Rajinikanth held a press meet at his Poes Garden residence in Chennai on May 17 2026 which was a Sunday addressing rumours sparked by the recent Tamil Nadu Assembly election results.
In the meet which lasted around 45 minutes the superstar clarified his recent meeting with DMK president MK Stalin denied any political involvement or jealousy towards new Chief Minister Vijay also known as TVK and responded to social media criticism.
He said the visit to meet MK Stalin on May 6 after the election results was purely as a friend noting that Stalin has been his friend for the last 38 to 40 years. In politics victory and defeat are common but when Stalin lost in Kolathur he felt sad so he went to meet him as a friend. He strongly denied any role in DMK, AIADMK alliance talks or backchannel politics saying he is not a person who engages in such conversations.
On Vijay becoming chief minister he firmly denied any jealousy asking why he should be envious of Vijay since there is a generation gap of around 25 to 28 years between them and they cannot be compared. When Vijay won by defeating the two huge parties after coming from the film industry he was not envious but in fact surprisingly happy. He called Vijays victory revolutionary and bigger than MGR or NTRs achievements as it ended six decades of Dravidian dominance. He had already posted congratulations on X and explained that an earlier airport smile and walk away moment was not a formal media interaction.
Rajinikanth urged people and the media to give Vijay and his team at least two years to settle in and fulfil promises. He joked light heartedly that he would only feel jealous if Kamal Haasan became chief minister. He said he called the press meet because many criticisms are being made about him in connection with the election and if he does not respond to them they will become accepted as the truth.
The event was widely covered live by many channels with videos showing Rajinikanth speaking directly to reporters. This was a clear show of sportsmanship from the Tamil cinema legend amid the big political shift in Tamil Nadu. Full videos are available on YouTube if you want to watch the full briefing.
