PRIME MINISTER NARENDRA MODI HAS THE RARE ABILITY to visualise the big picture and then, like an artist, proceed to execute it stroke by stroke. As he told India Today in an interview last December, “When I start something, I know the endpoint. But I never announce the final destination or blueprint in the beginning. There is a progressive unfolding of my vision and plans.” On April 9, 10 days before the voting date in Tamil Nadu, the prime minister held a massive road show in Chennai that wended its way through T. Nagar in the heart of the city and, just as it was about to end, declared: “Chennai has won me over.”
The symbolism of the route the prime minister took for his rally wasn’t lost on Chief Minister M.K. Stalin, who is also the president of the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) and heads the eight-party Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) that is collectively contesting the 39 Lok Sabha seats in the state. At a public meeting in Dindigul the next day, the CM thundered, “Dear PM, do you know how T. Nagar, the place you held your road show yesterday, got its name? It’s named after a Justice Party leader. It’s a Dravidian fort and you think you can showcase your work there?” The Justice Party, founded in 1916, is thought of as the progenitor of the Dravidian movement in Tamil Nadu, among whose founders was Theagaraya Chetty after whom T. Nagar is named. That movement turned political with the formation of the DMK in 1949, which, along with its splinter group—the All India Anna DMK (AIADMK)—has ruled the state alternately since 1967. No national party—not even the Congress—has been able to shake their hold till date.
Esta historia es de la edición April 22, 2024 de India Today.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor ? Conectar
Esta historia es de la edición April 22, 2024 de India Today.
Comience su prueba gratuita de Magzter GOLD de 7 días para acceder a miles de historias premium seleccionadas y a más de 8500 revistas y periódicos.
Ya eres suscriptor? Conectar
The Politics Of Reservation
Caste Quotas Have Become The Most Fractious And Polarising Issue In Election 2024, With The Potential To Influence The Final Outcome
BACK IN ACTION
Besides making a thrilling comeback with Tipppsy, Deepak Tijori is working on pushing the boundaries with new projects
THE POWER OF PATIENCE
A steady approach has helped badminton player Lakshya Sen secure a spot in the upcoming Paris Olympics
Great Balls of Fire
The sport of PICKLEBALL is set to get a boost in India with the launch of the World Pickleball League here
Man of Many Ideas
Vanya Vaidehi Bhargav questions simplistic notions of Lala Lajpat Rai's politics in this well-researched book
THE HINDU NATIONALIST
Janaki Bakhle's Savarkar and the Making of Hindutva is a deep dive into the creation of the ideologue
LOVE CONQUERS
IKKA's third album Only Love Gets Reply brings together bigwigs like Diljit Dosanjh, Badshah and Karan Aujla, among others
The Great Indian Village
Everyone's favourite OTT show, Panchayat, is back for a third season on Amazon Prime Video. Expect a lot of laughs
VISUAL CONSTRUCTS
CLASSICS OF MODERN SOUTH ASIAN ARCHITECTURE ARE PORTRAYED IN THESE VOLUMES
TROPICAL TROPES
Tropical Modernism, an exhibition at the V&A, London, looks at the adoption of this architectural style in post-independence India and Ghana