Every great leader who has reached the top has always had a few trusted friends and confidantes. Jayalalithaa, the beloved Amma of the south, had a long and eventful journey to becoming the most popular chief minister of Tamil Nadu. While MG Ramachandran , the founder of the AIADMK party, was one of the biggest influences in her life, Sasikala Natarajan was her closest friend and confidante. The two women, who often dressed alike, cut the perfect picture of friendship. 

Despite not having held any position in the government and in the party, Sasikala enjoyed immense power and authority in the party and was one of Jayalalithaa’s closest advisors. 

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Sasikala Natarajan was married to R. Natarajan, a public relations officer in the Tamil Nadu government. But bad times fell upon the family when her husband lost his job during Emergency, and the family had to resort to selling jewellery to keep the stove burning. He urged VS Chandralekha , District Collector of South Arcot, to introduce Sasikala to Jayalalithaa. The former video store-owner shot many weddings and functions for Jayalalithaa and was soon welcomed into Jayalalithaa’s household. 

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What started as a family acquaintance developed into a strong friendship and Sasikala soon became an indispensable part of Jayalalithaa’s life and household. A school dropout, she never took any official position in the party, but remained closely involved with the functioning of the party. She had a key role in many appointments in the party and the government departments.  From managing her household to being her trusted advisor, Sasikala was always by Jayalalithaa’s side and became her trusted advisor and confidante. The two, in their similar sarees and jewellery, were often seen together at public events. 

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Jayalalitha adopted Sasikala’s nephew Sudhakaran as her foster son and even planned an extravagant wedding, that had over 25,000 guests, for him.

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Together in good and bad times, Sasikala was sentenced to 4 years imprisonment along with Jayalalithaa (and two others) in the disproportionate asset case, but they were acquitted by the court later. In 1996, Sasikala went to jail along with Jayalalithaa for the Colour TV scam.

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The equation between Jayalalithaa and SN was not always smooth – Sasikala’s extended family was accused of trying to run a parallel government. In December 2011, Jayalalithaa ousted SN, her husband and their extended family. The separation did not last long as Sasikala pledged to break all ties with her relatives and serve the party ‘with no public ambition’. She was taken back into the party in March 2012, and thereafter, she continued in her role as Jayalalithaa’s friend and confidante. 

With Amma no more, all eyes are on Sasikala, the woman who has the power to call the shots in the party. Although she always preferred to stay in the background and displayed no political ambition, her clout in the party tells a different story.