Tamil Nadu government to order probe on surrogacy after Vignesh Shivan and Nayanthara announce birth of twins

Social media went berserk on Sunday evening after director Vignesh Shivan announced the birth of twins and shared a picture along with wife, actress Nayanthara. The Kaathuvaakula Rendu Kaadhal director shared the picture of the newborns and introduced them to the world as their sons, Uyir and Ulagam. He captioned the picture, “Nayan & Me have become Amma & Appa. We are blessed with Twin Baby Boys. All Our prayers, our ancestors’ blessings combined with all the good manifestations made, have come 2gethr in the form Of 2 blessed babies for us. Need all ur blessings for our Uyir & Ulagam. Life looks brighter & more beautiful (sic).” 

Since then social media has been abuzz with rumours of surrogacy after the couple announced the birth of their twins, four months after their wedding. At a press conference held on Monday, when the Tamil Nadu Health Minister Ma Subramanian was questioned about the surrogacy law, he stated that a probe would be conducted on the same. Speaking at the press con, the minister stated, " The law allows individuals to be involved in surrogacy if they are above 21 years and below 36 years of age, along with the approval of the family. He also stated that a couple is eligible for surrogacy if they have been married for five years and are having trouble conceiving a child, according to the Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act and the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act.

As per the latest surrogacy regulation bill, which came into effect on January 25, 2022, the primary idea is the prohibition of commercial surrogacy and there will only be altruistic surrogacy. The surrogate should be married at least once and should have her own child as well. Though it is still unclear whether the celebrity couple opted for surrogacy, the health minister said that he will direct the Directorate of Medical Services for an inquiry into the matter.