Jayalalithaa (left) with actress Sowcar Janaki at an event organised by regional daily Makkal Kural (People’s Voice). Sundaram was the official photographer of the magazine. Jaya was still a film star then and Sowcar Janaki was MGR’s former co-star. Janaki and Jaya had known each other a long time and the two went on to have a long-standing friendship. This photo was taken at a Chennai hotel, a popular venue for film functions

Tamil Nadu’s first photojournalist Subha A Sundaram’s foray into political photography was courtesy his skills as a Tamil shorthand writer. As that was not too commonly found during the 1960s, Sundaram would be summoned to transcribe political speeches, which is how he began to gain close access to political leaders. Eventually, he went on to record major political milestones in the state, not least of which was J. Jayalalithaa’s transition from a movie star to a political phenomenon.