Ahead of the Tamil Nadu elections, Vijay’s TVK and supporters disseminated a phony cover that the magazine denounced; the internet responded, “File a case.”

Frontline Magazine (of The Hindu group) has criticized Vijay’s supporters and his party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam, for disseminating a phony cover featuring their name one day before the Tamil Nadu elections. The magazine has since clarified that the cover’s assertion that Vijay and his party are leading a new “political force” in TN is untrue.

Dr. Ravishankar Sadasivam, a user on X (previously Twitter), shared a phony Frontline magazine cover. As Vijay drives past in his van during a campaign, the image on the cover depicts a sizable gathering. The headline and subhead of the cover story are Vijay Wave “After five decades, Tamil Nadu is witnessing a new political force that has shattered conventional bipolar politics and turned the state’s entrenched Dravidian duology upside down.”

The post’s caption read: “The wave is real. It has sustained till elections. I also was one among those who believed that it will drop to under 15% as election nears, but it is actually remaining the massive same. The only thing that remains to be seen is if it’s a tsunami. Vijay will win many seats, and he is certainly a contender for the top post in a 3 cornered fight. He draws the largest spontaneous crowd after MGR in TN electoral history. The crowd will certainly vote for him. It’s childish to be in denial.”

The official social media accounts of Frontline took cognisance of the fake cover being circulated and called out Vijay’s fans. They wrote on X and Instagram, “Note to the public! This cover is fake and was not published by @frontline_india magazine. It’s being falsely circulated online by supporters of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam. Please verify sources before sharing misinformation.” They also posted a picture of the cover with ‘fake’ stamped on it, directly calling out TVK, “THIS COVER IS FAKE. Frontline has not published it. TVK is circulating misinformation.”

The internet was shocked to see the cover was a fake. One X user wrote, “Take them on in court. Let him and his party learn a lesson.” Another wrote, “Shame on you Vijay @TVKVijayHQ stop embarrassing us.” Some even suggested that the magazine should file a case against TVK, with one person writing, “Why don’t you file case and make a complaint with ECI?” “You can take severe action against them or give them a warning, for spreading misinformation using your name,” wrote another.