It's no secret that the King of Hearts Idhayathalapathy Vijay has millions of fans. At some point in life, this bulb glows over your head and you realise that this man is pure brilliance. From then on, there's no going backwards. 

It's pretty likely each fan will remember what force pulled them towards the star. For me it happened over a few stages of increasing obsession. On this special occasion of his birthday, let's take a look at the stages an Ilayathalapathy fan goes through as they fall in love with him, frame by frame. 

Stage 1 - Ariyamai - There may have been a time when you didn't know much about Vijay. You didn't watch his movies. You may have thought there was too much hype. Or maybe you were just too young to know better. This is the pre-fan stage during which one is ignorant and has no idea what they are missing out on. This can last quite long but when you cross this, you're going to be in for an amazing surprise. 

Stage 2 - Arimugam - Then you watch your first film of Vijay’s fully. The initial process of becoming a fan starts here. You begin to admire his acting, comic sense, style and dance. So of course you decide to watch a few more movies (I say few, but it's more like every movie of his you can find). 

Stage 3 - Viyappu - By this stage, you think Vijay is a good actor. You are interested to get to know more about him. So you watch an award show coming on TV. The Ilayathalapathy you know from the movies is super cheerful, outgoing and talkative. You expect Vijay to be the same. But slowly you realise he seems quite the opposite. He is very quiet, calm and composed, except for a sudden smile here and there. Till now the actor who has surprised you with his onscreen performances, now shocks you with his offscreen personality. You begin to wonder what level of skill he must have, to portray characters who are often the opposite of the person he is. Maybe a talkative person can act like a silent one, but for a silent individual to take on such roles so perfectly… Well that's Vijay for you! 

Stage 4 - Naalaiya Theerpu - Now you know that you're slowly becoming a proper fan. You start watching his movies as soon as they release. You rewatch the old movies. You don't skip his songs on the music channels. You start defending him if anyone says anything even slightly negative about him. 

Stage 5 - Rasigan/Rasigai - You're officially a fan. In this stage, others can make out you're a fan just from the way you talk about Thalapathy. You have dreams of meeting him. You watch practically every movie of his. Every song in his voice is extra special. His movie release is a bigger festival for you than Deepavali or Pongal. You would travel kilometres to watch his film on the first day. Your phone has some sort of evidence that you're a fan. You've successfully convinced at least one person that they should become a fan too.

Stage 6 - Annan - Last but not the least, you begin to feel like he's a part of your family. You wait for his movies for months. You have watched random interviews, singing, dance and blooper videos of his. You try to meet him at shooting spots. You feel inspired everytime you hear his speeches. Just a mention of him can get you smiling. And that's probably why, along with us, you are celebrating his birthday with so much love. Ena Nanba, wish pannidlama? 

Happy Birthday Thalapathy Vijay!
Andrum Indrum Endrum Ungal Rasigai ❤️