Actor-turned politician Vijayakant is 64 today. Once a hero who set the box-office ringing with his action sequences and punch dialogues, Vijayakant is currently a bit of a joke in Tamil Nadu and elsewhere.
‘Captain’, as he is popularly known, has become the king of social media memes, the darling of YouTube comedy seekers, and the decimated leader of his political party, the DMDK.
Ah well, they say only the "Chatriyan" who goes to battle can fall off his horse.
Vijayakant is an unlikely hero any which way you look at it. Dark-skinned, yellow-eyed and rapidly going from fit to not-so-fit, he’s a far cry from the chocolate boy types who can convincingly pull off a romance sequence with the blushing heroine.
And yet, watch the Captain sportingly give it all that he’s got in this number from “Narasimha” with Isha Koppikar:
That’s pizzazz for you. In the “Amul Baby” song from “Vanjinathan”, he’s as much the object of Ramya Krishnan’s lust as she is his.
Take that, six-pack obsessed Bollywood!
Vijayakant’s lengthy monologues on patriotism, terrorism, feudalism and many other –isms could make you wonder if he was a Greek orator in a previous birth.
His bizarre behaviour at public meetings and press meets, his tendency to make faces at solemn events, his increasingly ridiculous dialogues, and his incorrect English pronunciation have earned him public derision.
A more electrifying performance, you will not see.
However, there was a time when Vijayakant was a much sought-after actor who had a considerable fan following.
Truly, the Captain’s fate has gone spinning faster than any “pambaram” he has let loose. But whatever be it, here's wishing Tamil cinema's Captain Cool a very happy birthday!