Tamil Nadu
Capital: Chennai
Breaking in Tamil Nadu
Bomb threat emails hit Mumbai and Pune civic offices, and the searches find nothing
An email naming Mumbai's mayor office, a bank, a court, Amitabh Bachchan's Jalsa bungalow, Mahalaxmi Racecourse and the airport set off searches on Thursday morning. Pune Municipal Corporation received its own threat soon after. Nothing suspicious was found.
Arrogance of power: Rohit Pawar takes on Fadnavis as the NCP merger formula takes shape
Rohit Pawar accused Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of "arrogance" and of running a politics of blackmail over the NCP merger question. In the party, the formula under discussion gives Sharad Pawar the president post and Sunetra Pawar the working president post.
No eye on Gokul: Fadnavis says the amendment only unties a legal knot
Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis defended amending the cooperative societies law, saying the government needed to end a statutory deadlock over the Gokul dairy chairmanship. Congress leader Satej Patil is going ahead with a November 9 protest, calling the move a trampling of the farmers' mandate.
Cancer bills fall from Monday: 137 drugs cut, some by 96%, ₹3,502 crore saved a year
Revised prices for 137 anti-cancer drugs take effect on Monday after the NPPA capped trade margins at 30% of the maximum retail price. Seventy-six companies have cut prices on 1,225 formulations, with 600 brands down more than half and the steepest cut at 96.45%. Estimated annual savings: ₹3,502.31 crore.
Ten thousand flagged land deals later, Telangana CID picks up four over the Dharani portal
Telangana's CID has searched the homes and offices of suspects in the alleged Dharani land records scandal and arrested at least four people, including a Bhu Bharati portal operator. The case turns on three acres in Kollur village, mutated in another man's name.
BREAKINGRs 81.5 crore in two days, and Netflix already has the papers: Suriya's Scene is on a run
Scene, the Tamil crime thriller with Suriya, Nazriya Nazim and Naslen, has grossed Rs 81.5 crore worldwide in two days. Reports say Netflix has bought the digital rights for Rs 88 crore, though no streaming date has been announced.
Latest
AI requests can now be processed in India, OpenAI opens local inference
OpenAI will let eligible Indian businesses have their API requests processed and model computations run inside the country, starting with the GPT-6 Luna model. The company says financial services firms with data localisation needs are the first target.
A deal with the Governor, claims Tamil Nadu minister, but 14 universities still wait for vice-chancellors
Higher Education Minister P Viswanathan says an understanding has been reached with Governor Rajendra Arlekar on appointing vice-chancellors, with another round of talks expected next week. Around 14 state universities are running without regular V-Cs. Senior professors hold interim charge.
Jailer 2 reaches Prime Video in four weeks, and the ₹160-crore window is the story
Rajinikanth's Jailer 2 began streaming on Prime Video on Thursday in five languages, four weeks after its October 15 release, with the full 2-hour-43-minute theatrical cut. Streaming rights are reported at about ₹160 crore, a record for Tamil cinema.
Draft voter rolls out today in 13 states and 3 UTs; one month to challenge a deletion
The Election Commission's Special Summary Revision begins on Thursday, with draft electoral rolls published in 13 states and three Union Territories and claims and objections open till 11 December. Uttar Pradesh's draft roll has been pushed to 17 November. Final rolls for all these states are due on 4 January 2027.
BREAKINGRs 81.5 crore in two days, and Netflix already has the papers: Suriya's Scene is on a run
Scene, the Tamil crime thriller with Suriya, Nazriya Nazim and Naslen, has grossed Rs 81.5 crore worldwide in two days. Reports say Netflix has bought the digital rights for Rs 88 crore, though no streaming date has been announced.
Two more bodies found in Tamil Nadu in Rajajinagar murders case
Bengaluru police recovered two more bodies near the Yercaud forest in Tamil Nadu's Salem district on Saturday, believed to be those of the prime accused's wife and mother-in-law. Three of the seven victims have now been found.
Kurian Joseph panel scrapped, and the fight is over what it stood for
A government order dated November 6 disbands the high-level committee on Union-State relations and moves its mandate to the State Law Commission. The DMK calls it vendetta, the BJP backs the move, and allies of the ruling TVK are unhappy.
Rajinikanth's Jailer 2 crosses Rs 816 crore, Vijay's Tamil Nadu record next in line
Jailer 2 has grossed Rs 816.90 crore worldwide after 20 days, with Rs 210.45 crore in Tamil Nadu, where it needs another Rs 6.80 crore to overtake Vijay's The Greatest of All Time.
Six shows a day, 6 am to 2.30 am: Tamil Nadu lets new releases run all night
Tamil Nadu has allowed theatres to screen newly released Tamil films up to six shows a day, from 6 am to 2.30 am the next day, for one week from release. The Cinemas (Regulation) Rules, 1957 will be amended. Six shows will also be allowed on local festival days, public holidays, Saturdays and Sundays. The order follows representations from producers' associations.
ED searches 11 sites linked to BLM cooperative society in Kerala, Tamil Nadu
The Enforcement Directorate searched at least 11 locations in Kerala and Tamil Nadu on Wednesday, including Kochi, Kozhikode and Chennai, in a money-laundering investigation linked to the Bharath Lajhna Multi State Co-operative Society. The searches are tied to R. Premkumar, the society's founding member and de facto chairman. A Crime Branch probe is already running in Kerala.
Airtel and Carlyle put $1 billion into Nxtra, valuing the data centre arm at $3.1 billion
Bharti Airtel, Carlyle, Alpha Wave Global and Anchorage Capital will invest $1 billion in Nxtra Data, Airtel's data centre arm. Alpha Wave puts in $435 million, Carlyle $240 million, Anchorage $35 million and Airtel about $290 million. The deal values Nxtra at around $3.1 billion, up from $1.2 billion in 2020.
109 MLAs, 118 needed, five seats left: the arithmetic behind Vijay's district tours
Chief Minister Vijay inaugurated projects in Pudukkottai on Monday and was in Erode's Perundurai on Tuesday, both districts with by-elections pending. His TVK has 109 MLAs against the 118 needed for a majority, and winning all five vacant seats would take it to 114.
Three days in police custody for former school education minister in recognition scam
A Chennai court on Monday granted the CB-CID three days' custody of former school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi in the alleged private school recognition scam. He must be produced by 5 pm on November 4. The agency had sought five days to trace the money trail.
Jailer 2 crosses ₹800 crore, and the ₹1,000 crore question stays open
Rajinikanth's Jailer 2 has crossed ₹800 crore in worldwide gross, becoming the highest-grossing Tamil film ever and the 16th highest-grossing Indian film. Trade trackers put the worldwide figure between ₹807 crore and ₹812 crore, with India net around ₹456-460 crore. It is the second biggest Indian film of 2026, behind Dhurandhar: The Revenge.
A bank CEO, his daughter's NBFC and a licence: Equitas shares fall another 15%
Shares of Equitas Small Finance Bank fell about 15-16% on Friday, extending Thursday's 20% slide, after MD and CEO PN Vasudevan resigned with immediate effect, citing a perceived conflict of interest involving an NBFC co-promoted by his daughter that has received an RBI licence. Vasudevan, who will stay until a successor takes over, said the decision was not taken overnight and that the board has begun the search.
Five extra years to try: Tamil Nadu raises the age limit for government job exams
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay has ordered a five-year age relaxation for government job aspirants appearing in competitive examinations, over and above existing concessions. The relief runs for five years from October 30, 2026. For Group 1 services, the general category ceiling rises from 32 to 37 and for reserved categories from 37 to 42.
All 17 Theni escapees back in custody in 43 hours, and rifles on the watchtowers
Tamil Nadu police recaptured all 17 undertrials who broke out of Theni district jail on Monday night, the last two surrendering on Wednesday. Nine prison staff have been suspended and watchtower guards are now armed with self-loading rifles and allowed to fire to stop a breakout.
Bail hearing today for Anbil Mahesh as police press for five-day custody
Former Tamil Nadu school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi's bail plea comes up on Thursday before a special court hearing corruption cases, while the Chennai CCB has sought five days of custody. On Wednesday the agency searched the Perungudi home of a textile businesswoman and seized electronic devices.
Jailer 2 crosses ₹755 crore, first Tamil film past ₹700 crore; Drishyam 3 nears ₹375 crore
Rajinikanth's Jailer 2 has grossed ₹755.5 crore worldwide in 14 days, overtaking 2.0's lifetime collection to become the highest-grossing Tamil film and the first past ₹700 crore globally. Ajay Devgn's Drishyam 3 stands at ₹372.1 crore India net and ₹577.56 crore worldwide on day 28.
Retired High Court judge to head Tamil Nadu's social justice survey commission
The Tamil Nadu Cabinet chaired by Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay decided on Thursday to set up a multi-member commission headed by a retired High Court judge to conduct a Social Justice Survey next year. Minister C T R Nirmal Kumar briefed reporters.
DVAC raids 25 locations tied to DMK's K N Nehru in Rs 634-crore jobs scam
The Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption searched 25 locations across Tamil Nadu on Thursday, all linked to former minister and DMK leader K N Nehru, in a probe into an alleged Rs 634-crore cash-for-jobs racket in the Municipal Administration and Water Supply department.
Jailer 2 is now the biggest Tamil film ever, with ₹666 crore and counting
Rajinikanth's Jailer 2 has reached ₹666.30 crore worldwide, overtaking 2018's 2.0 to become the highest-grossing Tamil film. India net stands at ₹373 crore after ten days, with ₹400 crore in sight on Monday. Ayushmann Khurrana's Udta Teer collected ₹19.45 crore in its first three days.
Chef Damu, who made Tamil cooking a television habit, dies at 72
The chef and Cooku With Comali judge died on Sunday. No cause of death or hospital was disclosed. He was the first Indian chef with a PhD in hotel management and held a Guinness record for cooking 617 dishes in 24.5 hours.
Four launch pads by 2029, a Gaganyaan test in two months: ISRO lays out its next three years
ISRO Chairman V. Narayanan said on Sunday that India plans four functional launch pads by 2029 and a 2,000-acre Small Satellite Launch Vehicle complex at Kulasekarapattinam in Tamil Nadu. The first uncrewed Gaganyaan test is planned within two months, to be followed by two more, and Chandrayaan-5 will be a joint lunar mission with Japan carrying a 350-kg rover.
Eighth POCSO case against granite baron, look-out notices against five, and a chargesheet getting closer
The Special Investigation Team probing complaints against Gem Granites chairman R Veeramani has registered an eighth POCSO case based on a new complainant, and issued look-out circulars against five suspects. Twelve victims have come forward. The SIT says its final report is near.
Five seats, one deadline: Stalin sets DMK's bypoll machinery running before November 25
DMK president M.K. Stalin has asked district functionaries to send panels of candidates for five vacant Tamil Nadu assembly seats, with bypolls due before November 25. The Madras High Court cleared Perundurai and is expected to rule on the other four when it reopens on Monday.
Nayanthara boards Rajinikanth's Dharman, and the banner puts it best: 'the aura is double'
Nayanthara has joined the cast of Rajinikanth's upcoming film Dharman, her sixth with the actor after Chandramukhi, Sivaji, Kuselan, Darbar and Annaatthe. The production house, Raaj Kamal Films International, announced it with the line 'the aura is double'. Ashwath Marimuthu directs; Kamal Haasan produces.
Arnab is coming: 140 kmph winds, 5.7 lakh people to move, landfall on Wednesday
Cyclone Arnab intensified over the Bay of Bengal on Monday and is forecast to cross the Andhra Pradesh-Yanam coast between Bapatla and Visakhapatnam as a very severe cyclonic storm by the forenoon of October 28. Andhra Pradesh has identified 5.7 lakh vulnerable people and will begin evacuating from Monday evening; Odisha has shut schools in five districts.
114 medals, five records and a flag to carry: India's para athletes land home to a hero's welcome
India's para athletes returned from the Asian Para Games in Aichi-Nagoya with a best-ever 114 medals — 30 gold, 35 silver and 49 bronze — and a fourth-place finish. Para shooter Mona Agarwal, who set a world record and was India's closing-ceremony flag bearer, led the arrivals in Chennai.
Bail plea rejected at noon, arrested by evening: former school education minister held in ₹100-crore ‘party fund’ case
Former Tamil Nadu school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi was arrested by the Greater Chennai Police's Central Crime Branch on Monday evening, hours after the Madras High Court dismissed his anticipatory bail plea. Investigators allege crores were collected from private school managements as ‘party fund’ in exchange for promised approvals.