Jayalalithaa was born on February 24, 1948, in Mysore. She began schooling at the Bishop Cotton Girls High School in Bangalore and later attended the Presentation Convent at Church Park, Chennai, when her mother began a career as a Tamil film actress. The family had moved to Chennai after Jayalalithaa’s father died when she was just two.
Jayalalithaa was a good scholar and is said to have wanted to become a lawyer and be rich. She wouldn’t be a lawyer, but she would be rich – a successful film career lay ahead. Chinnada Gombe, her first film (in Kannada) was a major hit.
She was revolutionary and is said to have been the first to wear skirts on screen.
