Chennai, May 4 -- A monthly handout of Rs.2,500 for every woman in Tamil Nadu, Rs.10,000 for unemployed graduates, a waiver for cooperative crop loans and a ministry of artificial intelligence - Tamil actor Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) made a raft of promises aimed at the southern state's women, its farmers, and the younger population in its manifesto.

Those promises appeared to click with Tamil Nadu's voters.

Counting trends from the Election Commission of India (ECI) showed Vijay's fledgling outfit leading in 105 of the state's 234 seats, breaking the decades-old duopoly of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).

Vijay, one of the state's most popular actors, during the...