Pawan Kalyan wants unity among parties in south India

Kalyan, who is the younger brother of Chiranjeevi, stated that he had come to Chennai to introduce himself and his ideologies to the people of Tamil Nadu.

Several fans of the actor thronged the entrance of the hotel, which was the venue for his speech.

The 47-year-old declared that he wanted to see unity among regional parties in south India ahead of the 2019 parliamentary elections.

“Dravida Nadu is an emotional concept for me. I want India to be one country and we should respect the diversity of every state. For the last two decades, however, that aspect has been neglected. There is a need to correct this situation,” he said.

“My intention is not to promote myself, but to promote harmony for the collective benefit of south India. I don’t believe in segregation, but I wish to have a separate capital city and it should be in the southern region.”

He referenced the jallikattu protests by stating that he saw it as the anger of youth, who are agitating for a transformation in politics.

“Youngsters in Pollachi told me that the current government doesn’t treat them with respect,” he added.

On the question of actors entering politics, he said movie stars must have commitment and patience.

“Someone like MGR is a very tough example to follow. Just because someone is a superstar in cinema, it doesn’t guarantee them a good future in politics.”

Stating that national parties such as the BJP and the Congress did not handle the Andhra Pradesh bifurcation issue properly, he said UP and Bihar decide the fate of the entire country during elections.

That situation needs to be changed, he said.

Though there was talk that he would meet Makkal Needhi Maiam president Kamal Haasan in the city, Pawan stated that he would be meeting leaders later.

“After I started my party, I visited the US and Europe. Now, I feel that it is important for me to visit the neighbouring states to understand their politics and their needs,” he said.

“Usually when one enters politics there is a tendency to focus on the national level. But the regional parties are going to be the key players. There is a need for mutual understanding between the leaders here.”