The anticipated and controversial elections to The South Indian Film Actors Association, better known as Nadigar Sangam, are finally here and things are starting to heat up.
The elections were earlier scheduled for July 15, but was postponed due to some concerns raised by a section of the Association, who were not happy with the how the elections were being conducted.
A petition was filed by popular actor Vishal Krishna, who complained that it was unethical for the present office bearers, who themselves were contesting the elections to be in charge of the election process. He proposed that the election should be conducted under the supervision of a retired judge.
The petition also demanded a change of date, since July 15 was a working day (Wednesday) in favor of a second Sunday, to facilitate a better turnout of voters.
The Madras High Court ruled in their favor and the Election date was postponed to October 18.
Former High Court judge, Justice E Padmanabhan was appointed to preside over the process.
Now, with barely two weeks to go, the battle lines have been clearly drawn.
The Association is now very obviously divided into two groups, one led by Vishal, veteran actor Nasser and their supporters, who are calling themselves the Pandavar Ani, and the other by R Sarathkumar and Radha Ravi, the current President and General Secretary of the Association.
The two teams seem to be on a roll, taking turns to sling mud and trade insults over the matter. Things took an ugly turn when President Sarathkumar in a telephonic interview to a TV Channel accused Kamal Haasan of instigating the Pandavar Ani and showing favouritism.
He also pointed out that it was he who supported Kamal, when his film Uttama Villain ran into some trouble at the time of release.
This came after Vishal and his team met Kamal to seek his support, as part of their very active campaigning, in the days leading to the election.
Both groups had earlier met superstar Rajinikanth and surprisingly both claim to have his blessings and support.
Interestingly, the recent meeting and press conference of the Pandavar Ani team that was held at the Raghavendra Mandapam owned by Rajinikanth, seems like a clear indication to where his support lies.
But undeterred, the incumbent members of the Association , who have ruled unchallenged for the last three terms, claim that victory will be theirs.
The actor-turned-politician Sarathkumar has filed a Rs 10 crore defamation case against Vishal for his baseless allegations of financial impropriety and trying to damage the reputation of the Association.
Though once popular, the present office bearers, came under harsh scrutiny in November 2010, when they signed a contract with Sathyam Cinemas (they operate a chain of theaters in the city) to convert the existing property of the Association to a Multiplex cum Shopping Mall.
According to the deal, the sprawling 18-ground land owned by the Nadigar Sangam Charitable Trust on Habibullah Road at the heart of the city would be leased to the Sathyam Group, who would in turn pay them a sum of Rs 26 lakh every month and also provide an exclusive space for the Association at the Multiplex.
A contract was signed by Sarathkumar on behalf of the Association and the existing building was demolished in March 2011.
By then, however, several members protested against the move.
Poochi Murugan, a member of the Nadigar Sangam, filed a case alleging irregularities in the contract. He claimed that President Sarathkumar and Radha Ravi, who are related to each other by marriage, did not consult the other nine members of the committee before signing the contract.
The Madras Court granted a stay and the case is still pending before the court.
Meanwhile the new generation of young actors was no longer willing to take things lying down. Under the strong leadership of Vishal and Nasser, they decided to contest the election. While Nasser will take on Sarathkumar for the post of President, it will be Vishal versus Radha Ravi for the Secretary.
Karthi (actor Suriya's brother), Ponvannan, Karunas, Kutty Padmini and Kovai Sarla are other key players of the Pandavar Ani. While Simbu, Vijaykumar, Nalini and Nirosha have endorsed the Sarathkumar team.
The Vishal Group in their election manifesto has come out with their own set of plans for the betterment of the Association. The young actor in his very aggressive campaign has proposed to make a multi-starrer film to generate income to build their own building for the Nadigar Sangam without any outside support.
He plans to fight the case and get back the land that rightfully belongs to the Association.
He has also promised to regularise memberships and launch insurance and pension schemes for the members of the Association.
With the battle for power getting more and more intense every day, one can expect plenty of fireworks in the coming days.
But it remains to be seen, if the older and more experienced Sarathkumar will triumph for the fourth consecutive time, or will the young and enthusiastic Vishal lead his team to victory.