Before she joined politics, Jayalalithaa was one of Tamil Nadu's most popular film stars. This is a poster for a re-release of the film 'Aayirathil Oruvan'(One in a Thousand), in which Jayalalithaa starred alongside M G Ramachandran for the very first time.
Jayalalithaa is professionally trained in classical music, western classical piano, and various forms of classical dance, including Bharatanatyam, Mohiniattam, Manipuri and Kathak.
The peak of Jayalalithaa's glittering film career occured between 1965 and 1990. During this period, she acted in over 140 films, around 120 of which were blockbuster hits.
Jayalalithaa represented the AIADMK in the Rajya Sabha between 1984 and 1989. She was elected there after MGR wanted her in New Delhi for her fluency in English and knowledge of several languages.
Jayalalithaa greets supporters from the balcony of her residence on May 13, 2011, the day on which her party won that year's Assembly polls. The gesture she's making represent's the AIADMK's symbol - the 'Rettai Illai' or 'double leaf'
Jayalalithaa is seen here with her close friend and confidante, Sasikala Natarajan, who was considered to be the second most powerful woman in the AIADMK. Their joint appearance at a lavish wedding of Sasikala's nephew, V N Sudhakaran (also Jayalalithaa's foster son, who she later disowned), created a controversy and brought down the AIADMK government in the 1996 election.
A supporter of Jayalalithaa exults after she's acquitted in a disproportionate assets case by the Karnataka High Court in May 2015, just months after a Bengaluru-based trial court sentenced her to four years in jail in September 2014, disqualifying her as Tamil Nadu's Chief Minister. She was granted bail after about a month in jail, and was re-instated as CM in May 2015.
Jayalalithaa seen next to her mentor and former Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M G Ramachandran's statue, on his 28th death anniversary. After MGR passed away in 1987, his party split into two factions - one behind Jayalalithaa, and the other behind MGR's widow, Janaki Ramachandran. Janaki stepped aside after Jayalalithaa's faction won 27 seats in the 1989 Assembly election - 25 more than Janaki's.
Jayalalithaa returns after filing her nomination from the RK Nagar constituency in Chennai ahead of the 2016 Tamil Nadu Assembly polls. Her party, the AIADMK, won the elections, making her the first Tamil Nadu Chief Minister in 32 years to be voted back to power.
For Jayalalithaa's party members and supporters, she is their beloved 'Amma' or 'Mother'. Here, the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister's supporters cry outside Chennai's Apollo Hospital after she suffered a cardiac arrest.
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