Tamil Nadu

Amma has become God for us: Grieving Jayalalithaa supporters tonsure heads at memorial site

Written by : TNM Staff

The Amma Memorial in Chennai, where former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa was laid to rest, continued to receive a sea of supporters on Wednesday. 

People came from far and wide to visit the place where their beloved Amma will now rest forever.

Among them, many could be seen tonsuring their heads as a sign of mourning, a small gesture of the grief they felt. 

Around twenty men and women from all walks of life shaved their heads at the site. 

41-year-old Thiruvengadaprakash, a businessman, had come to Chennai all the way from Dharapuram in Tirupur district. 

"We are Amma's family, so we want to do this for her. We love her a lot. We thought Amma will recover but she did not. We believe that Amma has become a God for us now," he said.

For many, it is yet to sink in that the AIADMK supremo is no more. 

"I thought God will heal her but she did not recover. Now she has become God for us. It would have been good if she would have lived for many more years. But we still feel that she is with us now," said A Senthamarikannan from Dharapuram.

Another person at the Amma memorial said, "Amma will always rule us, we will never forget her, the party will always function under her leadership."

The iconic leader died at the age of 68 on Monday night after battling for her life at Apollo Hospital in Chennai for 75 days. 

On Tuesday, she was buried next to her mentor MGR at his memorial site at the Marina Beach in Chennai.

When violence is consumed as porn: How Prajwal Revanna videos are affecting the social fabric of Hassan

Silenced by fear: Survivors reveal years of abuse in the Revanna household

Sena vs Sena: Which is the ‘real’ Shiv Sena in Mumbai and Thane?

Opinion: A decade of transience by BJP has eroded democracy's essence

Chennai caste killing: Senior lawyer says DMK cadres shielding culprits