A law student writes a brief history of the AIADMK

Law student Sanjay Senthilnathan, author of ‘The Dravidian Phoenix – Inside Story of Tamil Nadu’s Longest Ruling Party’. | Photo credit: V. UMESH KUMAR

At what is probably the weakest moment in the last five decades, a book on the AIADMK is now being published. Nineteen-year-old teenage law student Sanjay Senthilnathan, author of ‘The Dravidian Phoenix – The Inside Story of the Tamil Nadu’s Longest-Ruling Party’, says there is no doubt that the party has had a major impact on Tamil NA politics, and that is what prompted him to write the book.

Senthil claims to have been interested in politics since his school days, which also set him on the path of law. About his book, he says, “There were academic books on party leaders and they focused more on the personality of the leaders than the achievements of the party. My friends in West Bengal (where he attends law school) were curious about the leaders of Tamil Nadu and their knowledge was mostly limited to personalities. But I thought there should be a book that focused on the history, social programs and achievements of the AIAIADMK as a whole.”

He goes on to say that he wanted to make the history readable, not a book that no one would bother to read, which is why he decided on a brief history of the party. “My book is about 114 pages. Generation Z would be able to read the book in one sitting. I relied on reports that were published in The Hindu to verify all the information I came across.”

AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K. Palaniswami wrote the book’s foreword and youth wing leader VPB Paramasivam helped him with the research, says Senthil, who also spoke to many people from the party.

Published – 18 Oct 2026 0:48 IST