Who is Kapil Sahu, the architect behind TVK’s ‘vijay’ in Tamil Nadu?

Tamil Nadu has delivered a surprising mandate in the Assembly elections. Actor-turned-politician Joseph Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) has emerged as the single largest party in the southern state.

In the 234-member Tamil Nadu Assembly, the TVK has won 108 seats. It is, however, short of the 118 majority mark. Superstar Vijay will now have to turn into a coalition builder to form a government.

Vijay's blockbuster debut in elections has brought the spotlight to Kapil Sahu, who is being credited with TVK’s success.

Let’s take a closer look.

Who is Kapil Sahu?

Kapil Sahu is the architect of TVK’s victory in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. He is a 30-something political consultant who previously worked for the Indian Political Action Committee (IPAC).

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Two years ago, he left Prashant Kishor’s former organisation, along with 12 others, to launch an independent political consultancy.

Sahu has more than a decade of experience in campaign planning, narrative engineering, strategic consulting, data analysis, and grassroots mobilisation, Deccan Chronicle reported.

He has led campaigns for major political outfits, including the Indian National Congress (INC), the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), and the Sikkim Democratic Front (SDF).

During the 2019 Assembly elections, Sahu headed the SDF’s state-wide campaign in Sikkim.

He has reportedly managed the election campaigning across nine states, working with two chief ministers and a deputy CM.

Sahu has also worked on a successful campaign in Delhi against the AAP.

As per South Matters, he was involved in constituency-level operations for the then-AAP leader Raghav Chadha during the 2020 Delhi Assembly elections.

Sahu’s focus on building grassroots networks led the AAP to recruit him to spearhead the party’s expansion efforts in Uttar Pradesh. In this position, he worked with the AAP’s central leadership, including the think tank led by Arvind Kejriwal.

Sahu also has experience heading the strategic communications for the Office of former Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister CN Ashwathnarayan, reported South Matters.

How Kapil Sahu shaped TVK's success in TN

Vijay's spectacular performance in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections can be attributed to Sahu and his team. The consultant led the TVK's electoral strategy for the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.

When the film star formed the party in 2024, it did not have a cadre or a booth-level machinery.

Sahu had his task cut out. As per South Matters, the TVK’s election campaign focused on three strategies — aggressive youth outreach, a disciplined digital narrative and door-to-door constituency penetration.

Sahu's acumen was proven when the campaign was rocked by several big crises, including the Karur stampede that claimed 41 lives. Vijay also courted controversy over his divorce and alleged extramarital affair with a Tamil actress.

Despite these potential setbacks, Sahu deftly managed the crises and kept the election narrative of the TVK focused and intact, as per News18. 

Vijay's decision to go solo in all 234 constituencies signalled to the Tamil voters that he was a serious contender to the Dravidian duopoly. This indicated that his TVK was not a pressure group or a vote-splitter but a government-in-waiting, noted South Matters. 

Vijay's campaign wooed Tamil Nadu's youth, especially first-time voters, who did not have prior loyalties to Dravidian parties. The party's strong performance in Chennai and urban belts proved its success with the young electorate.

“He [Sahu] understands that elections are won in the last mile — the booth, the booth-level agent, the voter who has never been asked for their opinion before," a political observer with knowledge of the TVK campaign, told South Matters. 

Sahu's experience in grassroots mobilisation particularly worked for Vijay's party in Tamil Nadu. While he may remain a behind-the-scenes player, his success resounds in TVK's emphatic victory.

With inputs from agencies