Tamil Nadu CM Vijay’s Kollur Mookambika temple visit revives memories of MGR and Jayalalithaa’s trips

Published 20 July 2026 · local

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s recent visit to Mookambika temple in Kollur in Karnataka’s Udupi district where he presented a 1.6 kg silver

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay’s recent visit to Mookambika temple in Kollur in Karnataka’s Udupi district where he presented a 1.6 kg silver sword to the presiding deity and participated in a special pooja, has rekindled memories of similar pilgrimages undertaken by other Chief Ministers of Tamil Nadu in the past. AIADMK founder and former Chief Minister M.G. Ramachandran’s repeated visits to Kollur stood out particularly because of his long association with the Dravidian movement, which advocated atheism and rationalism among its core principles. Yet, MGR, as M.G. Ramachandran was fondly known, displayed visible personal devotion towards the presiding deity of Kollur, Goddess Mookambika. MGR floated the AIADMK in 1972 and became Chief Minister in 1977. After returning to office following the 1980 Assembly elections, he paid a visit to the Mookambika temple in Kollur. The trips soon became an almost annual practice during his tenure as Chief Minister. A couple of years later, MGR, accompanied by his wife Janaki Ramachandran, arrived at Mangalore (now spelt as Mangaluru) on May 6, 1982 in a special coach attached to the West Coast Express.

A report published in The Hindu said a large crowd had gathered at the railway station to welcome him, as the actor-turned-politician was immensely popular. The following year, MGR made his third visit to the temple during his second term in office. On May 5, 1983, he again arrived at Mangalore in the same West Coast Express along with Janaki Ramachandran. According to a report, he was received with temple honours. He also visited the temple in January 1984. In 1985, barely months after suffering a major health setback and undergoing treatment in Madras (as Chennai was known then) and in the United States, MGR visited the temple again on June 19. A report in The Hindu noted crowds lined the roads leading to Manipal and Kollur to greet him during the journey. According to a July 12, 1985, report, MGR had by then visited the Mookambika temple seven times. Even towards the final years of his life, he continued the practice.

In January 1987, he again travelled to Kollur for darshan at the temple. Following the death of MGR in December 1987, his wife Janaki Ramachandran, who briefly served as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister in January 1988, also visited the temple in February. During that visit, however, she was no longer in office. Jayalalithaa’s visit MGR’s political protege and AIADMK supremo Jayalalithaa, who was known to be deeply spiritual, also visited the temple during her tenure as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister. Her visit came at a politically difficult moment for the AIADMK. A couple of months after the 2004 Lok Sabha elections, in which the AIADMK-led alliance suffered a massive defeat and failed to win a single seat, Jayalalithaa visited the Kollur Mookambika temple. Accompanied by her associate V.K. Sasikala, she flew from Chennai to Mangalore early July 30, 2004. From Mangalore, Jayalalithaa travelled by helicopter to Arshiroor and from there reached Kollur by car around 8.15 a.m. A report published in The Hindu the following day said she was received at the temple with ‘Pooranakumbam’ at the ‘Mahadwara’ by the temple priests.