Beginning as the book does with a panegyric ode to a departed DMK leader, the fear set in that the tome running to 550 reading pages may be just another hagiographical account of political leaders who are invariably placed in a pantheon of demigods by the people. But, no, this is a very dispassionate historical account of the DMK years, warts and all, which virtually means a whole eon of time from India’s independence to the present day. The importance of Madras, as the seat of the presidency in colonial times, and Tamil Nadu in the tempestuous days of modern Indian politics is well established with the state’s personalities having their say in national affairs.
How gigantic some of them seem with the passage of time is made evident by Kannan capturing the success and failures of Annadurai, Karunanidhi, MGR and Jayalalithaa, besides touching on the influence Periyar, Rajaji and Kamaraj wielded in shaping events. If the feeling of cynicism around Indian politics only grows as the pages roll by, blame it on how little the people’s concerns mattered to even these great leaders of people, each one having mastered the art of realpolitik after getting the endorsement of the voters. Their shifting loyalties throw an unflattering light on politics making not strange bedfellows as much as alternating allies to bed with at every turn that could be straight out of a soap opera of politics.
If Anna, who founded the DMK party to distance himself somewhat from his mentor, the atheist.