When people saw recent flash news saying that DMDK President Vijayakanth has come forward and offered a portion of his college land as a burial ground for people dying due to Corona after seeing a heartbreaking denial of people to bury a Chennai Doctor in their area, they were not surprised. After all, this has been the quality of this man for so many years. Most of the people in the film industry are praised for no reason by their colleagues. People mostly ignore such fake appreciations. Very few are actually loved for their real personality. Captain Vijayakanth is one person who has garnered a serious emotional connect with people for his sincere contribution to the well-being of many. 

If the term 'angry young man' has a face to it, it should be that of Vijayakanth without any doubt. When he got his first big break with 'Sattam Oru Iruttarai', the industry was surprised to see another dark-skinned man rocking the screen with confidence after Rajinikanth. It was a time when the industry didn't have many dark-skinned heroes. His fearlessness in doing daredevil stunts had drawn the attention of the stalwarts. Vijayakanth was an immediate sensation.

Can you believe that a Tamil actor could act in and release 18 movies in a single year? Talking about hard work, it's better to DO rather than just talk. Vijayakanth did that in 1984. He worked 3 shifts per day and that was his dedication towards his craft. Vijayakanth took delayed remunerations and sometimes didn't take them at all to benefit the struggling producers. More importantly, he didn't try to publicize these and had let the world see it for themselves and take inspiration.

When Vijayakanth grew, he took a lot of people along with him and helped them grow. This is a rare individual quality, especially in a competitive industry. He gave the directorial opportunity to the students of the Film Institute through 'Oomai Vizhigal'. The man has introduced a lot of directors to the Tamil film industry. When director S.A.Chandrasekhar who has directed 19 movies of Vijayakanth wanted to introduce his son Vijay to a wider audience, he approached Vijayakanth through a telephone call and asked him if he could act in a guest role alongside Vijay. Guess what? Vijayakanth himself came to SAC's house, accepted his request and acted in 'Sendhoorapandi' which had taken Vijay to the rural audience. He did it twice. Vijayakanth starred with Suriya in 'Periyanna' and generosity was redefined.

Ibrahim Rowther. When you hear this name, you automatically associate it with Vijayakanth. What can define a friendship more than this? Rowther became a producer for the sole purpose of promoting his friend Vijayakanth. And the actor treated his friend with the utmost honor. From the late 80s, it was Rowther who took care of Vijayakanth's scripts and call sheets. The duo was inseparable. Vijayakanth loves serving the poor and his innumerable welfare measures were supervised by Rowther, including the distribution of unlimited food in his office to people every day. When Rowther passed away, Vijayakanth was in all tears and every drop of it was filled with gratitude for his childhood friend.

Vijayakanth is an able administrator and his tenure as the President of the South Indian Film Artistes' Association was evidence of his leadership skills. He organized celebrity shows overseas to clear the debts of the association and succeeded big time. He launched his own party 'Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam' in 2005 amidst huge expectations as he took on the two giants DMK and AIADMK directly. Vijayakanth's election rallies attracted huge crowds as he spoke 'from his heart' without making any effort to showcase his literary skills. In his debut assembly election in 2006, his party contested in all 234 constituencies and secured a vote share of 8% which has shocked the other parties. 

Vijayakanth was the lone MLA in that election for his party and he won from Vridhachalam, a constituency that was considered a PMK forte. DMDK's vote percentage rose to an astonishing 10% in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections and in the 2011 assembly elections, the party won 29 seats in alliance with the AIADMK and Vijayakanth became the leader of the opposition. 

Vijayakanth is known for his bravery and he took on the lionhearted Jayalalithaa twice. When she said "Vijayakanth comes drunk to the assembly" his reply was "Were you (Jayalalithaa) the one who served me with alcohol?". After becoming the leader of the opposition, the tension broke out between DMDK and AIADMK in the assembly and an angry Vijayakanth roared to the AIADMK MLAs in front of Jayalalithaa. His innocence and forwardness have resulted in controversies on many occasions.

After Sivaji Ganesan, it is Vijayakanth who could utter lengthy Tamil dialogues effortlessly. Everyone wants Vijayakanth to get back to form overcoming his health issues and the countless welfare done by him should make it happen.