'I will be taking over Dhoni in popularity': Prashant Kishor wanted to be most popular Bihari in Tamil Nadu after Vijay's win
Prashant Kishor’s 2024 prediction about TVK and Vijay is going viral as Tamil Nadu election trends show strong leads for the debutant party. Kishor had said TVK could win big if it contested alone, a forecast now drawing attention amid counting results
Prashant Kishor’s Vijay victory prediction from a year ago comes true
As vote counting for the Tamil Nadu Assembly Elections 2026 continues, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) is at the verge of creating a history as it is inching closer to the halfway-mark. An old video of political strategist and politician Prashant Kishor predicting his win and saying that he would be the popular Bihari in the state after Dhoni has surfaced.
What Prashant Kishor said and where
At TVK’s first anniversary event in Mahabalipuram (February 2025), Kishor joked about his growing popularity, saying he might even surpass MS Dhoni as the most popular Bihari if he helped Vijay win the state. "I have to become the most popular Bihari in Tamil Nadu," he said. "So, I have to compete with Dhoni, who makes Chennai Super Kings win," he pointed out, with a smile, that cricketer Mahendra Singh Dhoni was the only Bihari more popular than him in the state. Then he added, “But make no mistake, next year when I contribute and help you win, then I will be taking over Dhoni in popularity.”
Was Prashant Kishor helping Vijay?
Kishor has consistently denied being a formal political strategist for TVK. He clarified in an interview that his association with Vijay was more personal than professional:
“We have been more like friends than political associates… I am not a political adviser to him. We have shared values.”
However, there have been reports suggesting that his firm I-PAC may have had indirect involvement with TVK’s campaign strategy, though this has not been officially confirmed.
What more Prashant Kishor said
Kishor also predicted that if TVK continued independently without alliances, it could significantly reshape Tamil Nadu politics. He had earlier indicated a potential range of 98–120 seats for TVK in projections made after voting, a figure that was widely debated at the time. TVK is at 109 leads at 6pm As per ECI
What we know about Vijay’s performance in TN elections
According to early Election Commission trends, TVK has emerged as one of the strongest performers in Tamil Nadu, making a remarkable debut in the 234-seat assembly. At 6pm, TVK won 23 Seats and is leading in 86 seats.
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