RIP Muthuvel Karunanidhi (1924-2018)

Muthuvel Karunanidhi, the artist (Kalaignar) among politicians, was born in 1924 the village in Nagapattinam district. From a young age, Karunanidhi was interested in the arts, and in its pursuit. As a fine and witty orator, it was soon politics for him, where he left his mark as a champion of Dravidian ideals for over 50 years. (Photo: YouTube screengrab)

Karunanidhi wrote scripts for over 50 Tamil films, focusing on historical and social reformist topics that furthered the nationalist ideals of the Dravidian movement. His ‘Parasakthi’ in 1952 is a watershed in Tamil cinema for espousing Dravidian ideology and also for introducing two acting pantheons – Gemini Ganesan and S S Rajendran. (With popular Tamil actor Shivaji Ganesan in this photo) (Photo: YouTube screengrab)

Karunanidhi’s films and plays cut through social prejudice, caste domination and reformist inertia and spoke about widow remarriage, abolition of untouchability and the feudal system, religious hypocrisy among others. Needless to say, he had a field day with the censor fellows.(Photo: YouTube screengrab)

Karunanidhi’s contribution to Tamil literature is significant. He wrote novels, biographies, poems, plays and essays. He also made a mark on architecture. In Kanyakumari, he constructed a 133-feet high statue of the scholar Thiruvalluvar. (Karunanidhi enjoys a meal with actor-politician M.G. Ramachandran) (Photo: YouTube screengrab)

Karunanidhi entered the Tamil Nadu Assembly from Kulithalai in 1957. He was 37. He was treasurer of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) in 1961 and leader of the Opposition in 1962. When DMK came to power in 1967, he got the Public Works portfolio. (Seen here with former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi) (Photo: YouTube screengrab)

Karunanidhi was chief minister of Tamil Nadu five times in over four decades. He became chief minister for the first time in 1969 when Annadurai died. While his rise has been meteoric, he also suffered many electoral defeats against top opponent M G Ramachandran’s AIADMK till his death in 1987. (Photo: YouTube screengrab)

His brief chiefministership in the 1980s was scuttled by the Centre when it dismissed his government on grounds of degrading law and order. He ruled the state for a full term from 1996, losing to AIADMK’s J Jayalalithaa in 2001. Karunanidhi was back to power in 2006, representing Tiruvarur. (Photo: YouTube screengrab)

From 1957 to 2016, Karunanidhi has been sent to Assembly 13 timesn and once to the now abolished Tamil Nadu Legislative Council. (Seen here with M.G. Ramachandran) (Photo: YouTube screengrab)

Karunanidhi is seen here with son M K Stalin, whom he announced DMK heir apparent in January, 2013. (Photo: AFP)

Karunanidhi is seen here with his daughter Kanimozhi, a Rajya Sabha member. (Photo: PTI)

Karunanidhi is seen here with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. (Photo: PTI)

M Karunanidhi with seen with former UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi.