Seeman

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Seeman
Chief-coordinator of Naam Tamilar Katchi
Incumbent
Assumed office 18 May 2010
Preceded by	Position established
Personal details
Born	Senthamizhan Seeman (1966-11-08) 8 November 1966 (age 58) Aranaiyur, Madras State, India[1][2]
Political party	Naam Tamilar Katchi (since 2010)
Other political affiliations	Naam Tamilar Iyakkam (2009–2010) Dravidar Kazhagam (2006–2009)
Spouse	Kayalvizhi ​ (m. 2013)​ [1]
Children	2
Residence(s)	Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Occupation	Film director Actor Politician
Website	www.naamtamilar.org

Senthamizhan Seeman (/siːmɑːn/)^[3][4][5][6] (born 8 November 1966) is an Indian politician, actor and former filmmaker. He is the leader and chief-coordinator of the Naam Tamilar Katchi political party in Tamil Nadu. He is a strong advocate for regional autonomy and Tamil nationalism by focusing on the Tamil language, identity, and culture.^[7]

Seeman began his career as a filmmaker in the mid-1990s, working on films such as Panchalankurichi (1996) and Veeranadai (2000). The failure of his early films made it difficult for him to attract offers as a director and several of his proposed projects were stalled in the late 1990s. He later made a comeback through the successful vigilante film Thambi (2006), though the commercial failure of his next film, prompted Seeman to prioritise commitments as a supporting actor in the late 2000s.

In the early 2010s, Seeman founded the Naam Tamilar Katchi, a Tamil ultranationalist political party, and has since often been in the news for his controversial statements on Indian and Tamil social issues.^[3][4][5]

Seeman was born in

Seeman took up film direction as a career after being inspired by the films of

Seeman then made the village-based vigilante film, Thambi (2006), starring Madhavan in the titular role.^[15][16] The film's production was briefly halted following a disagreement between the actor and director, after Seeman raised an objection to Madhavan returning to be with his family for the birth of his son.^[17] The film opened to mixed reviews but performed well commercially.^[18][19] His most recent directorial release, Vaazhthugal (2008), received negative reviews and performed poorly at the box office. A reviewer from Sify noted the "execution is tacky and the final outcome is a dreary and boring message film that leaves you exhausted."^[20]

The failure of Vaazhthugal made it difficult for Seeman to find producers and actors to work on his other proposed projects, despite his interest in continuing work as a film director.

Since the mid-2000s, Seeman has mostly worked as an actor. His notable roles including supporting characters in Pallikoodam (2007) and Evano Oruvan (2007).

Seeman addressed

Seeman was arrested in March 2009 under the National Security act for speaking in favour of the LTTE and was lodged at the Kalapet prison.[34]

Seeman along with several other activists gathered on 18 May 2009, coinciding the end of the Sri Lankan Civil War at Madurai to form the Naam Tamilar Iyakkam, as a social outfit.^[35] It subsequently transformed into a political party named Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK).^[36]

Seeman was arrested at Chepauk under the National Security Act for making inflammatory speeches at a meeting protesting against the killing of a Tamil fisherman by the Sri Lankan Navy.^[37] He was detained at the Vellore Central Prison for five months.^[38]

Upon his release from a five-month detention at the Vellore prison in 2011, Seeman actively campaigned for the defeat of the Indian National Congress in the 2011 Legislative Assembly elections.^[39][40][8] He was neutral on the MDMK and DMK and supportive of the AIADMK.^[41][42] Seeman campaigned in 59 of the 63 places the INC contested in, and the party was defeated in all of those constituencies except one.^[42][43][44]

Since the 2011 assembly elections, Seeman and his party have been actively involved in various causes such as the

In February 2015, the party conceived Veera Thamizhar Munnani, aimed at reviving and recovering age-old Tamil culture and traditions.[49] In September 2016, Seeman was among some 176 people arrested after "attempting to lay siege to Srivaikuntam dam, where desilting works [were] under way as per a directive from the National Green Tribunal".^[50]

The NTK contested in the

In the 2019 Indian general elections, the NTK contested in all 39 constituencies in Tamil Nadu,^[55] but only won 4% of the vote share, thus losing deposits in all constituencies.^[56] NTK fared better in rural areas when compared to urban areas.^[57][58]

Seeman is married to Kayalvizhi, daughter of K. Kalimuthu, former Speaker of Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly from the AIADMK party. The ceremony was held according to Tamil traditions at the YMCA grounds in Nandanam, Chennai in September 2013.^[61]

Actress

Seeman has received several threat letters for his support of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and other controversial remarks on Indian social issues.^[68]

One of the most controversial aspects of Seeman and his political party is that of ethnic purism arbitrarily based on caste lines. He claims the "decline of Tamil people" is due to continuous rule of Tamil Nadu by 'Vandheris' (refers to outsiders or non-Tamils, especially

In November 2009, while on a speaking tour in Canada, Seeman was arrested by the Canada Border Services Agency for giving a hate-filled incendiary speech at an event in Toronto. In the speech, he reportedly talked about restarting the civil war in Sri Lanka, and allegedly said "no Sinhala can live," if the LTTE had taken the same path and bombed 100 Sinhala schools for every Tamil school which was attacked.^[70]

In 2013, Seeman invited

In October 2019, Seeman was put under investigation by the Malaysian police over alleged involvement with the LTTE.[75]^[76][77]

Although Seeman openly claims to be a supporter of Tamil Eelam and LTTE, the sincerity behind his proclaimed stance has been questioned multiple times. In a leaked audio, he was caught using profanity against late LTTE fighter Pottu Amman.^[78]

In February 2023, during the Erode East Assembly constituency by-election campaign, when talking about the Vijaynagar kings capturing Tamil Nadu, he had mentioned "they brought members of the Arunthathiyar community to this region to do scavenging".^[79] He received backlash and his comments also sparked protests by Arunthathiyar outfits. The Election Commission also issued a notice to the NTK seeking an explanation. Seeman was also booked by the Karungalpalayam police, registering a case under three sections.^[80] The police added more Indian Penal Code sections to the case due to his claims that "using an iron fist" will "get rid of the problem" of North Indians and Hindi speakers coming to Tamil Nadu for employment during the same speech.^[81] He later said that he was not specifically talking about North Indian migrant workers, but instead about M. K. Stalin's alleged falsification of the increase in crimes committed by people from north India living in Tamil Nadu.^[82]

While speaking at a demonstration to condemn the 2023–2025 Manipur violence on 30 July 2023, Seeman called Muslims and Christians as "Satan's children" by blaming them that they had consistently voted for DMK and Congress.^[83][84][85] Despite condemnation from multiple organisations and political parties representing minority communities, Seeman questioned whether Muslims and Christians would begin "voting for me if I apologize for my remarks." Political parties accused Seeman of venturing down a "dangerous path" by adopting the "BJP's language" in Tamil Nadu.^[84] The Tamil Nadu Platform for People's Unity (TNPPU) condemned his statements.^[86][85]