Muthuvel Karunanidhi was an Indian writer and politician who served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for almost two decades over five terms between 1969 and 2011. He is popularly referred to as Kalaignar (Artist) and Mutthamizh Arignar for his contributions to Tamil literature. He had the longest tenure as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu with 6,863 days in office. He was also a long-standing leader of the Dravidian movement and ten-time president of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam political party. Karunanidhi has the record of never losing an election to the Tamil Nadu Assembly, having won 13 times since his first victory in 1957. Before entering politics, he worked in the Tamil film industry as a screenwriter. He also made contributions to Tamil literature, having written stories, plays, novels, and a multiple-volume memoir. Karunanidhi died on 7 August 2018 at Kauvery Hospital in Chennai after a series of prolonged, age-related illnesses.
Thoguluva Meenatchi Iyengar Soundararajan, popularly known as TMS, was an Indian Carnatic musician and a playback singer in Tamil cinema for over six and a half decades. He sang over 10,138 songs from 3,162 films, including devotional, semi-classical, Carnatic, classical and light music songs. He gave classical concerts starting in 1943.
Sirkazhi Govindarajan was an Indian Carnatic vocalist and a leading playback singer of Indian cinema.
Koondukkili is a 1954 Indian Tamil-language drama film directed and co-produced by T. R. Ramanna. The film stars M. G. Ramachandran, Sivaji Ganesan and B. S. Saroja. Although a commercial failure, it gained historical reputation over time due to the fact it was the only film in which Ramachandran and Ganesan acted together.
Si. Balasubramania Athithan 27 September 1905 – 24 May 1981), popularly called as "Adithanar", was an Indian lawyer, politician, minister and founder of the Tamil daily newspaper Dina Thanthi. He was the founder of the We Tamils party. He served as a member of the Madras Legislative Council for two terms and as a member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly for four terms. He was the Speaker of the Assembly during 1967–68 and Tamil Nadu's minister for Cooperation in the M. Karunanidhi cabinets of 1969 and 1971. In his memory, two Tamil literary awards were created and are awarded annually by his son, Sivanthi Adithanar.
Ponmudi is a 1950 Tamil-language film directed by Ellis R. Dungan. It was based on the Tamil poet Bharathidasan's verse novel Ethirparatha Mutham.
Manthiri Kumari is a 1950 Indian Tamil-language historical fiction film directed by Ellis R. Dungan and starring M. G. Ramachandran, M. N. Nambiar.
C. P. Chitrarasu was an Indian politician and writer from Tamil Nadu. He was the chairman of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Council during 1970-76. He was nicknamed Sindhanai Sirpi.
Naalvar is a 1953 Tamil-language drama film directed by V. Krishnan. The film stars A. P. Nagarajan, Kumari Thankam, N. N. Kannappa, M. N. Krishnan and T. P. Muthulakshmi in major roles. Nagarajan, who played the main lead was also the writer of the film. The film revolves around a family consisting of four siblings.
Thirumbi Paar is a 1953 Indian Tamil-language film starring Sivaji Ganesan, P. V. Narasimha Bharathi, Pandari Bai, Krishna Kumari and Girija. Produced and directed by T. R. Sundaram of Modern Theatres, the film was written by M. Karunanidhi, who would later become the chief minister of Tamil Nadu. Thirumbi Paar was one of the earliest Tamil films whose dialogues were known to be a political satire on the Indian National Congress, the ruling party then. Sivaji Ganesan played a negative role in the film and received wide acclaim.
Raja Rani is a 1956 Indian Tamil-language film directed by A. Bhimsingh and written by M. Karunanidhi. The film stars Sivaji Ganesan and Padmini. The film was produced by National Productions. It was released on 25 February 1956.
Mullaivanam is a 1955 Indian Tamil language film produced and directed by V. Krishnan. The film stars Sriram and Kumari Rukmini.
Maheswari is a 1955 Indian Tamil language film produced by Modern Theatres and directed by T. R. Raghunath. The film stars Gemini Ganesan and Savithri. It was released on 13 November 1955.
Maa Gopi is a 1954 Telugu language film directed by B. S. Ranga. The film stars V. Nagayya, G. Varalakshmi, Vallam Narasimha Rao, Jamuna.
Kalyanam Seydhuko is a 1955 Indian Tamil-language film directed by R. Sundar. The film stars P. S. Govindan and Girija.
Thedi Vandha Selvam is a 1958 Indian Tamil-language drama film produced and directed by P. Neelakantan. The film stars S. S. Rajendran, Rajasulochana and B. Saroja Devi. It was released on 16 July 1958 and emerged a box office success.
Nalla Thangai is a 1955 Indian Tamil-language film produced and directed by S. A. Natarajan. The film stars M. N. Nambiar, Madhuri Devi, Rajasulochana, S. A. Natarajan and T. S. Balaiah.
Mayavathi is a 1949 Indian Tamil-language film produced and directed by T. R. Sundaram. The film stars T. R. Mahalingam and Anjali Devi.
Thanjai N. Ramaiah Dass (1914-1965) was an Indian poet and script writer who wrote mainly in the Tamil language. He wrote more than 500 lyrics for Tamil films.
A. Maruthakasi was an Indian poet and film lyricist who wrote mainly in the Tamil language. He penned more than 4000 lyrics in more than 250 Tamil films.
