Two days after actor-politician Joseph Vijay, chief of Tamizhaga Vetri Kazhagam (TVK), announced his first list of candidates, one particular name triggered an emotional wave among his supporters. On social media and fan pages, TVK functionaries repeatedly highlighted that one of the party’s nominees was allegedly the son of Vijay’s long-time driver, portraying it as proof that “anyone who stands by Thalapathy will be rewarded.”
However, company and election records suggest a more complex picture.
Who Is “Driver” Rajendran?
Supporters celebrating the ticket said the candidate’s father had “driven Vijay for over 20 years” and was now being honoured through his son. The man in question is Rajendran. But corporate filings linked to Vijay indicate that Rajendran is not merely a driver but a shareholder and director in at least one of the companies associated with the actor.
In Vijay’s election affidavit, under the list of assets, a firm named “Jaya Nagar Properties” is disclosed. Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) records for this company list:
- Joseph Vijay as Managing Director
- Sangeetha Vijay as Director
- Rajendran as another Director and shareholder
If not for election affidavit no one would have known Joseph #Vijay is also doing real estate business in the name of “JayaNagar Property”.
Highlight is his car driver Rajendran is one of the director of that company.
Easy Route for moneylenders and benamis?#TVK pic.twitter.com/bjEDcgM9su
— மிஸ்டர்.உத்தமன் (@MrUthaman) March 30, 2026
These documents show Rajendran featuring not as an employee but as part of the ownership and management structure of Vijay-linked entities. Sources point out that he also appears as a shareholder in other Vijay-associated companies, though the extent of his role in various private trusts is unclear.
This undercuts the popular social media claim that Vijay has “elevated a mere driver” into politics. At the very least, Rajendran has been positioned as a business associate in formal records.
Entry After 2021, Exit of Sangeetha
MCA filings reviewed for Jaya Nagar Properties show that Rajendran’s effective entry into the company structure is visible around the 2021-22 financial year. Earlier filings prominently feature Sangeetha Vijay, whose signature appears across documents, indicating active participation in corporate decisions up to 2020.
From 2022 onwards, however, Sangeetha appears to have been sidelined from this particular entity. Around the same period, she is learnt to have accused Vijay, privately and through legal channels, of financially weakening her position, including alleged transfers of assets into third-party names. While many of those claims remain untested in court, the timing of Rajendran’s formal arrival in the company, coinciding with Sangeetha’s removal from active roles, is reportedly documentary support for at least one of her allegations.
Pattern of Family Ousters?
Records from earlier years suggest this is not the first time key family members have been removed from Vijay-linked companies. In the five-year period preceding the last election, both Vijay’s father, director S.A. Chandrasekhar, and mother Shoba Sekhar were listed as partners in the same corporate structure.
Company documents from around 2020 show:
- S.A. Chandrasekhar – Partner
- Shoba Sekhar – Partner
- Joseph Vijay – Partner
Following a public rift over Chandrasekhar’s attempt to float a political party in Vijay’s name, the actor is said to have cut ties with his parents in business matters. Subsequently, they no longer appear as partners in the later filings for Jaya Nagar Properties. Vijay first used Sangeetha as a front to edge out his parents from the company and is now seen using Rajendran in a similar fashion vis-à-vis Sangeetha.
The Jaya Nagar Properties Trail
A deeper look into Jaya Nagar Properties traces its roots back to the late 1990s-early 2000s. Original documents indicate that the company arose from land holdings in Jaya Nagar, Porur, and changed hands over time before eventually being acquired into the Vijay-linked ecosystem.
Those familiar with the paperwork allege that Vijay has, over the years, systematically channelled a substantial portion of his income into land and real estate–linked companies, buying properties at officially undervalued rates and then transferring them into his own name. For example, a plot with a market value of around ₹5 crore might be shown in documents at ₹20–30 lakh, thereby reducing the declared value and potential tax exposure.
Jaya Nagar Properties seems to be one such vehicle, and say they have forwarded these details as “inputs” to the Income Tax Department for further scrutiny. There is, however, no official confirmation yet of any new tax probe.
“TVS 50” and Image Crafting
The controversy has also thrown up smaller but telling anecdotes about image-building. Supporters have touted the purchase of a TVS 50 moped in Vijay’s name as proof of his simplicity, claiming he would ride it during the 2026 campaign. Detractors dismiss this as a publicity gimmick, saying the vehicle was bought purely to generate such talking points.
Thalapathy Vijay bought TVS XL SUPER in 2025 for ₹67400, and he didn’t even hide it. ♥️ While other politicians have assets mysteriously held by distant relatives and shelp companies, Vijay puts it all on paper.
Nice to see complete transparency . I’m sure he will never… pic.twitter.com/I8IP7OdMmb— George 🍿🎥 (@georgeviews) March 30, 2026
Beyond the “Driver’s Son” Narrative
What began as a sentimental story that “Thalapathy gives a ticket to his driver’s son” has, under documentary scrutiny, raised broader questions:
Is Rajendran primarily a long-time driver or a strategic corporate proxy and shareholder?
Do the patterns of removing parents first and then Sangeetha from Jaya Nagar Properties point to systematic asset restructuring?
How much of Vijay’s wealth is parked in undervalued land assets via layered company structures?
While none of these questions have yet been adjudicated in a court of law, the available records make one thing clear: the “driver’s son” narrative is, at best, an oversimplification and at worst, a carefully constructed myth riding on selective disclosure and fan emotion.
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