<p>Chennai: At a grand event organised by the Tamil Nadu government to felicitate music maestro Ilaiyaraaja for his symphony performance last week, a 20-year-old seated in the front row, along with Tamil cinema legends Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan, was hard to miss.</p><p>It was Inban Udhayanidhi, son of Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin and grandson of Chief Minister MK Stalin.</p><p>His prominent presence came shortly after the young scion of the M Karunanidhi clan took over as the CEO of Red Giant Movies, the influential production house with a vast distribution network owned by the first family.</p><p>Inban will oversee the businesses run by his father Udhayanidhi, until the latter was sworn in as a minister in the DMK government in December 2022.</p>.Music composer Ilaiyaraaja offers diamond-studded crown, gold ornaments at Kollur Mookambika Temple .<p>The football player, signed by Indian club Neroca as a defender, is slowly being launched in the family business, if not politics just yet.</p><p>He will become the first member from the fourth generation of the DMK’s first family to be pushed into the spotlight. </p><p><strong>Future leader</strong></p><p>While his great-grandfather Karunanidhi was a five-time chief minister, his grandfather Stalin is the incumbent CM, and his father Udhayanidhi is not just the Deputy CM, but is being groomed as the future leader of the DMK.</p><p>Though Inban, whose mother Kiruthiga is a filmmaker, has made public appearances before, including at the DMK youth wing conference in 2024, this is the first time the 20-year-old was given prominence at a government event.</p><p>His presence sparked criticism on social media. Many took objection to how a person not even remotely connected with the government was allowed to sit in the front row along with legends.</p><p>Inban's entry into tinsel town mirrors his father Udhayanidhi's cinematic foray in 2008, when he launched Red Giant Movies during the 2006–2011 tenure of Karunanidhi. The production house enjoys near-monopoly status in Tamil Nadu’s film distribution.</p><p>“Inban Udhayanidhi’s appointment as CEO is a purely business decision and has nothing to do with the DMK. It is a private business, and they have the right to make their own decisions,” a source in the DMK told DH.</p>
<p>Chennai: At a grand event organised by the Tamil Nadu government to felicitate music maestro Ilaiyaraaja for his symphony performance last week, a 20-year-old seated in the front row, along with Tamil cinema legends Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan, was hard to miss.</p><p>It was Inban Udhayanidhi, son of Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin and grandson of Chief Minister MK Stalin.</p><p>His prominent presence came shortly after the young scion of the M Karunanidhi clan took over as the CEO of Red Giant Movies, the influential production house with a vast distribution network owned by the first family.</p><p>Inban will oversee the businesses run by his father Udhayanidhi, until the latter was sworn in as a minister in the DMK government in December 2022.</p>.Music composer Ilaiyaraaja offers diamond-studded crown, gold ornaments at Kollur Mookambika Temple .<p>The football player, signed by Indian club Neroca as a defender, is slowly being launched in the family business, if not politics just yet.</p><p>He will become the first member from the fourth generation of the DMK’s first family to be pushed into the spotlight. </p><p><strong>Future leader</strong></p><p>While his great-grandfather Karunanidhi was a five-time chief minister, his grandfather Stalin is the incumbent CM, and his father Udhayanidhi is not just the Deputy CM, but is being groomed as the future leader of the DMK.</p><p>Though Inban, whose mother Kiruthiga is a filmmaker, has made public appearances before, including at the DMK youth wing conference in 2024, this is the first time the 20-year-old was given prominence at a government event.</p><p>His presence sparked criticism on social media. Many took objection to how a person not even remotely connected with the government was allowed to sit in the front row along with legends.</p><p>Inban's entry into tinsel town mirrors his father Udhayanidhi's cinematic foray in 2008, when he launched Red Giant Movies during the 2006–2011 tenure of Karunanidhi. The production house enjoys near-monopoly status in Tamil Nadu’s film distribution.</p><p>“Inban Udhayanidhi’s appointment as CEO is a purely business decision and has nothing to do with the DMK. It is a private business, and they have the right to make their own decisions,” a source in the DMK told DH.</p>