Actor M K Muthu, eldest son of M Karunanidhi, passes away

CHENNAI: Late DMK supremo M Karunanidhi's eldest son and actor MK Muthu (77) passed away on Saturday. Muthu was away from public life for a long time after suffering from various health ailments. He passed away this morning at his residence on East Coast Road. Muthu was roped into the film industry by Karunanidhi and has acted in many movies.

Muthu was born in 1948 to Karunanidhi and his first wife, Padmavathy, in Thirukkuvalai, Nagapattinam district. Padmavathy died of tuberculosis shortly after giving birth to Muthu. After the death of his first wife, Karunanidhi married Dayalu Ammal. The couple have four children: M. K. Alagiri, M. K. Stalin, Selvi, and M. K. Tamilarasu.

Muthu was initially touted as the political successor to Karunanidhi, but a political mishmash saw Stalin emerging as the ideal successor after the death of the DMK supremo. Muthu entered the film industry in the early 1970s. It was an open secret that Karunanidhi, who was envious of MGR's popularity, made Muthu enter the film world in high hopes of his son making a big name in the industry.

Muthu made his film debut in 1972 with the film ‘Pillaiyo Pillai’, the same year MGR was expelled from DMK. But despite his initial success, Muthu found it burdensome finding roles and soon decided to quit.