Madurai to get legendary actor Sivaji’s statue

August 26, 2009 07:16 pm | Updated 07:17 pm IST - MADURAI

A life-size bronze statue of legendary film actor Sivaji Ganesan will be unveiled in Madurai on October 4 by M. K. Azhagiri, Union Minister for Chemicals and Fertilizers, in the presence of actor Kamal Hassan and a galaxy of stars from the Tamil film industry.

Addressing a press conference here on Wednesday, G. Ramkumar, the late actor’s elder son, said that the wishes of actor’s fans in Madurai to install a statue to honour him had become a reality now. The Union Minister had recently remarked at a function that he was not a fan, but a “fanatic” of `Sivaji’ .

The late thespian’s statue would be installed just behind the statue of late Congress leader P. Kakkan on Dr. Ambedkar Road. The bhoomi puja was held on Wednesday.

Mr. Ramkumar said that it was purely because of the effort of former Chairman, Board of Trustees of Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, V. N. Chidambaram, who was a close friend and associate of the thespian, the idea materialised.

According to Mr. Chidambaram, the eight-and-a-half-foot bronze statue to be installed in Madurai would be a different one from the earlier bronze statues installed in Puducherry, Chennai and Thanjavur. It would have a different mould and strike a different pose. The statue model would have Sivaji Ganesan sporting a gentle look with hands folded back and in the attire that he normally used to attend wedding ceremonies. A miniature model was displayed to the media.

When asked about other efforts to honour the actor, Mr.Ramkumar said that SRM University Sivaji Ganesan Film Institute had started a three-year degree course in film technology (Bachelors degree in Film Technology) and a one year Diploma in Acting, which, he claimed, was the first of its kind in India.

The ceremony to unveil the statue, Mr. Chidambaram said, would be attended by D. Napoleon, Union Minister of State for Social Justice and Empowerment, Parithi Ilamvazhuthi, Minister for Information and Broadcasting, and A. Tamilarasi, Minister for Adi Dravidar and Tribal Welfare.

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