CHENNAI: Marking the birth centenary of the evergreen Tamil matinee idol and former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu MG Ramachandran, Penguin India launched a new book on his life on Saturday.
The biography, titled MGR: A Life and penned by R Kannan, received critical acclaims from eminent personalities including Lok Sabha member Shashi Tharoor, veteran film producer R M Veerappan and State Secretary of the All-India Congress Committee S Thirunavukkarasar.
Shashi Tharoor, who presented the inaugural copy to R M Veerapan at the event held at Kalaivanar Arangam here, heaped praises on the late actor and said, “MGR is the first and the best Indian superstar along with NT Rama Rao to reproduce his success from reel life in real life.
He played a stunning role in reducing the level of the Congress from the top party in Tamil Nadu to a supporting party.” Tharoor also hailed the mid-day meal scheme, which was nurtured by MGR in Tamil Nadu in the 80s as a role-model concept for the rest of India.
N Ram, former editor of The Hindu, praised the author of the book, R Kannan, saying, “Kannan kept the critical distance while empathising with MGR’s life he was biographing. Biographies should be evaluation and interpretation of one’s life and should not be judgemental.”