Actor-Turned-Politician Vijay Sworn In as Tamil Nadu's New Chief Minister

Big political news out of Chennai: Tamil Nadu now has a Chief Minister who used to be one of India's biggest movie stars. Actor-turned-politician C. Joseph Vijay — known to millions of fans as "Thalapathy" — has officially taken charge as the state's top leader, and the LatestLY roundup catches you up on everything happening in the city around it, from a Modi visit to metro rail news.

Here's the backstory: Vijay's party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), which he founded, shocked everyone by becoming the single largest party in Tamil Nadu's assembly elections earlier this year. That's a massive deal because, as multiple outlets have pointed out, this marks a historic political shift, ending nearly six decades of alternating rule by the DMK and AIADMK — the two Dravidian parties that have dominated the state since 1967. Since TVK didn't win an outright majority, there were days of tense back-and-forth before Vijay's alliance secured the support of 120 MLAs in the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly, comfortably crossing the majority mark of 118, after the TVK fell short of an outright majority on its own. The deal came together when the VCK and IUML extended their support to the Vijay-led formation, on top of backing from Congress and Left parties.

The LatestLY piece itself is really a daily Chennai news digest for September 8, 2026, and it folds Vijay's oath into a bigger day of headlines. The big one: Prime Minister Narendra Modi is in the city to inaugurate and lay foundation stones for major development projects worth ₹5,650 crore across Tamil Nadu — a mix of infrastructure and economic investments. There's also a metro rail update: Chennai Metro Rail Limited signed a ₹36 crore agreement with AECOM India in a joint venture with NIPPON KOEI India to enhance the capacity of the existing Metro network, improving urban transit for residents. On the political side, the article notes Vijay's administration is expected to face its first electoral test with by-elections announced for October 6 in the Madurantakam and Dharapuram Assembly constituencies — basically a quick check on whether voters are still on board.

Why should you care if you're not in Tamil Nadu? This is a genuinely rare moment in Indian politics — a celebrity outsider breaking a nearly 60-year duopoly in one of India's biggest states, with national implications since it adds another southern state to the opposition Congress camp, a counterweight to the BJP's national government. It's also a case study in how fast a movie star's fanbase can translate into real political power, for better or worse — something worth watching if you're curious about celebrity politics anywhere in the world.