C.N. Annadurai
Fifteen million people are said to have come to his funeral, a Guinness World Record. He had been Chief Minister for under two years.
Founder of the DMK, first non-Congress CM
Annadurai broke away from Periyar’s party to found the DMK, then led it to Tamil Nadu’s first non-Congress government less than two decades later.
Conjeevaram Natarajan Annadurai lived from 1909 to 1969. People called him “Anna,” meaning elder brother.
He joined the Justice Party in 1935. That party reorganised itself as Periyar’s Dravidar Kazhagam in 1944.
He broke away from the Dravidar Kazhagam on 17 September 1949. He then founded the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, or DMK.
The break came after Periyar married Maniammai, a much younger woman. Annadurai and several supporters objected and left the party.
The DMK-led United Front swept the Madras State election in 1967. This ended over a decade of unbroken Congress rule there.
He was sworn in as Chief Minister on 6 March 1967. He was the first Dravidian, and first non-Congress, CM of the state.
His ministry had nine members, all from the DMK. Governor Ujjal Singh administered the oath of office.
Source: standard record of Annadurai’s break from the Dravidar Kazhagam and the DMK’s 1967 election win.
Pause and decide · 1 of 10
Annadurai first joined the Justice Party in 1935, years before it reorganised as Periyar’s Dravidar Kazhagam in 1944. True or false?
True. He later broke from the Dravidar Kazhagam in 1949 to found his own party, the DMK.
Renaming the state, and dying in office
Annadurai renamed Madras State as Tamil Nadu, then died of cancer just three weeks later, after a battle with the disease he had kept from public view.
The Madras Legislative Assembly unanimously adopted a renaming resolution on 18 July 1967. It called for the state to be renamed Tamil Nadu.
Parliament passed the Madras State (Alteration of Name) Act in 1968. The renamed state, Tamil Nadu, was born on 14 January 1969.
He had been suffering from esophageal cancer, linked to years of tobacco chewing. He underwent surgery at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in New York, in September 1968.
He returned to Chennai in November 1968. He continued his official duties despite his declining health.
Annadurai died on 3 February 1969. This was just three weeks after the renaming took effect.
He served as Chief Minister for under two years in total. Despite this, his reforms reshaped Tamil Nadu’s politics for decades.
He was appointed to the Rajya Sabha on 3 April 1962. He gave his maiden speech there on 1 May 1962, criticising the government’s record on democracy, socialism, and nationalism.
Before 1962, the DMK demanded a separate Dravida Nadu nation. Annadurai dropped that demand after the India-China war that year.
Source: standard record of the 1969 state renaming and Annadurai’s cancer treatment and death.
Pause and decide · 2 of 10
Annadurai’s cancer was discovered and treated only after Tamil Nadu was renamed in January 1969, in the final weeks of his life. True or false?
False. He was already being treated for esophageal cancer well before the renaming, including surgery in New York in September 1968, and continued his duties despite declining health.
A weaver’s son who became a writer
Born to a weaver’s family in Kanchipuram, Annadurai worked his way through college and journalism before writing socially-themed film scripts.
He was born on 15 September 1909 in Kanchipuram, Madras Presidency. His father Natarajan was a weaver.
His mother, Bangaru Ammal, worked as a temple servant. His elder sister Rajamani Ammal helped raise him.
He briefly worked as a clerk to support his family. He later returned to studies at Pachaiyappa’s College, Chennai.
He earned his B.A. there in 1934, then an M.A. in Economics and Politics. He briefly taught English at his old school afterward.
He edited the Tamil weekly Viduthalai and wrote for Periyar’s Kudi Arasu. He founded his own weekly, Dravida Nadu, in 1942.
Before full-time politics, he wrote screenplays with Dravidian social-reform themes. These included Nallathambi (1949) and Velaikkari.
Source: standard record of Annadurai’s early life, education, and screenwriting career.
Pause and decide · 3 of 10
Before entering full-time politics, Annadurai wrote screenplays carrying Dravidian social-reform themes, including Nallathambi in 1949. True or false?
True. He had already built a career in journalism, editing Viduthalai and founding his own weekly, Dravida Nadu, in 1942.
A marriage law and a free education policy
His government legalised priest-free “self-respect marriages” and made pre-university education free for lower-income families.
His government legalised “self-respect marriages,” performed without a priest. The Assembly passed the law on 27 November 1967.
The self-respect marriage law took effect on 20 January 1968. Couples could now marry without any religious ceremony.
Annadurai reportedly sent the draft rule to Periyar for review. He then changed one word, “and” to “or,” making the bride’s thaali optional.
His government made pre-university education free for many families. This applied to children whose parents earned under Rs. 1,500 a month.
See ModHist0251 — Periyar E.V. Ramasamy, and ModHist0253 — M. Karunanidhi, his mentor and successor respectively.
Source: standard record of the 1967 self-respect marriage law and free-education policy.
Pause and decide · 4 of 10
Annadurai’s self-respect marriage law made a religious ceremony compulsory, while removing only the requirement for a priest. True or false?
False. The law, in effect from 20 January 1968, let couples marry without any religious ceremony at all, not just without a priest.
A rice scheme, and a World Tamil Conference
Annadurai combined an early food-subsidy scheme with a major cultural event, while building the DMK’s mass appeal through cinema and oratory.
His government subsidised rice at one rupee for 1.5 kilograms. This was one of India’s earliest large-scale food subsidy schemes.
His government hosted the Second World Tamil Conference in Chennai in 1968. It drew Tamil scholars and delegates from several countries.
He was among the first Dravidian leaders to use Tamil cinema for political messaging. His own scripts carried anti-caste, anti-superstition themes.
He was renowned as a Tamil orator, known for wit and sharp political sarcasm. This oratory helped build the DMK’s early mass appeal.
Source: standard record of the 1968 rice subsidy scheme and World Tamil Conference.
Pause and decide · 5 of 10
Annadurai’s rice subsidy scheme, offering 1.5 kilograms for one rupee, was one of India’s earliest large-scale food subsidy programmes. True or false?
True. His government also hosted the Second World Tamil Conference in Chennai the same year, 1968.
A record funeral
Annadurai’s funeral is listed as history’s largest by Guinness World Records, and his burial site remains a landmark on Chennai’s Marina Beach.
Guinness World Records lists his funeral as history’s largest. It recorded about 1.5 crore, or 15 million, mourners.
Some commentators dispute that number. It exceeds a third of Tamil Nadu’s total population at the time.
He was buried at what is now called the Anna Memorial, on Chennai’s Marina Beach. The site later became a standard stop on the Marina’s row of leader memorials.
His 1967 win effectively ended Congress dominance in Tamil Nadu politics. The state has never fully reversed that shift since.
Source: Guinness World Records entry and standard record of Annadurai’s funeral and burial.
Pause and decide · 6 of 10
The roughly 15 million mourner figure for Annadurai’s funeral is universally accepted, with no commentator ever disputing it. True or false?
False. Some commentators dispute the figure, since it exceeds a third of Tamil Nadu’s total population at the time. Guinness World Records still lists it as history’s largest funeral.
A five-term successor
M. Karunanidhi eventually succeeded Annadurai as Chief Minister, and Chennai later renamed a major road and issued a coin in Annadurai’s memory.
M. Karunanidhi, his protégé, did not succeed him immediately. V.R. Nedunchezhiyan first served as caretaker Chief Minister.
Karunanidhi was sworn in as Chief Minister on 10 February 1969. He went on to serve as CM five separate times.
Anna University, established in 1978, is named in his honour. Anna Salai, a major Chennai road renamed from the earlier Mount Road, was renamed for him in November 1969.
The Reserve Bank of India issued a ₹5 coin in 2009, marking the centenary of his birth.
See ModHist0040 — India’s Official Language Debate: The 1965 Anti-Hindi Agitation, for the language politics that fuelled his 1967 rise to power.
Source: standard record of Karunanidhi’s succession and Annadurai’s memorials.
Pause and decide · 7 of 10
Chennai’s Anna Salai, renamed for Annadurai in November 1969, was earlier known as Mount Road. True or false?
True. The Reserve Bank of India also issued a ₹5 coin in 2009 to mark the centenary of his birth.
Exam Angle: What to Expect
No Previous Year Question in this site’s index has directly tested this yet.
Do not confuse Annadurai with Periyar. Periyar founded the Dravidar Kazhagam; Annadurai split off to found the DMK in 1949.
Annadurai was Chief Minister of Madras State, then briefly of Tamil Nadu after the January 1969 renaming, dying weeks later.
Examiners often pair him with the 1965 anti-Hindi agitation and the 1967 election, since both fed directly into his rise to power.
Source: standard analysis of likely exam angles on C.N. Annadurai.
Pause and decide · 8 of 10
Periyar founded the Dravidar Kazhagam, while Annadurai split from it in 1949 to found the DMK — a common source of exam confusion. True or false?
True. Examiners often pair Annadurai with the 1965 anti-Hindi agitation and the 1967 election, since both fed directly into his rise to power as Chief Minister.
Pause and decide · 9 of 10
Annadurai served as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu for several years before his death in 1969. True or false?
False. Tamil Nadu was born as a renamed state only on 14 January 1969, and he died just three weeks later, on 3 February 1969.
Pause and decide · 10 of 10
Annadurai’s Rajya Sabha appointment came in April 1962, and his maiden speech there followed the next month. True or false?
True. He was appointed on 3 April 1962 and gave his maiden speech on 1 May 1962, criticising the government’s record on democracy, socialism, and nationalism.
Check your understanding
Answer the ten checks above. You will see each explanation after choosing.
Primary sources
- Standard record of C.N. Annadurai’s life, DMK founding, and Chief Ministership.
Practice what you learned
Question 1 of 1
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