Ananthi Dhandapani

Ananthi Dhandapani, 37, is a graduate professional and homemaker who contested the 2021 Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly elections from Vridhachalam constituency representing the Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK). She secured 8,642 votes (4.39% vote share) in a closely contested race, finishing behind R. Radhakrishnan of the Indian National Congress who won with 39.17% of votes and a margin of just 862 votes. Her performance was notably below her party's statewide average of 6.72%, which established NTK as Tamil Nadu's third-largest political force. The NTK, founded in 2010 by filmmaker-turned-politician Seeman, is recognized as a state party by the Election Commission of India and advocates for Tamil identity, autonomy, and cultural preservation. While Ananthi Dhandapani maintains a minimal public profile with limited media coverage or documented constituency work, her party has been actively involved in political discourse around Tamil nationalism and has criticized major parties like DMK, AIADMK, BJP, and Congress for what it calls 'anti-people policies' and 'freebie politics'. The party has also been controversial, with NTK cadres facing arrests in 2024-25 for protests against the Telugu film 'Kingdom', which they alleged misrepresented Sri Lankan Tamils and the Tamil Eelam issue. According to her election affidavit, Ananthi Dhandapani declares total assets worth Rs. 1.60 crore (Rs. 54.36 lakh movable and Rs. 1.06 crore immovable) with liabilities of Rs. 17 lakh. She has no criminal cases declared. With no documented evidence of specific development work or constituency-level initiatives in Vridhachalam, voters have limited information about her ground-level political engagement beyond electoral participation. Voters in Vridhachalam should note that while Ananthi Dhandapani represents a growing Tamil nationalist movement that achieved third-place statewide in 2021, her individual electoral performance and public visibility remain limited. Her party's focus on Tamil identity and cultural issues resonates with a segment of voters, but questions remain about tangible development work and constituency representation beyond ideological positioning.