Sangam (The Union)

The Nadigar Sangam (English: Actors' association), officially known as the South Indian Artistes' Association (Tamil: தென்னிந்திய நடிகர் சங்கம்), is a union for film, television, and stage actors in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu, based in Chennai. Formed in 1952, the group has a charitable trust fund to provide pensions to retired actors, voices support for actors caught in controversy, and has collectively protested socio-political issues. Elections in the Nadigar Sangam, which is made up of over 3,000 members, are held every three years to determine the president of the union. R. Sarathkumar, who had been elected unopposed three times since 2006 when former president Vijayakanth stepped down, was ousted by Nassar in an election on 18 October 2015. The election held in 2019 was under the scrutiny of the court and a special officer appointed by the government looked into the administrative roles of the association.