 It was said to be the mother of all marriages. One doesn't know whether it will have a fairytale ending. However, the early years in the post-marriage situation must have been traumatic for Sivaji
Ganesan.
V N Sudhagaran, the bridegroom, the much touted foster son of Jayalalithaa, the then chief minister, married Sivaji's granddaughter in a marriage which turned out to be the most controversial event of the year and perhaps led to the defeat of Jayalalithaa's AIADMK in the 1996
elections.
Several crore rupees were said to have gone into the marriage as VIP after VIP turned up. The ostentatious display of wealth, particularly ornaments worn by Jayalalithaa's entourage, as they walked down to the marriage hall, irked the people who made up their mind against the AIADMK in the 1996 elections.
Later, after the defeat, Jayalalithaa, attributing the defeat to the perceived role of her close aide Sasikala and relatives who operated from the chief minister's residence like Sudhagaran (Sasikala's nephew), distanced herself from the Sasikala family and publicly disowned her foster son.
This was a blow to Sivaji's hope of seeing a happily married couple. Later, as cases were registered against Sudhagaran, the agony must have increased for the thespian. Recently, the last straw must have come in the form of the arrest of Sudhagaran in an assault case. A heroin case was also filed against Sudhagaran nearly a fortnight ago.
The last fortnight must have been, therefore, traumatic for Sivaji Ganesan, who already suffered from a heart ailment.
R Rangaraj
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