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Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay’s electoral triumph is sparking conversations about political change well beyond his state’s borders, according to Telangana Rakshana Sena (TRS) chief K Kavitha.

In an extensive interview with Tamil news channel Puthiya ThalaimuraiKavitha congratulated the actor-turned-politician, observing that Telangana voters are already looking at his victory as a blueprint for her own party’s resurgence. “People are constantly telling me — ‘Like Vijay, you are going to win here. TVK there, TRS here. His victory has definitely created a wave in Telangana.

However, Kavitha was quick to pair her praise with a pointed word of caution: star power alone will not sustain political success. “Mr Vijay would not have won if he did not have the right agenda,” she said. “I hope he lives up to the expectations of the youngsters who voted for him.”

The Federal is a sister concern of Puthiya Thalaimurai.

Youngsters don’t wait forever

Kavitha repeatedly referred to Telangana’s experience under Chief Minister Revanth Reddy to underline her argument. Young voters, she said, drove the Congress to power in Telangana, and have since turned deeply disappointed.

“They voted against the BRS. They campaigned in villages to bring the Congress to power. The Congress failed them within two-and-a-half years,” she said, adding that the grand old party will not recover in Telangana for the next 20 years.

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Her argument was not that young voters are particularly impatient, but that they are politically alert enough to distinguish between a government that is working in the right direction and one that is simply stalling.

“They promised two lakh jobs every year. Two-and-a-half years down the line, only notifications have come, not jobs,” she said. “Youngsters are smart. They know when you are bluffing them.”

‘Gen Z is watching, not just scrolling’

Kavitha pushed back against the assumption that young voters are disengaged. She argued that the generation now entering political life is more willing to speak openly about issues than any before it.

“We think they are only staring at screens and swiping on Instagram. No, they are not. They are into activism. They are more willing to speak the truth,” she said.

Her party plans a youth outreach across two categories — 18 to 29, and 29 to 40 — with funding and entrepreneurship support beginning as early as 18. Her pitch to young voters is not the promise of government jobs, but investment in their ideas.

“Which bank will give a loan to a youngster? I want to support them. I want to trust them. From Rs 2 lakh to Rs 20 crore, without any bank intervention,” she said. “If one Google comes out of that investment, it is all taken care of.”

Women and the fight ahead

Kavitha, who launched the TRS after being suspended without an explanation from the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), a party launched by her father K Chandrashekar Rao (KCR), framed her decision to enter the political arena independently as both personal and symbolic.

“I will never give up a fight because, if I give up, at least 100 women will be disappointed,” she said. She declared women and youngsters as her core constituency, arguing they are the true changemakers in any election.

Also read | Is Revanth’s delimitation formula for fair South representation reasonable?

“If one woman turns, she will turn the whole house for you. If one youngster turns, they will turn the whole household for you.”

She said she is eyeing the 2028 Telangana assembly elections and is in discussions with global leaders on how to strengthen the state’s financial independence given that the Union government is “biased against the South”.

The southern assertion

Kavitha strongly backed the anti-Hindi imposition arguments long raised by Tamil Nadu’s Dravidian parties. Telangana too must become more assertive in protecting regional identity and language rights, she said.

“There is definitely a lot for Telangana to learn from Tamil Nadu,” she said, praising Tamil Nadu’s efforts to preserve Sangam literature and linguistic heritage.

Kavitha also placed her politics within a broader framework of southern regional identity. She backed longstanding anti-Hindi imposition arguments, criticised the Centre’s NEET administration, and said Telangana must do more to protect its language and culture.

Delimitation struggles

On delimitation, she echoed concerns raised by MK Stalin and called for a formula that goes beyond population as the sole metric, suggesting that a US Senate-style equal representation model in the Rajya Sabha deserves consideration. “We pay more, we get less. But yet we are leading,” she said of the southern states.

Also Read: Telangana’s ‘Future City’: New economic growth engine or real-estate dream?

She was also direct about her political outlook for Telangana. With the BRS discredited by a decade in power, the Congress losing credibility rapidly, and the BJP’s polarisation politics finding little traction in Telangana’s tolerant social fabric, she intends to be the only credible alternative by 2028, she said.

“I will make sure I work very hard, go to the people, explain to them what is happening in Telangana. And I am sure I will win their love,” she added.

Coming soon, full interview | Why K Kavitha thinks regional powers are paramount in India