Udhayanidhi Stalin

In this Indian name, the name Stalin is a patronymic, and the person should be referred to by the given name, Udhayanidhi.
Udhayanidhi Stalin
Udhayanidhi in 2020
3rd Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu
Incumbent
Assumed office
28 September 2024
Governor
Chief MinisterM. K. Stalin
Preceded byO. Panneerselvam (2021)
Cabinet Minister, Government of Tamil Nadu
Incumbent
Assumed office
14 December 2022
Chief MinisterM. K. Stalin
Ministry and Departments
  • Youth Welfare
  • Sports Development
  • Special Program Implementation Department & Poverty Alleviation Programme
  • Rural Indebtedness
Preceded bySiva. V Meyyanathan
Member of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office
11 May 2021
Speaker of the HouseM. Appavu
Preceded byJ. Anbazhagan
ConstituencyChepauk-Thiruvallikeni
Youth Wing Secretary of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam
Incumbent
Assumed office
4 July 2019
PresidentM. K. Stalin
General Secretary
Preceded byM. P. Saminathan
Personal details
Born (1977-11-27) 27 November 1977 (age 48)
Madras, Tamil Nadu, India
PartyDravida Munnetra Kazhagam (2019-present)
SpouseKiruthiga Udhayanidhi
Children2
Parents
RelativesSee Karunanidhi family
Alma materLoyola College, Chennai
Occupation

Udhayanidhi Stalin (born 27 November 1977) is a DMK politician who has served as the third Deputy chief minister of Tamil Nadu since 2024. Formerly a film producer, distributor and actor, he is the son of M. K. Stalin, the eighth and incumbent Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. He is the third and the youngest to hold the position of deputy chief minister of the state. He has served as the minister of youth welfare and sports development since December 2022.

Born in 1977, Udhayanidhi attended the Don Bosco school and later received a degree in commerce from Loyola College in Chennai. Prior to his career as a politician, he acted in Tamil films, and also served as a producer and distributor of films in Tamil Nadu.

In 2019, Udhayanidhi entered into politics after being appointed as the secretary of the youth wing of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, led by his father Stalin. In 2021, he was elected as a Member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from the Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni Assembly constituency.

Early life and family

Udhayanidhi Stalin was born on 27 November 1977, to M. K. Stalin and Durga. Both his father and his grandfather M. Karunanidhi have served as chief ministers. He attended the Don Bosco school and has a degree in commerce from Loyola College in Chennai.[1][2][3] His cousins Arulnithi and Dayanidhi Azhagiri are involved in the film industry.[4]

Film career

Udhayanidhi founded the film production company Red Giant Movies in 2008 and the company's first film was Kuruvi (2008), starring Vijay.[5][6] The company later produced Aadhavan (2009) and Manmadan Ambu (2010), directed by K. S. Ravikumar, and AR Murugadoss's science fiction film 7 Aum Arivu (2011).[7][8] The company ventured into film distribution and released four films–Gautham Vasudev Menon's Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa,[9] A. L. Vijay's Madrasapattinam,[10] M. Rajesh's Boss Engira Bhaskaran,[11] and Prabhu Solomon's Mynaa in 2011.[12]

Udhayanidhi at the 60th South Filmfare Awards in 2013

In 2012, Udhayanidhi debuted as a lead actor in Rajesh's romantic comedy Oru Kal Oru Kannadi (2012), co-starring with Hansika Motwani and Santhanam. The film received positive reviews for his performance as an unemployed youth. Behindwoods noted that "Udhay's portrayal of Saravanan is neat and enjoyable", while Sify commented "Udhay's debut is promising and hats off to him to underplay his role".[13][14] He won the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut for his performance.[15] The success of the film prompted him to continue acting in further movies and he appeared in the lead role in Idhu Kathirvelan Kadhal (2014) and Nanbenda (2015), both films featuring him opposite Nayanthara.[citation needed] His next film was the action film Gethu with Amy Jackson in 2016.[16] In the same year, he acted in the courtroom drama Manithan (2016), a remake of the Hindi film Jolly LLB.[17]

In 2017, Udhayanidhi worked in the comedy entertainer Saravanan Irukka Bayamaen from director Ezhil,[18] followed by Podhuvaga Emmanasu Thangam.[19] Later, he acted in the action thriller Ippadai Vellum in which his performance was described as decent.[20] His next film was the drama Nimir (2018), a remake of Malayalam film Maheshinte Prathikaaram directed by Priyadarshan, which released to negative reviews.[21] He later acted in the romantic drama Kanne Kalaimaane alongside Tamannaah, in which the performance of both the actors were praised.[22] In 2020, he appeared in Mysskin's Psycho, a film based on the story of a serial killer, which received positive reviews.[23] In 2022, he played the role of a police office in Nenjuku Needhi, a remake of the Hindi film Article 15.[24] He starred in Magizh Thirumeni's thriller Kalaga Thalaivan, which was a failure in the box office.[25] He made his final film appearance in Maamannan (2023).[26]

Political career

Udhayanidhi contested and won from the Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni Assembly constituency in the 2021 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly election.[27] He introduced robotic sewer cleaners in his constituency for the first time in Tamil Nadu on 21 June 2021.[28] On 13 September 2021, he was nominated as a member of Anna University's syndicate for a period of three years.[29][30]

Udhayanidhi was sworn in as minister of Youth Welfare and Sports Development on 14 December 2022.[31] In September 2024, he was appointed as the deputy chief minister, becoming the third person and the youngest to hold the office.[32][33][34]

Controversies

During an election rally at Dharapuram in 2021, Udhyanidhi, while responding to comments made by Indian prime minister Narendra Modi, where Modi had said that Udhyanidhi had reached a top position in the party by sidelining several senior leaders, alleged that former union ministers Sushma Swaraj and Arun Jaitley died due to stress from work given by prime minister Modi.[35][36] Bansuri Swaraj, the daughter of Sushma Swaraj, and Sonali Jaitley, the daughter of Arun Jaitley, condemned the statement.[37][38] The Election Commission of India issued a notice to Udhayanidhi for violation of the code of conduct and asked him for a response.[39]

On 2 September 2023, while addressing a conference, Udhayanidhi made a statement likening Sanatana Dharma to diseases like malaria and dengue. He stated that Sanatana Dharma should not merely be opposed but must be eradicated, claiming that it opposes social justice and equality.[40] The remark was met with outrage, with many political leaders expressing their disapproval.[41] Lawyer Vineet Jindal filed a complaint against Udhayanidhi with the Delhi Police calling them "provocative, inciting and defamatory",[42] and advocate Sudhir Kumar Ojha filed a case with the Muzaffarpur Magistrate Court.[43] The Madras High Court later criticised the Tamil Nadu Police for not initiating an action against him. However, Udhayanidhi retorted that he hasn't said anything wrong and is ready to face legal consequences, stating that his ideology aligns with that of B.R. Ambedkar, and Periyar.[44]

Following a letter signed by 262 notable citizens and addressed to the Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud,[45] the Supreme Court of India took suo moto cognisance of the case. On 22 September 2023, the Supreme Court issued a notice to the Government of Tamil Nadu and Udhayanidhi to respond to the case.[46] On 4 March 2024, the Supreme Court rebuked Udhayanidhi over his remarks for allegedly misusing his right to freedom of speech and expression. The court further noted that, as a minister, he should have exercised caution in his statements and been mindful of the potential consequences.[47]

Personal life

Udhayanidhi married Kiruthiga in 2002. They have a son named Inban and a daughter named Tanmaya. Kiruthiga, who heads the lifestyle magazine Inbox 1305,[48] has also directed a few films.[49][50] In 2021, Inban signed for NEROCA FC football club which plays in the I-League.[51][52] In 2025, he took over his father's company Red Giant Movies as CEO.[53] Udhayanidhi describes himself as an atheist.[54]

Filmography

As actor

Film credits as actor
Year Title Role Notes
2009 Aadhavan Servant Guest appearance
2012 Oru Kal Oru Kannadi Saravanan SIIMA Award for Best Male Debutant
Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut – South
Norway Tamil Film Festival Award for Best Newcomer Actor
2013 Vanakkam Chennai Flat tenant Guest appearance
2014 Idhu Kathirvelan Kadhal Kathirvelan
2015 Nannbenda Sathya
2016 Gethu Sethu
Manithan Sakthivel
2017 Saravanan Irukka Bayamaen Saravanan
Podhuvaga Emmanasu Thangam Ganesh
Ippadai Vellum Madhusoodhanan
2018 Nimir Selvam
2019 Kanne Kalaimaane Kamala Kannan
2020 Psycho Gautham
2022 Nenjuku Needhi S. Vijayaraghavan
Kalaga Thalaivan Thirumaaran
2023 Kannai Nambathey[55] Arun
Maamannan Athiveeran (Veera)

As producer

Film credits as producer
Year Title Notes
2008 Kuruvi
2009 Aadhavan
2010 Manmadan Ambu
2011 7 Aum Arivu
2012 Neerparavai
2013 Vanakkam Chennai
2014 Idhu Kathirvelan Kadhal
2015 Nannbenda
2016 Gethu
Manithan
2017 Saravanan Irukka Bayamaen
2019 Kanne Kalaimaane
2022 Kalaga Thalaivan
2023 Maamannan
2024 Indian 2[56]
2025 Kadhalikka Neramillai
Thug Life[57]

As distributor

Film credits as distributor
Year Film Notes
2010 Vinnaithaandi Varuvaayaa
Madrasapattinam
Boss Engira Bhaskaran
Mynaa
2019 Bakrid
2021 Aranmanai 3
2022 Radhe Shyam Tamil version
Kaathuvaakula Rendu Kaadhal
Beast
Don
Vikram
Cobra
Captain
Vendhu Thanindhathu Kaadu
Ponniyin Selvan: I
Love Today
2023 Thunivu
Varisu
Ponniyin Selvan: II
Maaveeran

Elections contested and positions held

Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly elections

Election Assembly Constituency Political party Result Vote percentage Opposition
Candidate Political party Vote percentage
2021 16th Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Won 67.89% A. V. A. Kassali Pattali Makkal Katchi 17.42%

Positions in Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly

Elections Position Elected constituency Term in office
Assumed office Left office Time in office
2021 Member of the Legislative Assembly Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni 11 May 2021 Incumbent 4 years, 303 days
Minister for Youth Welfare and Sports Development 14 December 2022 3 years, 86 days
Deputy Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu 28 September 2024 1 year, 163 days

References

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allikas: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Udhayanidhi