Jayalalithaa, who is often known as a great political icon, was also an indisputable star in the film industry. She began her career as a female lead when she was just 15 with Kannada film Chinnada Gombe in 1964.
Jayalalithaa was seen in about 28 films with Tamil superstar MGR and was also featured in a few Bollywood films as well.
For Keralites, Jayalalithaa was seen in just two Malayalam movie – Jesus and Uppu.
The film Jesus that featured the life of Christ in Malayalam was released on December 21, 1973, just before Christmas. The film was a huge hit and the Tamil version was also a success. Jayalalithaa played the role of Salomi in the movie. Produced and directed by P.A. Thomas under the banner of Universal Pictures, the film was shot in color at Gemini Studios. P.A. Thomas also wrote the script and dialogs. Editing by U. Rajagopal and cinematography by N. Karthikeyan was impressive. The film had music by four composers – M.S. Viswanathan, K.J. Yesudas, Alleppey Ranganath and Joseph Krishna. Popular artistes like Thikkkurissi Sukumaran Nair, Jose Prakash, K.P. Ummer, Vincent, Rani Chandra, Khadeeja, Ushakumari from Malayalam and Gemini Ganeshan, Major Sundararajan, OAK Thevar, MN Nambiar , V.K. Ramaswami from Tamil essayed important roles. This was Jayalalithaa’s only Malayalam film and her dance sequence was a sensation.
Meanwhile, Uppu directed by VK Pavithran and written by KMA Rahim is about atavistic Muslim practice of male polygamy. Film is entirely on the side of the wronged wives, mounting a strong criticism of this aspect of the Muslim religion. PT Kunju Muhammed, Jayalalithaa, Vijayan Kottarathil and Madhavan were the lead players. Jaya played the role of Amina in the movie. The film won the national film award for best feature film in Malayalam.