Tamil Nadu: Kamal Haasan turns Vaigai Express into a vehicle of thought

CHENNAI: Although actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan initially set out to meet fans at all major stations on the way to Tiruchy, when his five-hour journey from Chennai Egmore to Tiruchy by Vaigai Express ended, it was a private affair.Barring interactions with reporters and his own team, for those even in his neighbouring coaches C2 and C1, the actor was as elusive as a unicorn–only heard, never seen. “We know he is aboard train, but we’ve been trying to catch a glimpse of him. We haven’t seen him yet but when he gets off the train in Tiruchy, we may have a chance,” said a student of PSNA Engineering College, Dindigul. 

After the Southern Railway expressed its disapproval of the Makkal Needhi Maiam leader’s initial plan to meet supporters at major stations, Kamal at best waved to unsuspecting passengers waiting at the stations from inside the train.Said Seinumbhu M, a school teacher from Madurai, who waited for nearly two hours for a five-minute-conversation with Kamal, “I was stubborn that I be allowed inside. And after nearly two hours, they agreed.”

While his fans may not have been able to reach out to him, something they might have hoped to do when the leader publicly announced that he is taking the train instead of other more private modes of transport, they said the actor’s presence in the train did not cause any inconvenience.“We did not know he was going to be here until this morning.  We had booked our tickets two months back. But there was no trouble in boarding the train or alighting from the train,” said Benny, a passenger from Madurai. 
However, in the last half hour of the journey, students in the neighbouring compartments who had expressed interest to meet him were allowed to take pictures with him.

‘Politics not a full-time career, but a duty’
Kamal Haasan’s fascination with the term ‘Maiam’ is not new. It was, in fact, the name of his Tamil literary magazines, focused largely on films, launched in the mid-eighties.“That’s because centrism is older than I’m. The centre is always a very difficult place to be in but being in the centre does not mean staying there. When time comes, it is necessary to take a stand,” he said.He said he did not want his supporters to pursue politics as a  full-time career but rather as a  duty. “It’s enough if politics is a part-time duty than a full-time job. I don’t ask anyone to quit their jobs to join politics,” he said.

On the Cauvery Management Board, he said it was important to understand that both States stand to benefit from this arrangement.On the day’s train journey, he said he was a regular patron of the Southern Railway. “There was a time after the accident that I had reduced travelling. But I was never new to trains, especially the Southern Railway,” he said.At 63, Kamal said he was at the pink of health and would continue travelling and meeting people. “They enjoy it as much as I do.”

ELUSIVE AS A UNICORN
Barring interactions with reporters and his own team, for those even in his neighbouring coaches, the actor was as elusive as a unicorn–only heard, never seen. After the Railways expressed its disapproval of the Makkal Needhi Maiam leader’s initial plan to meet supporters at stations, Kamal at best waved to unsuspe-cting passengers waiting at the stations from inside the train. However, the actor’s presence in the train did not cause any serious inconveni-ence. In the last half hour of the journey, students in the neighbouring compartments who had expressed interest to meet him were allowed to take pictures with him