Tamil Nadu BJP chief Nainar Nagendran on Monday expressed regret over his derogatory remark that dragged actor Trisha Krishnan into an attack on actor-turned-politician Vijay. Nagendran, 65, said the comment was made “by mistake”, shortly after Trisha called him out in a strongly worded statement.

“This was a statement made by mistake. Our all India women’s wing chief Vanathi Srinivasan and Annamalai has spoken to me about this matter. If anyone has been hurt by my statement, I express my heartfelt regrets,” the Tamil Nadu BJP president said.

The apology comes a day after Nagendran triggered a political row by suggesting that Vijay should “come out of Trisha’s house” to gain experience and succeed in politics. The comment was made while responding to Vijay’s assertion that his party would emerge as a key challenger in the upcoming Assembly elections.

At the event, Nagendran had mocked Vijay’s political ambitions, saying the actor was someone “who cannot even climb onto a rooftop is dreaming of climbing to heaven”.

“Poor man, he is completely inexperienced. First, he needs to come out of his house. Come out of Trisha’s house first, then something can happen,” he had said, laughing.

Trisha, through her legal advisor, had condemned the comment and asserted her political neutrality. “My client never expected that such a distasteful and inappropriate remark would be made by a person holding a high stature in the State’s political space,” the statement said, adding that she wished to be defined only by her work and that her name should not be dragged into matters unrelated to her.

The remark also drew sharp reactions from several political leaders, who termed it inappropriate and accused the BJP of making personal attacks. Leaders of the ruling DMK alleged that such comments reflected a lack of respect for women, while the Congress also questioned why the actor’s name was being brought into political discourse.

Despite initially standing by his words and refusing to withdraw them, Nagendran on Monday said he regretted the statement if it had hurt anyone.

– Ends

Published By:

Devika Bhattacharya

Published On:

Feb 16, 2026