with promising projects. The success or failure of one or two films does not determine the fate of big heroes. What matters finally is the quality of movies. We have seen many big stars being replaced by others in the past."
Change, the only constant
N Swaminathan, general secretary of the Film Employees Federation of South India (FEFSI), notes that Vijay leaving the movie industry is indeed a matter of concern. However, he is hopeful of the actor-turned-politician's new avatar helping the filmdom. He says, "Ṃost of his shooting schedules would be in Tamil Nadu which was a huge boon for our employees. Some of the scenes of his last film, "Jana Nayagan", were shot in FEFSI's studio. Though we will miss him as a star, his Chief Ṃinister position is expected to yield positive changes for the industry. We will hopefully have another star who commands a huge following. That's the law of the universe."
K Rajamannar, president of the Coimbatore, Tirupur, Nilgiris and Erode districts film distributors association, concurs. "There is no doubt that Vijay is the king of box office. He has been delivering consistently as a star for several years. His decision to quit acting will surely leave a vacuum. For now, we will have to wait for the person who has the potential to replace him," he notes.
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