Karunanidhi passes away: Scriptwriter par excellence, DMK chief was astute politician and 5-time CM
A script writer par excellence, M Karunanidhi began penning scripts for plays as a 20-year-old, his works becoming a vehicle for propagating the principles of the Dravidian movement.
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Born on 3 June, 1924, in Nagapattinam district’s Thirukkuvalai village in erstwhile Madras presidency, 94-year-old Muthuvel Karunanidhi served five times as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu. He had contested a dozen Assembly elections in his eight-decade political career and won them all. Screengrab from Youtube.
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The Tamil leader of Telugu origin, thrice married with six children, wrote box-office-winning dialogue for films that launched the careers of legendary actors Sivaji Ganesan and MG Ramachandran (MGR). MGR (left) and Karunanidhi (right) were on good terms until the former went onto form the AIADMK. Screengrab from Youtube.
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Since, Karunanidhi’s death, politicians and actors have come out in support of DMK’s demand that Karunanidhi (centre) be buried at the Marina beach where political stalwarts like Annadurai and MGR (right) were laid to rest. Defending DMK’s claim, actor-turned-politician Kamal Haasan tweeted and said, “When Anna was alive, it was Kalaignar and MGR as two brothers who worked hard to strengthen the party. Screengrab from Youtube.
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A scriptwriter par excellence, M Karunanidhi began penning scripts for plays as a 20-year-old, his works becoming a vehicle for propagating the principles of the Dravidian movement. His dialogues in Tamil movie Parasakthi (1952), which debutant ‘Sivaji’ Ganesan (right) delivered with panache, became a big hit and aided in catapulting his political career as well. Screengrab from Youtube
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A master at mobilising crowds, organising party cadre and raising funds, Karunanidhi became the “go-to man” of the DMK. After Annadurai’s death in 1969, Karunanidhi became the chief minister of Tamil Nadu as well as the DMK president — a post he held till his death — and led the party to a massive Reuters.
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Karunanidhi with the then Congress party president Sonia Gandhi (L) during an election campaign rally in Chennai. Reuters
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