Meet S Keerthana, youngest minister in Vijay's Cabinet and a fluent Hindi speaker

S Keerthana, 29, created history in the recently-concluded Assembly election by becoming the first woman MLA from the Sivakasi constituency in Virudhunagar district.

In Short

• S Keerthana is the only woman leader to take oath in first round of swearing-in
• The young TVK leader is also known for speaking fluent Hindi alongside Tamil
• S Keerthana rose through the party ranks before earning a cabinet berth

At 29, S Keerthana has become one of the younger faces in the first-ever cabinet of C Joseph Vijay. A first-time MLA, political strategist-turned-politician, and now the youngest minister in the Vijay-led government, Keerthana’s rise reflects TVK’s push to project a younger and educated leadership team in Tamil Nadu politics.

Keerthana created history in the recently-concluded Assembly election by becoming the first woman MLA from the Sivakasi constituency in Virudhunagar district, ending decades of male political dominance in the seat. She defeated Congress candidate Ashokan G by a margin of 11,670 votes.

Sivakasi, known across India for its fireworks, matchbox and printing industries, has long grappled with concerns surrounding industrial safety and healthcare infrastructure. During her campaign, Keerthana repeatedly focused on these issues, highlighting the lack of adequate emergency services in a high-risk industrial region that depends heavily on the firecracker industry.

She promised welfare measures for workers employed in the sector, including insurance coverage, regular health check-ups, equal pay for women workers and improved treatment facilities for those exposed to hazardous chemicals. She also raised concerns over the absence of specialised healthcare infrastructure in government hospitals serving the region.

Born in Virudhunagar district in 1996, Keerthana studied in a Tamil-medium government school before pursuing higher education in Mathematics and Statistics. She completed her B.Sc in Mathematics from a college affiliated with Madurai Kamaraj University and later earned an M.Sc in Statistics from Pondicherry University in 2019.

Before entering electoral politics, she worked as a political consultant and campaign strategist. She was associated with organisations such as Showtime Consulting and IPAC, and reportedly worked on campaigns involving parties like the TDP, TMC and DMK. Over the years, she was involved in grassroots outreach, constituency planning and digital campaign management.

Those familiar with TVK’s early growth say Keerthana also played an important behind-the-scenes role during the party’s formative phase, particularly in youth mobilisation and social media communication.

She first grabbed wider public attention during the Assembly campaign, where TVK projected her as one of its young and educated candidates. Following her victory, Keerthana again found herself in the spotlight after speaking in Hindi during public interactions. Defending the move, she said her intention was to help a larger audience connect with Vijay’s message and expand the party’s national and global reach.

Her remarks triggered debate in Tamil Nadu, where Hindi has historically remained a politically sensitive subject and resistance to Hindi imposition has long shaped Dravidian politics.

Keerthana now enters the state cabinet at a crucial moment for TVK, which formed the first non-DMK and non-AIADMK government in Tamil Nadu in nearly seven decades under Vijay’s leadership. Alongside experienced leaders and political heavyweights, her inclusion in the ministry signals the party’s attempt to blend youth, technocratic experience and grassroots politics in its first term in power.

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