Chennai: Meena Muthiah, an educationist who transformed Chettinad Vidyashram into one of Chennai's most influential private schools and utilized her title, wealth, and influence to advance education, arts, and philanthropy, passed away in Ooty on Saturday. She was 92 years old.
Shortly after her death, Chettinad Vidyashram, the institution she founded and led as correspondent, described her as a "visionary, healer, and a mother to many," stating that her "unwavering commitment to education, compassion, and excellence has shaped generations and built a legacy that will continue to inspire."
Early Life and Background
Born into the banking and trading community of Chettinad, she spent her early years in Burma, where her grandfather, Rajah Sir Annamalai Chettiar, who founded Annamalai University in Chidambaram, would visit for the Pillayar nombu ritual, as she once recalled. As World War II approached Rangoon in 1944, her family, like many Chettiar households, moved back to India.
Educated in a convent school, she longed for music and dance but instead absorbed a different lesson from her teachers: discipline. At the age of 14, she married industrialist M A M Muthiah Chettiar and moved to Chettinad House in Chennai. She completed a BA in economics and an MA in history from Queen Mary's College. When she lost her husband at 34, she fostered children. After they left home for work or marriage, she decided to start a school.
Founding of Chettinad Vidyashram
Her friend, educationist Rajalakshmi Parthasarathy (Mrs YGP), founder of Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan, encouraged her. "When aunty (Muthiah) told her she was alone, Mrs YGP encouraged her to start a school and even gave the name for the institution," recalls PSBB dean Sheela Rajendra. With four children, including Aishwarya and Soundarya, daughters of actor Rajinikanth, she started a school in her living room.
From that modest beginning grew three institutions: Chettinad Vidyashram, Rani Meyyammai Girls Higher Secondary School, and the Kumararani Dr Meena Muthiah College of Arts and Science. "When I pray, I silently thank him. I asked only for a child, and he gave me thousands," Muthiah said in a session with the South Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
Emphasis on Arts and Discipline
Lessons in painting, music, and dance were central to campus life at her institutions. "She was ever smiling, gentle, soft, and yet a disciplinarian," said Haritha V, an alumna working in the US.
Philanthropy and Patronage
Muthiah earned a doctorate on the origin and development of Tanjore painting. She was a patron who created stages and support systems for classical arts. Chettinad Kalaikoodam, which she founded, conferred awards and recognition on senior artistes. She served on university senates and supported Voluntary Health Services, Kanchi Kamakoti Childs Trust Hospital, and the Indian Red Cross. She also founded the Kumara Rani Meena Muthiah Mother and Child Hospital in Karaikudi.
