The Empress / Bloomsbury India (ePub)

The book captures the life and times of ' puratchi thalaivi' Jayalalithaa who through sheer will and determination rose to become the chief minister of Tamil Nadu in 1991. Under her leadership the AIADMK came to power four times: 1991,2001,2011 and 2016. Her death on December 5, 2016 was sudden.

For many, Jaya was a cult figure, who remained an enigma all her life. She could garner votes and pull crowds on the basis of her charismatic appeal, which she had cultivated during her initial years as a movie star. Known as the 'Iron Lady' of Tamil Nadu, her autocratic style brooked no dissent from her party whose members fawned over wish with slavish displays of obedience.

Hailing from the celluloid world, Jaya's life story runs like a screenplay. She excelled in two fields: films and politics. She was introduced to films by her mother and to politcs by her mentor and the AIADMK founder M.G.Ramachandran , himself a super star. From filmdom to politics, her life remains an interesting subject of study.

She was known as 'Amma'( mother) to her voters , and though a Brahmin, her appeal transcended caste, language and creed. She pioneered welfare schemes and portrayed herself as the champion of poor by introducing schemes to provide cheap food, medicines, cement and even mineral water.
The book portrays the ups and downs in her life, her legal and political battles and her political dominance in Tamil Nadu. Jaya may be dead, but she has ensured that her legend lives on. She was an empress when alive, and continues to reign from the afterlife.