The Big DMK Wedding in Madurai

The grand wedding ceremony of DMK chief M Karunanidhi's grandson, Durai Dayanidhi, took place in Madurai on Thursday, November 18. Among the many known faces who graced the occasion were Congress leader Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister P Chidambaram and actor Rajinikanth.

On Wednesday, an equally impressive reception was attended by politicians, actors and corporates from across the country.

The wedding is not only the social event in political circles, it has also united the party's first family. Durai Dayanidhi is the son of DMK leader Alagiri, who is also a member of the Union Cabinet.

It was a big day for the newly-wed couple. Seen in the picture here is the bride - Anusha - and the bridegroom - Durai Dayanidhi - right after the jayamala ceremony. Anusha is the daughter of a Chennai-based advocate.

Superstar Rajinikanth also attended the outsized wedding in Madurai.

"I feel so happy when I play with my two grandchildren..I can realize how proud and happy the Chief Minister is now," he said.

The actor also offered an advice. He said that the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has two assets - the DMK party and his sons, M K Alagiri and M K Stalin.

"These assets have the responsibility to protect each other."

Home Minister P Chidambaram was also in town to bless the couple.

Alagiri had personally invited the President, the Prime Minister and UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, but they did not attend the function.

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee was also present to grace the occasion.

In some parts of the world, the announcement of Prince William's wedding to Kate Middleton may be of huge interest, but Madurai was busy hosting bigwigs from the film industry as well as the political fraternity.

The resplendent looking couple are being greeted here at the grand reception on Wednesday evening. Others look on.

Here, the proud father, Alagiri, is seen enjoying the moment of great pride and satisfaction, with guests bestowing wishes and luck upon the couple.

Alagiri, is seen with family and guests soaking in the proud moment and striking a pretty pose.

In a perfect move to lift the party's spirit, he sang a Tamil film song. Karunanidhi and other family members were clearly seen enjoying the performance.

Actors Kamal Hassan, Kushbu, Vadivel, Napolean, Madhavan, Ajit were among the notable stars world who greeted Durai Dayanidhi and Anusha, daughter of a Chennai-based advocate. Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel was also in town for the wedding.

The king of good times, Vijay Mallya, was there to wish the newly married couple. The proud father, Alagiri, looks on.

The Chairman of selectors, BCCI, Krishnamachari Srikkanth was also one among the many known faces to have graced the reception ceremony.

Raja, mired in the 2G scam, took a welcome break from the controversies surrounding him and stood solidly with his beloved leader Karunanidhi. The two were seen having a good time.

The last few days have been stressful for the Congress alliance with the DMK – under pressure from the former, the DMK asked A Raja to resign as Telecom Minister for his allegedly pivotal role in the 2G scam.

Raja has been blamed for causing the government massive losses (upto Rs 1.76 lakh crore) by circumventing the rules and ignoring the advice of the Finance and Law Ministers as well as the PM when distributing 2G spectrum in 2008.

Flanked by family and high-profile guests, the bride and the bridegroom pose for the shutterbugs.

Here's one big happy family. The proud grandfather, Karunanidhi, is flanked by family and the superstar Rajinikant. This one's for the family album.

The united colours of DMK at family wedding in Madurai

The glittering function of the state's first family was attended by close to 20,000 guests.

Described as "Seertirutha Tirumanam" (a marriage conducted according to one's self-respect) by Karunanidhi, the wedding was grand in all respects - whether it was feast or the wedding dais.

The wedding hall with a total capacity of 20,000 people was full. The wedding was shown live on some local cable TV networks.