The ability of youth movements to galvanise towards change has been apparent in the world, and particularly in the South Asian continent, in recent years. Some of these movements have been bloody revolutions where lives have been lost; others have been bloodless, though they too have delivered shocks to the system.

Something of the latter kind happened in Tamil Nadu on May 4. When the day dawned, there were plenteous speculations about who held the trump card in the Assembly elections. While the result was unexpected for a vast majority of the voters, even those who expected a win for the new party founded by C. Joseph Vijay, the Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), were surprised, for few anticipated the extent of the win. With a vote percentage of nearly 35% and with 108 seats under its belt, the TVK’s performance has become a first showing like never before.

The growth of the TVK encapsulates the theme of a session at The Hindu Huddle on June 6 titled ‘From aspiration to mandate: The Gen Z story’. The Huddle will be held at Taj West End, Bengaluru.

The TVK campaigned like no other party did before this in Tamil Nadu. For a State rooted in Dravidianism, having elected one or the other Dravidian party for close to half a century now, and with full faith in brick-and-mortar campaigns — long road shows, rousing speeches, the people jamboree that comes with it — the TVK changed all that. It used the online space and targeted campaigns among groups of people — Gen Z, children, and women — and word of mouth to spread the idea of change. If pester power ever won an election, this would be it.

One of the architects of the TVK win is K.G. Arunraj, a doctor who has worked in the heart of Tamil Nadu. He joined the party in June 2025 after taking voluntary retirement from the civil services. In this session, he will discuss with Ramya Kannan, Chief of Bureau, Tamil Nadu, The Hindu, the story of the TVK’s astonishing rise, and reveal stories from one of the most spectacular wins in the subcontinent.