Queen Casts Her Spell on TN: Met Two CMs and film shoot of Kamal Hassan

Though the aura of the British monarchy is on the wane, it has no doubt captivated generations and Tamil Nadu, which Queen Elizabeth II had visited twice, was no exception. In 1997, she witnessed the shooting of veteran actor Kamal Hassan's dream project, 'Marudhanayagam', a period movie on a Muslim warrior who rose through the ranks in the army of the British East India Company, writes ETV Bharat's MC Rajan.

Chennai: Gracing the shooting of Kamal Hassan's unfinished dream project, Marudhanayagam, was Queen Elizabeth II, exactly a quarter century ago. She was aware of the dialogues which were anti-British and was informed of it in advance. Yet, she kept her date and did not disappoint the versatile actor, who was also its producer. Probably, it was the only film shoot that a British monarch could have witnessed. Despite the film being shelved, the Queen's presence had given it wider publicity as it was her important engagement in this southern metro, which was instrumental in the consolidation of British power in peninsular India.

It was an ambitious project about the valour and treacherous execution of a brave warrior, Marudhanayagam (1725 – 1764) who had humble beginnings but rose to the level of a commander in the army of the East India Company. Converting to Islam later on, he took the name of Yusuf Khan. His effort in containing crime in and around Madurai and opposition to excessive taxation by the British earned him the affection of the people and the distrust of the British. Before joining the British, he was with the French and later with the Thanjavur king. On being entrusted to administer a turbulent Madurai region at the end of the Nayak rule, he restored law and order. Besides renovating lakes and temple tanks destroyed by Hyder Ali, he restored the lands of the Meenakshi temple. After Khan declared himself independent, he was captured by bribing his associates and hanged at Sammatipuram near Madurai. According to oral tradition, he was captured while offering namaz. After being hanged, his body was dismembered and buried in different places. He was Khan Sahib for the masses and his life had entered folklore.

During the shoot at the MGR Film City, the then Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and his son and present incumbent, MK Stalin, had an audience with the queen.

Recalling the queen's participation at the shoot, Kamal Hassan says of her magnanimity, “She arrived here on the date when Marudhanayagam was hanged. The dialogues were against colonial rule and she knew that. It was proof of her understanding and acknowledgement of the fact that the world has changed. She has come not as an empress, but as a mother. Her visit was borne out of the vision to create a new world by giving up the past with an urge to forge a new future.”

Hassan also referred to his visit to Buckingham place where he had an audience with the queen. Her first visit to Chennai in 1961, turned out to be a memorable one. For, the first birthday of prince Andrew was celebrated here with Queen Elizabeth II, cutting the cake at the Rajaji Hall, a colonial-era Greek-style banqueting hall. The event was presided over by K Kamaraj, the then Chief Minister on February 19. During that state visit, she was accompanied by her husband, Prince Philip.

Interestingly, the photo of the queen cutting the cake has been mistakenly used to spread stories that she was serving food to Kamaraj. However, the popular local bakery where the cake was ordered by the Chief Minister continues to display the photo in one of its outlets on the arterial Anna Salai in the city.