In a recent interview with Puthiya Thalaimurai, Kamal Haasan talked at length about the prevailing political climate in TN, and asked for fresh elections to be held in the state.
“I have been expecting the protests for a long time. This is our culture. We all have the right, as citizens, to question the government.”
Kamal said that the voters were to blame for the current political climate. “Your first right is as a citizen. When you get a kudam or a TV to vote for someone, then your leader will definitely be a thief.”
Kamal stressed on the need for heroes and not leaders. “When politics became a profession, the whole thing went to hell. I don’t have leaders. I have heroes. Gandhi and Periyar are my heroes. I keep talking about them because they were people who did not involve themselves in electoral politics. From the salary to the perks, it is the voter who determines everything. There is no such thing as an ex-MLA, but you see that now. You see the power and influence wielded by a person who held a seat a long time ago.”
Kamal denied reports that he was interested in joining politics. He said: “I am not interested in participating in the election. I only want my rights as a citizen. I will dirty my fingers only by campaigning for good candidates and positive electoral policies. I don’t want to sully my entire hand, that’s it. I have never bought a black ticket. I have never bought a lottery ticket. This sort of life seems impossible to many. But it’s not impossible.”
The actor stressed on the need for ‘individual Satyagraha’. “It’s unrealistic to expect everyone to come forward to change the society. Individual Satyagraha is the way of the world now. You be the change first. Then, allow others to join in.”
Artists have an inherent responsibility to address societal issues, Kamal said. “Artists cannot afford to stay away from politics. We are all citizens first. We cannot say, ‘I am an artist, I will paint and then spend my day in prayer’. This is not wise. We should all participate. Our stardom should not exclude us from societal issues. In contrast, we should try and improve it.”
Kamal also addressed the many conspiracy theories floating around about Jayalalithaa’s death. “Just because we have not been given any information on Jayalalithaa’s treatment, we should not assume a conspiracy. We have been used to the lack of transparency in the government and so we do not question this. The issue could be because of medical negligence or because of natural causes. The only thing wrong here is their failure to disclose relevant information.”
Kamal Haasan then denied that the problems caused to Vishwaroopam was because of the Muslim community. “The Muslims are not at fault. I blame the government. I have many Muslim friends. There were people who read the dua at my Alwarpet office to make sure that my problems go away. I have experienced nothing but kindness from them thus far. There are Muslims who watched the film and said that there was nothing offensive about it. But, this was caused by politics. Not the DMK or the Communists. This was caused by the people who were in power at the time.”
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Kamal also acknowledged the criticism he has been receiving thus far. “People say that Kamal threatened to leave the country once. Why is he talking about this country so much now? Well, aren’t you ashamed that I had to leave this country to find peace? I said, I will move to a state which does not have such regressive policies. And if I don’t find that, I will leave the country. If I say I leave the country, it doesn’t mean I’m going to camp with the foreigners. If I say something like this, then it means that I have been forced to that extent.”
Film industry is under crisis now, Kamal said. “We are talking about the issues now. We are trying to resolve all of the issues. Politics has entered the industry, and it determines several high level decisions.”
Kamal also dismissed reports that he was anti-Brahmin. “I don’t hate Brahmins. My father and mother were Brahmins. I am not. That is it. Same way, I don’t hate politicians. I hate the things that they do. I won’t enter politics but I will aid in every way to reform it.”
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