CHENNAI: Clearly disappointed by the absence of the chief minister and the deputy chief minister in the itinerary for the proposed inauguration of the memorial for late acting legend, 'Sivaji Ganesan' on Sunday, his son and noted actor Prabhu invoked the name of late leader J Jayalalithaa to make a fervent plea to the State government not to make the event a low-key affair.
“Sivaji Ganesan through his movies has done so much for Tamil culture and Tamil language. So please sir, we feel this kind of a small function for our father is a kind of disrespecting him (sic). Please do reconsider about requesting the chief minister and all our government dignitaries to attend the inaugural function. It is a humble request, sir. Our family, as well as thousands of Sivaji Ganesan fans, are waiting for a favourable reply from you,” the family of the late actor said in a letter to Information Minister Kadambur Raju on Thursday.
Establishing the memorial for the late actor was a dream project of Jayalalithaa, they said in the letter. Jayalalithaa would have presided over the function if she were alive, the letter stressed.
The government had announced on Wednesday that the memorial would be opened by Kadambur Raju in the presence of cabinet colleague D Jayakumar, neither of them belonging to the top three in cabinet hierarchy.
Rumours suggest many reasons for Chief Minister 'Edappadi' K Palaniswami and his deputy O Panneerselvam staying away from the event, including the almost certain presence of actor Kamal Haasan who has become a thorn for the State government and these leaders with his relentless criticism of them in recent months.
As the absence of the top leader of the state for the proposed function became a controversy, opposition DMK and the Congress too asked the chief minister to unveil the statue of the thespian inside the memorial.
Vagai Chandrasekar, head of the art and literature wing of DMK and MLA, said it was an insult to the great actor that the chief minister was not willing to unveil his idol.
The film fraternity must mobilise themselves against the injustice meted out to one its great personalities, Chandrasekar appealed.
Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) president S Thirunavukkarasar demanded that the government organise the event in a befitting manner.
The function must be held in the presence of the chief minister, actors Rajinikanth, Kamal Haasan and the family members of the late actor, he said.