India, Sept. 22 -- A new Tamil Nadu Govt is entitled to bring a fresh style and energy to public life. But the measure of governance cannot be the slogans that dominate the headlines. A government that came to power promising change must now demonstrate it through improvements in the lives of people, rather than through political theatre.

Tamil Nadu did not vote for a spectacle. It voted for a government. That distinction should be obvious. In the months since the new administration assumed office, too much of public life began to resemble an election rally extended into government, with high emotions, sharp slogans, carefully staged exchanges and an unrelenting search for the next viral moment. The hard work of democratic governance, wi...