The producers of the Jayalalithaa biopic Thalaivii include a company called Gothic Entertainment. Is that why Thalaivii has its own versi...
The producers of the Jayalalithaa biopic Thalaivii include a company called Gothic Entertainment. Is that why Thalaivii has its own version of Mrs Danvers, the psychotic housekeeper from the Gothic classic Rebecca?
Like Mrs Danvers fiercely guards the memory of her dead mistress and torments her new employer, Thalaivii’s RN Veerappan hovers around MJ Ramachandran, movie star and chief minister of Tamil Nadu. When Ramachandran gets entangled with co-star Jaya, Veerappan works overtime to trip up this new competitor for his master’s affections.
RN Veerappan is, of course, based on real-life Tamil politician RM Veerappan and MJ Ramachandran is MG Ramachandran. Despite a minor change in the names of these leaders, there is no doubt about who the movie is about or what it sets out to do – create a flattering and flattening portrait of a multi-dimensional personality.
The tributes that followed J Jayalalithaa’s death in 2016 reminded us of the crests and troughs that marked her existence: the genteel poverty that forced her to the movie business, the stardom, the professional and personal bond with MG Ramachandran that eventually led her into politics, her reinvention after MGR’s death in 1987, her years in power and in the wilderness, the rampant corruption and the high-handedness.
If one image of Jayalalithaa has survived the controversies, it...
