J Jayalalithaa was one of Tamil Nadu’s most charismatic leaders, something she probably inherited from MGR, her mentor. At least, that is what her party members would have you, and the rest of Tamil Nadu believe.

Jayalalithaa’s successes as a student, and then as a movie star are phenomenal. As an actor, she was disinterested (as she herself confessed), and yet, a brilliant and prolific artiste. Her political strategy was flush with people-friendly schemes that were adopted by other states. However, her journey also saw big embarrassing scams and jail sentences.

Overall, Jayalalithaa was phenomenal in her successes, failures, virtues and faults.

Here’s a ballad set in a Tamil folk tune, on the woman whom Tamil Nadu calls Amma: