CHENNAI: Even as the skies opened up in Tamil Nadu, so did the purse strings of Tamil film stars, who have made generous contributions to the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s Relief Fund.
As soon as the Nadigar Sangam announced that it was collecting donations from its members who were looking to contribute to the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister’s Relief Fund, funds have been pouring in. Several actors have been making generous contributions and the latest to join this list is none other than superstar Rajinikanth, who is not in the country at the moment.
A source close to the actor says, “Rajini sir has donated a sum of `10 lakh to the Tamil Nadu Flood Relief Fund to help those affected by the recent rains in the state. Nadigar Sangam president Nasser collected the pay order from Rajini sir’s Raghavendra Mandapam office on Tuesday.”
It started with actors Suriya and Karthi making a combined donation of `25 lakh to the Chief Ministers Relief Fund through the Nadigar Sangam. The brothers handed over a cheque for the sum to Nasser, in the presence of the other office-bearers of the association. Soon, Vishal handed over a cheque for `10 lakh to the Nadigar Sangam president to help those affected by the floods. Rajini’s son-in-law Dhanush donated `5 lakhs to the Relief Fund.
With the showers showing no signs of slackening, more stars have stepped forward to offer help. Veteran actor Prabhu, along with his son Vikram Prabhu, have contributed `5 lakh, while Sathyaraj and his son Sibi have donated a sum of `2.25 lakh. Upcoming actor Siva Karthikeyan too contributed a sum of `5 lakh to the TN Chief Minister’s Relief Fund through the Nadigar Sangam.
Informs another source, “While we have mentioned only some people who made big donations, there are several other actors who too have donated. Sources in the film industry suggest that more stars are likely to come forward to help in the next few days. Once these funds are collected, the office-bearers of the Nadigar Sangam will hand them over to the officials concerned.”