A sea of people crying, yowling, as a part of an unmindful crowd, walked down through the streets of Tamil Nadu following the funeral procession of the stalwart Maruthur Gopala Ramachandran.
Jostling through the crowd, wailed a young woman "Thalaiva, nee sollamai poittaye" (leader you have gone without telling us). Holding her baby in her arms, the mother ran behind the procession shoving people out of her way to catch a glimpse of the leader for one last time.
Seemed like the heart of Tamil Nadu has stopped. The state griefed as members of the political party lamented over his demise.
"Why should Madras survive when MGR has gone?," cried followers in unison. The cries reached an eerie crescendo as the body of the dead leader was taken into a flower-bedecked carriage.
"The world will never see another leader like MGR." mourned R. Chandrasekhar.
God descended on the earth, if his followers were to be believed.
Serving the nation as a politician for as long as he lived, after he left the world of celluloid, Ramachandran gradually became the people's King, 'Makkal Thilagam' as they call it.
Such was the magnanimous image of the legendary Ramachandran.
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At a time when Rajinikanth and Kamal Hassan are deluged with their political ambitions, it reminds us of the time when it all began.
Setting the trend was the iconic superstar of the Tamil filmdom MGR who opted out of his flourishing career in films to become the people's representative.
The matinee idol was equally established in the world of politics.
One of the most influential actors of the Tamil cinema who later on acquired the throne of the Chief Minister served the position for a decade to be precise.
Meanwhile, when cinema began taking root in India, Ramachandran got his first break in an Ellis R. Dungan directorial.
Hit by poverty at an early age, MGR later made a steady rise in the world of cinema from becoming a great actor to a director and producer.
In 1972, he was honoured with the National Award for Best Actor for his feature film Rickshawkaran.
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Setting new milestones, was Ramachandran's trademark. Most of his movies, if not all, turned out to be a great money-spinner. It was his films that resonated with the success of the Tamil film industry.
Drawing bumper crowds across theatres, Ramachandran went on to become an unparallel icon of all times.
The gamut of emotions that his films interpreted gained critic's admiration and acclaim from connoisseurs and cine lovers.
The philanthropist and the humanitarian icon tasted triumph like one else.
Speaking about the Salwart, even Rajinikanth was quoted saying, "They say not everyone can be MGR. I agree. MGR is a revolutionary. Not in a 1,000 years can there be another MGR. If anyone says he will be the next MGR, he is insane."
