- Daughter of Actress Sandhya whose original name was Vedavalli/Vedavathi.
- Jayalalitha was niece of Vidyavathi who was an actress and whose original birth name was Ambujam/ Ambujavalli. Jaya was also the niece of Padmavalli who remained a housewife from 1958.
- She was Chief minister of Tamil Nadu, India from 1991 to 1996, 2001-2006, 2011 to 2016. For a brief period in Sep 2014 to July 2015 and from September 2001 to March 2002; her party person O.Paneerselvam was chief minister of the state.
- Popular Tamil actress turned politician.
- After death of Jaya's father in 1950, Jaya'smother Vedavalli took her children Jaya Kumar and Jayalalithaa to Bangalore where her maternal grandparents lived and started working as a typist. Vedavallii's sister Ambujam/ Ambujavalli, was an air hostess in Madras since 1948 and had got some breaks in Tamil films from 1951. Ambujawali was working as an air hostess and was also acting in dramas and films using the screen name Vidyavathi. Ambujavalli encouraged Vedavallii to also come to Chennai and be part of theatre and films taking screen name of Sandhya. Hence Vedavalli came to Chennai to be actress since 1953 under the name Sandhya.
- Her debut in Kannada film was Chinnada Gombe in 1964 and her debut Telugu film was Manushulu Mamathalu in 1964, in Tamil it was Vennira Aadai (1965) and in Hindi it was Izzat in 1968 and in Malayalam it was film Jesus in 1973.
- Jayalalithaa's grandfather was in the service of the Mysore kingdom in 1880-1920 period as a surgeon, with king being Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV of Mysore. How ever her named was derived from two houses of her grandfather in Mysore named Jayavilas and Lalithanivas.
- Jayalalithaa was born to Jayaram, a lawyer from Srirangam and and his wife Vedavalli on 24 February 1948 and was named 'Komalavalli' at birth. Jayalalitha was given her grandmother's name Koamalavalli at the time of birth. As per Iyengar custom, 2 names are given - one ancestral grandmother name and other being personal name.The name Jayalalithaa was adopted at the age of 1 for the purpose of using the same in school and colleges . It was derived from the names of two houses where she resided in Mysore. One was "Jaya Vilas" and the other "Lalitha Vilas". Her name was originally spelled with one 'a' at the end. Later another 'a' was added for numerological reasons after 2000. Jayalalitha became Jayalalithaa. However, she was widely known by her pet name "Ammu" in childhood. Since 1990, she is referred to as "Amma," meaning Mother or Madam.
- Jayalalithaa's elder brother Jayakumar died in the early 90's and her father died when Jayalalithaa's was just 2 years old.
- Jayalalithaa was born in the lap of luxury on 24 February 1948. Her paternal grandfather Dr. Rangachary had amassed much wealth as the Mysore Maharajah Krishna Raja Wadiyar IV 's personal physician. Fate however decreed that his daughter-in-law Sandhya and granddaughter Jayalalithaa become actresses due to financial reasons. Her father Jayaram, had died while she was aged two, in mysterious circumstances after having squandered away her grandfather's considerable wealth .
- When the premier of the 1964 film Karnan happened, Sandhya took her daughter too along with her. Sandhya was in supporting role in the film. The director of Karnan was B.R.Panthalu, who saw Sandhya's daughter and said he would like to make her act in his film, he is planning to direct next Chinnada Gombe. Jayalalitha was to studying in PUC from 1964. Panthulu promised to finish all shooting within two months. Jaya's mother Vedavathii, also known as Vadavalli, who achieved success as an actress by screen name Sandhya persuaded Jaya also to join films, on assurance from producer B.R.Panthalu in 1964, that shooting of Chinnada Gombe would take place only during summer vacation and the young woman wouldn't miss classes. Sandya agreed and Jayalalithaa started acting. She was paid Rs. 3,000. Panthulu kept his promise and completed shooting in six weeks. This way her Kannada film debut, Chinnada Gombe, directed by B.R. Panthulu happened.'Chinnada Gombe' , the Kannada version of 'Muradan Muthu' was a commercial success which was followed by 'Mane Aliyaa' followed in the same year. Jayalalitha came into the limelight when her scintillating Bharatanatyam performance at the 1964 Filmfare Awards elicited rave reviews.
- In Bangalore Jayalalithaa attended Bishop Cotton Girls' High School till 1958 and later completed her childhood education at Sacred Heart Matriculation School in Chennai from 1958 to 1964.She excelled at school by always securing top ranks and was offered a government scholarship to pursue further education after her matriculation.
- After leaving school she joined Stella Maris College, Chennai to study law but had to discontinue as her debut films in Telugu and Kannada in 1964 and her Tamil film debut in 1965 - each of them were very successful and offers started coming up for her as the lead female heroine.
- Jayalalithaa made her debut in English movies in 1961 with Epistle released in 1961, which was produced by Shankar Giri, son of former president of India VV Giri.
- She was first heroine to appear in Skirts and short-sleeved, knee-length dresses, wool suits and in gowns in Tamil films in the mid-sixties.
- MGR was 48 years old and Jayalalithaa only 17 when they acted in Ayirathil Oruvan. Despite the 31-year age difference the pair hit it off grandly on screen. MGR-Jayalalithaa pair acted in 28 films and each of the 28 were box-office hits from 1965-1973. 19 of their hit films were platinum jubilee hits and 8 were golden jubilee hits.Thier only silver jubilee hit film was Anamitta Kai and reason for it being only silver jubilee hit was it was a black and white film released in 1972. Their first film as a pair was Ayirathil Oruvan in 1965 and last film was Pattikattu Ponnaniah in 1973.
- It was Jayalalithaa's entry in Tamil films after which producers and directors preferred pairing Jaya opposite MGR rather than Saroja Devi.Saroja Devi's opportunity to work with MGR stopped after 1967 and Jaya replaced Saroja as the No.1 heroine in Tamil film industry from 1966-1980.Saroja was the highest paid and No.1 heroine in Tamil films from 1959-1968 and became No.1 in Kannada films from 1970-1980.But Jayalalithaa and Saroja Devi remained friends since 1970-2013. There was never any animosity between them.
- Other than MGR, she also had many hits opposite Sivaji Ganeshan, Muthuraman, Jaishanakar and Ravichandran in the period 1966-1977 in Tamil Films.
- Jayalalitha was paired opposite Sivaji Ganeshan in 17 films as his heroine. Of the 17 Tamil films, 16 of them were Golden Jubilee hits. The 16 hit films were Galatta Kalyanam (1968), Enga Oor Raja (1968), Gurudhakshinai (1969), Dheiva Magan (1969), Padhukappu (1970), Engirundho Vandhal (1970), Enga Mama (1970, Sumathi En Sundari (1971), Saveley Samali (1971), , Needhi (1972), Dharmam Engey (1972), Thai (1974), Raja(1972), Anbai Thedi (1974), Avanthan Manithan, Chitra Pournami. Their only 1 flops was Pattam Bharatamum (1976). In the film Motorom Sunderam Pillai, Jayalithaa played as daughter of Sivaji Ganeshan and this film was a box office hit too. A suggested reason for the failure of Pattatum Bharatamum was that the audience could not accept Jayalalitha 's character having a child before marriage or as an old or naive woman who can be suppressed by men.
- Her 10 hit films with Ravichandran include Gowri Kalyanam (1966), Kumari Penn (1966), Naan (1967), Magarasi (1967), Madi Veettu Mappillai (1967), Pannakarai Pillai (1968), Moondreezuthu (1968), Andru Kanda Mugam (1968), Baghdad Perazhagi (1974) and Avalukku Ayiram Kangal.The film Gowri Kalyanam and Avalluku Ayiram Kangal starred Jaishankar as well but Jayalalitha was paired with Ravichandran.
- Jayalalitha had 6 hits with Muthuraman as a romantic leading pair Dhikku Theriyatha Kattil, Thirumangalyam, Kanaivan Maniavi, Avanthan Manidhan, Suryagandhi, Anbu Thangai.Muthuraman played supporting roles in Major Chandrakant, Naan, Kannan En Kadhalan, Ther Thiruvizha, En Annan, Oru Thai Makal, Aadi Parashakti and Anathai Ananthan.
- She did 28 films in Telugu and each of them were platinum jubilee hit.
- Jaishankar had 8 hits with Jayalalithaa as the lead hero-heroine of film like Muthuchippi, Yaar Nee, Vairam, Nee, Vandhale Maharasi, Bommalatam (1968) , Raja Veetu Pillai and Avalukku Aayiram Kangal (1975) in Tamil. The films Gowri Kalyanam and Thangagopuram had Jaishankar as Jaya's elder brother. The films Gowri Kalyanam and Avalluku Ayiram Kangal both starred Jaishankar as well but Jayalalitha was paired with Ravichandran in both of them.
- She is fluent in several languages, including Tamil (her mother tongue), English, Telugu, Hindi, Kannada, and Malayalam.
- Not to be confused with South Indian character actress Jayalalitha. The second actress by this name started her career in the late 80s.
- She was Simha Rasi and her birth star was Maham Nakshtram.
- She did her own choreography in the song of Thani Piravi - Orey More Daan - especially the steps where M G Ramachandran is dressed as Murugan and she as Valli.
- She established herself as a regular heroine of Devar Films from the year 1966 with 4 hit films in same year 1965-1966 with them - Kanni Thai, Kumari Penn, Muharassi and Thani Piravi.
- Her 5th film with Devar was Thaikku Thalaimagan released in 1967 which became a golden jubilee.
- She learned Bharatnatyam from age of 3.
- Jayalalitha's mother was Sandhya. Sandhy had acted in films from 1953 to 1967 such as Padikaatha Medai, Sampoorna Ramayanam, Karnan as a supporting actress with Sivaji Ganesan and in Poojaiki Vandha Malar with Gemini Savithiri and Muthuraman. Sandhya as an actress never became a star but was able to garner many supporting roles. She played the leading lady in a few films including 'Minnal Veeran,' opposite actor Ranjan.
- Her mom 's film world name was Sandhya but her original name was Vedavalli aka Vedavathi.
- In her year of her debut, she became an instant star with 3 consecutive hits - Veniradai, Kanni Thai and Ayirathil Oruvan.
- The year 1966 establish her as the highest paid actress in Tamil film industry. She had 11 consecutive hits in same year. Motor Sunderam Pillai (26th January), Mani Magudam (18th February), Yaar Nee (14th April), Kumari Penn (6th May), Chandrodhayam (27th May), Muharassi (18-August), Thanipiravi (16th September), Lorry Driver (7th October), Major Chandrakant (11th November) and Gowri Kalyanam (11th November).The film Nee released last on 24th December 1966 was the last hit of 1966. Also her Telugu releases Aastiparulu and Aame Evaru and Kannada film Badukuva Daari had become hits.
- When she did her Bharatnatyam Arangetram, which is a function conducted when formal training of a girl dancing gets over , the chief guest was Sivaji Ganesan. He praised the little girl Jayalalithaa saying she looks like a queen sitting in golden throne. (Thangapadakamm).The function was in May 1960. It was held at the Rasika Ranjani Sabha hall in Mylapore. She was 12 years old at the time. Sivaji in his address commended Jayalalithaa's dancing and also praised her physical beauty particularly her figure and fair complexion.He was definite that she would take to acting. He referred to her as the Thangachellai meaning Golden Statue. Sivaji predicted then that "Ammu" would become a great film star. Both mother and daughter shared the vision of Jayalalithaa becoming a lawyer and hence did not like Sivaji Ganeshan's prediction in the year 1960.
- Devar films and actress Savithri had a fight in 1964 after the success of the film Vetaikaran and were on look out for actress who would have long association with them. Co-incidentally in year 1965, Jayalalithaa made her debut in 1965 and with Success of Kanni Thai, Kumari Penn , Muharassi - they decided to give Jayalalitha - the tag of long-term heroine of Devar Films.
- She won Gold State Award for coming first in 10th standard in not just her school but also in Tamil Nadu.
- T.R.Ramanna directed Naan and the song Athaiyo Mamiyo - proved that she could even dance to songs belonging to beliefs of lower class of society . She danced effectively such that her director praised her saying that Jaya had great camera sense, dancing skills and acting skills.
- Ammu was the nickname of Jayalalithaa since her childhood. She was called by this name by her mother Vedavathi (Sandya) and her aunt Vidhyavathi.
- Actress Vidhyavthi( Ambujam) was Jayalalitha's mother Sandhya's sister.
- In 1959 Jayalalithaa lived with her aunt and mother and brother in T Nagar in Chennai.
- She did her matriculation from Presentation Convent School which was also called as Church Park School.
- Present Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, India. (May 2005)
- Jayalalithaa holds the record for having been the Tamil actress with maximum silver jubilee hits in her career - 84 hits of 89 Tamil films as the main lead heroine and in addition she also has all 28 films in Telugu as silver jubilee hits. Her one film in Hindi Izzat was also a hit, 1 hit in Malayalam and 5 films in Kannada - Badukuva Daari (1966),Nanna Kartavya (1965), Mavana Magalu (1965), Chinnada Gombe (1964) and Mane Aliya (1964) which were box office hits. She did guest appearance in 8 films and of these 3 in Tamil, 2 in Kannada, 2 in Tamil, 1 in Hindi. Cinema Paithiyam which too was a hit. Hence her tally of box office hit is 119 of the total 125 films she did as the main female lead of the film.
- Jayalalitha had 7 hits with Akkineni Nageswara Rao in Telugu - Manashulu Mamatalu (1965), Aastiparulu (1966), Brahmachari (1968), Aadarsa Kutumbam (1969), Adrushtavanthalu (1969), Bharya Biddalu (1971), Nayakudu Vinayakudu (1980).She also made guest appearance in Navarthi(1966), which again was a hit.
- Jayalalitha had 12 hits with Taraka Rama Rao Nandamuri, in Telugu - Gopaludu Bhoopaludu (1967), Chikkadu Dorakadu (1967), Tikka Shankaraiah (1968), Niluvu Dopidi (1968), Bagdad Gajadonga (1968), Katha Nayakudu (1969), Kadaladu Vadaladu (1969), Gandikota Rahasyam (1969), Alibaba 40 Dongalu (1970), Shri Krishna Vijayam (1970), Shri Krishna Satya (1971), Devudu Chesina Manushulu (1973).
- Her 10 hit films with Tamil actor Ravichandran include Gowri Kalyanam (1966), Kumari Penn (1966), Naan (1967), Magarasi (1967), Madi Veettu Mappillai (1967), Pannakarai Pillai (1968), Moondreezuthu (1968), Andru Kanda Mugam (1968), Baghdad Perazhagi (1974) and Avalukku Ayiram Kangal .The films Gowri Kalyanam and Avalluku Ayriam Kangal both starred Jaishankar as well but Jayalalitha was paired with Ravichandran.
- In the 2000s, a person named Mr Vasudevan claimed that he was step brother of Jayalalitha and that their father Jayaram had married Jayamma and had two children - Vasudevan and Shailaja. Jayaram married for second time with Sandhya and had 2 more children - Jayakumar and Jayalalithaa.But Jayalalithaa refused to entertain them, despite knowing the struggles they were going through to earn their livelihoods. When they went public with their relationship, Ms Jayalalithaa filed a defamation case against them in a Madras sessions court. Ms Shailaja lived in Bengaluru and Vasudevan lived in a tiny village of Sri Rangarajapura, 40 km from T. Narasipur taluka of Mysore district.Vasudevan was a heart patient and had been living on a meager Rs 400 monthly pension given by the Karnataka government at the time of going public with his claim in 2000s.These claims were rubbished by Jayalalitha and she said her father had only one wife - Sandhaya, who was her mother.The court case was dismissed by the judge and judgment supported Jayalalitha.
- Her first film was an English flick Epistle released in 1961, while the first film as a child artist dancer was in Kannada in 1961 film Shrishaila Mahatme and her debut film in Kannada as lead heroine was Chinnada Gombe, directed by critically acclaimed director B R Panthalu which released in 1964.Her debut Telugu film was Manushulu Mamathalu in 1964 opposite Akkeni Nageshwar Rao.Her debut Tamil film was Venniradai in 1965 directed by C.V.Sridhar.Her debut film in Malayalam was Jesus directed by A.Vincent in 1973. She made her Hindi debut film in 1968 directed by T.Prakash Rao.Each of her debut films were blockbusters.
- Jayalalitha's mother Sandhya and Jayalalitha's mom's sister Vidya, along with their grand-parents lived in House No 91, East Chittirai Street initially in Srirangam in 1910-1930 period. They were Iyengaars. They were staying as tenants, but after some time the family moved to a new place, several houses away on the same street to House No 104, which they had purchased and named as Komala Vilas Veda Nilayam. Later the new occupants of House No 104 renamed it as "Komala Vilas- Alamelu Illam.".This House number 104 was sold when after few years of Sandhya's sister Padmavalli got married in 1958, Rengasamy Aiyengar died and Jayalalitha shifted with Sandhya in Madras .Dewan of Pudukottai Samasthanam.bought house at door no. 104.
Contribute to this page
Suggest an edit or add missing content