Superstar Rajinikanth at public hall where Jayalalithaa's body was kept for public to pay tributes
Highlights
- Lakhs gathered at Rajaji Hall where Jayalalithaa's body was on display
- She died late Monday night, was laid to rest at Marina Beach
- Superstar Rajinikanth among those who paid tribute to her
Superstar Rajinikanth this morning visited the public auditorium where J Jayalalithaa's body, draped in the national flag, was displayed for lakhs of visitors before her funeral.
Rajinikanth, 65, was seen standing next to Sasikala Natarajan, who was Ms Jayalalithaa's closest aide. The actor then bowed his head in respect, paying tribute to one of the most powerful and successful political leaders in the country.
Ms Jayalalithaa died last night in a Chennai hospital, about 70 days after she was admitted there. O Panneerselvam from her party, the AIDMK, has replaced her as Chief Minister.
Superstar Rajinikanth pays tribute to Jayalalithaa. Her closest aide Sasikala Natarajan was present
Like Rajinikanth, Ms Jayalalithaa was a wildly popular actor. She acted in nearly 150 films before she was initiated into politics in the 80s by her former co-star and mentor, MG Ramachandran.
In 1996, Rajinikanth, whose fan following is stratospheric, had famously declared "Even God can't save Tamil Nadu if Jayalalithaa is elected to power". Ms Jayalalithaa's rival, the DMK, won that election. The superstar later made up with Ms Jayalalithaa and she attended his daughter's wedding in Chennai in November 2004.
In 2011, he was followed by cameras as he voted. His hand was seen hovering near the two-leaves election symbol of Ms Jayalalithaa's AIADMK.
Other actors who mourned the death of Jayalalithaa include Dhanush, Sivakarthikeyan, Sathyaraj, Karthi and Vijay Sethupathi. The final rites were performed this evening.