MLA · 17th Tamil Nadu Assembly (2026–31)Former MLA · 17th Tamil Nadu Assembly (2026–31)

R. Sabarinathan
  • Won 2026 by 27,086

R. Sabarinathan

ஆர். சபரிநாதன்

MLA for Virugampakkam since May 2026MLA for Virugampakkam, 2026–31TVK

  • AC 22 · Chennai district
  • Sitting MLA · 17th Assembly (2026–31)
  • Age 30 at the 2026 election
declared assets
₹25.74 lakh
pending criminal cases
0
education
Professional degree
times elected MLA
1

Assets, cases and education as declared in the 2026 sworn affidavit to the Election Commission of India. Age: from the Election Commission's candidate profile.

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Career

R. Sabarinathan: the career, year by year

First elected to the Assembly in 2026

  • Assembly win
  • Office held
  1. 2013

    Completes SSLC at Vedha Vikas Matriculation HSS, Chennai.

  2. 2016

    Diploma in Mechanical Engineering — Department of Technical Education, Tamil Nadu.

  3. 2021

    B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering from Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute, Chennai.

  4. Pre-2026

    Active in TVK Virugampakkam ground operations — local infrastructure and neighbourhood-level concerns. Personally picked by Vijay for the seat in line with the party's 'common-man' pitch.

  5. March 2026

    Announced as TVK's Virugampakkam candidate.

  6. 4 May 2026

    Won Virugampakkam for the TVK (polling was on 23 April).

    See the full 2026 result
  7. 11 May 2026

    Sworn in as MLA from Virugampakkam in the 17th Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly.

Profile

About R. Sabarinathan

Sabarinathan, 30, is the son of Rajendran — actor Vijay's personal driver and assistant for nearly three decades — and his selection has been widely cited as the symbolic 'fairytale' of TVK's 2026 debut. A mechanical engineer trained at Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute, he grew up in Virugampakkam and worked through the local TVK organisation before being given the ticket.

Party
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam
Born
Around 1995 in Chennai
Profession
Mechanical engineer; TVK organiser, Virugampakkam
District
Chennai

Education

  • 2013SSLC — Vedha Vikas Matriculation Higher Secondary School
  • 2016Diploma in Mechanical Engineering — Department of Technical Education, Tamil Nadu
  • 2021B.Tech in Mechanical Engineering — Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute, Chennai

Party & ideology

Sabarinathan is one of TVK's most-cited 'common-man' candidates from the 2026 cycle — alongside autorickshaw-driver-turned-MLA Vijay Damu in Royapuram. His selection by Vijay drew on a personal tie (his father's three-decade service to the actor) but was framed by TVK as proof that political insiders are not the only path into the Assembly. His campaign was tightly local — neighbourhood infrastructure, lighting, drainage, transit gaps — rather than ideological grandstanding.

Family

Son of Rajendran, who has served as actor Vijay's personal driver and assistant for nearly three decades. Grew up in Virugampakkam, Chennai. Other family details kept private per ECI affidavit.

Questions people ask

Who is R. Sabarinathan?

R. Sabarinathan was elected in 2026 as the TVK MLA from Virugampakkam (AC 22, Chennai). He is a mechanical engineer (B.Tech, Dr. M.G.R. Educational and Research Institute, 2021) and the son of Rajendran, who has worked as actor Vijay's personal driver and assistant for nearly three decades.

What was the result?

He polled 76,092 votes and won by 27,086 over DMK's A. M. V. Prabhakara Raja, with AIADMK's Virugai V. N. Ravi third on 38,767.

Why is his story called a 'fairytale'?

Multiple national outlets (New Indian Express, Zee News, Filmibeat) used the phrase to describe the arc of a engineer whose father drove for Vijay for nearly 30 years going on to be picked as TVK's candidate and elected MLA from his own neighbourhood. TVK has framed it as a deliberate signal that everyday households can produce legislators.

Other MLAs from Chennai district

N. Marie WilsonDr.Radhakrishnan Nagar · TVKC. Joseph VijayPerambur · TVKV. S. BabuKolathur · TVKAadhav ArjunaVillivakkam · TVKM. R. PallaviThiru-Vi-Ka-Nagar · TVKRajmohanEgmore · TVKK. V. Vijay DamuRoyapuram · TVKP. K. SekarbabuHarbour · DMKUdhayanidhi StalinChepauk-Thiruvallikeni · DMKJ. C. D. PrabhakarThousand Lights · TVKV. K. RamkumarAnna Nagar · TVKM. Arul PrakasamSaidapet · TVKN. AnandThiyagarayanagar · TVKP. VenkataramananMylapore · TVKR. KumarVelachery · TVK

Page last changed 2 October 2026.

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