An extract from Kanimozhi’s poem, Fear of Flying
Perhaps she is no longer the same person. Perhaps her genes are clamouring for accountability. For Kanimozhi has found a way of walking into the unknown. After succumbing to literary sensibilities for 39 years, the poet in Kanimozhi is coming to terms with the politician in her.

Daughter of DMK president and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, Kanimozhi may seem to have been thrust into politics rather abruptly, yet the transition couldn’t have been more natural. In the wake of Dayanidhi Maran’s sensational exit from the Union Ministry and the strange twist of political fortunes, Kanimozhi is being projected as the party’s new emissary in Delhi. With speculation rife that Karunanidhi’s favourite child could be nominated to the Rajya Sabha, elections for which are due in June-end, and even given a ministerial berth, Kanimozhi, till now a reluctant player in Dravidian politics, is DMK’s emerging star.

Self-effasive and soft-spoken, the daughter of Rajathi Ammal, Karunanidhi’s third wife, had shied away from limelight even as she was overawed by her father’s political stature. She admired his leadership qualities and acumen, and inherited his literary skills. So after completing her Masters in Economics from Ethiraj College for Women in Chennai, she spent time working for a newspaper, writing poetry—Karuvarai Vasanai (1995) and Akathinai (2003) are her collection of poems—translating into English the works of leading young Tamil poets, representing the country at prestigious poetry festivals abroad and launching a website with Karthi, son of Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram.

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