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Indian politician stokes controversy with remarks against actress Nayanthara
C Ve Shanmugham's comments while criticising the chief minister of Tamil Nadu has not gone down well
- PUBLISHED: Tue 17 Mar 2026, 3:52 PM UPDATED: Tue 17 Mar 2026, 5:49 PM
Elections are looming large over the south Indian state of Tamil Nadu, but the political discourse there seems to be plumbing new depths by the day. And actress Nayanthara has found herself in the middle of it, for no fault of hers.
In video clips that have now turned viral on social media, former minister and Indian member of parliament C Ve Shanmugham, 60, belonging to the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), can be seen speaking out against the governing party, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), led by Chief Minister MK Stalin, and its lapses.
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He made a tasteless remark to criticise Stalin's "tell us your dream" outreach programme. As part of the initiative, volunteers of the DMK will visit homes to record people's aspirations and their feedback on governance.
“Abdul Kalam (the former Indian President) asked us to dream," the four-time member of the state's legislative assembly can be seen saying in the clip. "Going one step further, he (Stalin) said you let me know what your dreams are.... Is he going to fulfil them?"
"If I say I want Nayanthara, will he (Stalin) fulfil my dream?" he asked. "If someone asks him (Stalin) to arrange their marriage with Nayanthara, will he fulfil that dream?"
The minister made the remarks at his home turf of Villupuram in central Tamil Nadu. A coalition led by the AIADMK is looking to unseat the DMK in elections that will be held on April 23.
The remarks were met with peals of laughter by the other people present at the gathering. The event, India Today reported, was the site of a protest against the collapse of law and order in the state.
Nayanthara, one of India's leading actresses and referred to as the Lady Superstar for her box office pull, is yet to offer an official comment.
Khushbu Sundar weighs in
Actor-politician Khushbu Sundar took a veiled dig at Shanmugham.
"Women — especially female actors — are not your property, your talking point, or a commodity for every Tom, Dick and Harry to drag into conversations whenever it suits them," she wrote on X, without referring to the politician, or Nayanthara, by name.
"A female actor’s name is not a tool for cheap jokes, petty insults, or to justify someone’s argument. Using a woman’s identity to mock others or prove a point only exposes the mindset and upbringing of the person speaking. Enough is Enough. Every man in this world is born to a woman," she said.
Khusbhu Sundar is vice president of the Tamil Nadu unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party, which is a coalition partner of the AIADMK.
Women â especially female actors â are not your property, your talking point, or a commodity for every Tom, Dick and Harry to drag into conversations whenever it suits them.
— KhushbuSundar (@khushsundar) March 17, 2026
A female actorâs name is not a tool for cheap jokes, petty insults, or to justify someoneâs argument.â¦
Not the first time
Nayanthara isn't the first actress to face such remarks. So far this year, Trisha Krishnan, the star of Thug Life, Ponniyin Selvan, Varsham and Khatta Meeta, has been the subject of comments from politicians, owing to her alleged relationship with actor-politician Vijay.
Nainar Nagendran, the Tamil Nadu unit president of the BJP, had said in February that Vijay should "come out of Trisha's house", if he is to make a difference in the south Indian state's political landscape.
“Poor man, he is inexperienced," Nagendran had said. "Come out of your house... Come out of Trisha’s house first, (only) then (can) something can happen."
