Village to celebrate MGR’s birth centenary

He used to visit Vadavannur frequently when he was Tamil Nadu Chief Minister

January 02, 2017 07:28 pm | Updated January 03, 2017 04:27 pm IST - Palakkad:

A remote village in the district is all set to celebrate the birth centenary of matinee idol-turned-Tamil Nadu politician M.G. Ramachandran which falls on January 17.

Vadavannur, located 12 km from Palakkad town, is all prepared to celebrate the event with the non-profit organisation Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage (INTACH) joining hands with residents of the village where the charismatic leader spent his childhood years.

INTACH functionary Arun Narayanan told The Hindu that the organisation was planning yearlong celebrations in the village, including a cultural festival and setting up of an MGR cultural centre. On January 17, a public function would be held in which experts would talk about MGR’s fascination with the village and his contributions as a legendary actor and politician.

Childhood years

Vadavannur houses the ancestral home of MGR’s mother and he was attached to its pristine settings emotionally. The house, where MGR spent his childhood after relocating from his birthplace Kandy in Sri Lanka, now serves as an anganwadi and INTACH plans to make it the hub of the centenary celebrations .

The small tile-roofed house, which MGR frequently visited even when he was the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, still retains an old-world charm.

The house was occupied by relatives of MGR’s mother Sathyabhama until a few years ago, and once they decided to shift to Palakkad, they rented it out to the anganwadi, citing the icon’s affection for children.

“The house is in ruins owing to lack of repair. Though AIADMK leaders from Tamil Nadu make an occasional pilgrimage, it is in a neglected state. As it happens to be a private property, the Kerala government too faces limitations in converting it into an MGR memorial,” said M. Pushpalatha, a part-time teacher at the anganwadi. However, INTACH has plans to evolve a larger project to convert it as a fitting memorial to the legendary artist.

Apart from an old image of MGR, pictures of leaders such as C.N. Annadurai and Jayalalithaa adorn the walls of the anganwadi.

“MGR’s father Maruthur Gopala Menon, who hailed from the nearby Nalleppilly village, moved to Vadavannur after he retired as a magistrate in Kandy and stayed for some time in the house. After he died, MGR and his brother M.G. Chakrapani were taken by their mother to Kumbakonam, where their father’s elder brother lived. It was while living in Kumbakonam that both the brothers entered films,” said N. Mayil Swamy, a local political activist.

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