Through the day, hundreds of people have waited here for their summons for an interview with DMK chief M Karunanidhi. The men and women who impress him will leave with the formal consent to contest the elections in Tamil Nadu on April 13.
VG Balan, in his early 30s, is from the southern part of the state. He has never contested earlier. After a two-minute interview, he explains, "They asked about the party positions I've held, my caste and my social background."
Veterans wait their turn too - there's no jumping the line.
"Yes, I've done my interview well, am waiting for results. As an Education Minister, I am used to this!" says Thangam Thennarassu, the current School Education Minister.
And then there's K K S S R Ramachandran, the Minister for Backward Classes, who shares what he's counting on as a sales pitch. "The achievements of Kalaignar's government over the last five years is my strength."
Competition is exceptionally tough this time around. The DMK is contesting the fewest seats ever - a result of allies like the Congress who have demanded a bigger quota than in the past.
Aspirants seem aware that the toughest question though is one that it put to all of them - what they can spend on their campaign.
"Let me get the ticket first...then I will tell you," says an aspirant for an MLA ticket.
The decision on who's in will be revealed around the second week of March.
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