Chennai: J Jayalalithaa ruled over a land where the border between politics and cinema was an indistinguishable blur. The former actor's life was no less exciting than a Tamil movie plot. Each phase of her career reflected an era of Tamil Nadu's history.
Jayalalithaa was born Komalavalli in a Tamil Iyengar family that migrated to Mysore. Her father Jayaraman died when she was only two years old. Vedavalli took over complete care of her daughter and trained her in classical music and dance. She wanted the talented girl to enter the world of movies.
Jayalalithaa was only 15 years when she made her debut as a lead actor in a Kannada movie named Chinnada Gombe in 1964. Though Jayalalithaa was noted for her performance, she never lost sight of her studies. The next year, she was offered a role in a Tamil movie, Vennira Aadai, directed by C.V. Sridhar. An array of hits followed, including Yaar Nee, Daiva Magan, Ayirathil Oruvan and Adimai Pen. No one in Tamil Nadu was able to break Jaya's record of acting in 11 hit films in a single year, 1966.
Jayalalithaa assumed the moniker 'Puratchi Talaivi' after she was paired with matinee idol M.G. Ramachandran in Ayirathil Oruvan. The star pair sizzled in 28 box office hits. Jaya was viewed as the real-life wife or lover of the hugely popular MGR. The star-crazy people elevated Jaya to a pedestal near MGR, laying the foundation for her future hold over the state.
Jaya received a temporary setback when MGR picked Manjula as his screen pair. Rumors were abound that MGR and Jaya had parted ways, but Jaya had carved a space of her own by then. She remained 'Puratchi Talaivi'. She acted with MGR for the last time in 1973 in Pattikkattu Ponnaiya.
She went on to create many more hits with several other stars, including Jayasankar and Ravichandran. She had done many memorable movies, including Vairam, Raja Veettu Pillai, Avalkku Aayiram Kangal, Astiparulu, Brahmachari and Sooryagandhi. She made her mark in Telugu filmdom as well.
No other actress has influenced the Tamil society the way Jaya did. Her moves were quick and precise, both in the movie industry and politics. She joined the AIADMK when MGR formed the new party as a challenge to the DMK. She went on to script her political destiny as the undisputed queen of Tamil Nadu.