CHENNAI: At 95, when most would prefer comfort over crowds, veteran screenwriter Chitralaya Gopu chose conviction. Election officials had made arrangements for him to cast his vote from home, but Gopu had other plans.At around 8.30am on Thursday, in a crisply ironed shirt and dhoti, he went to the polling booth at a municipal school in Thiruvanmiyur. Gopu stood among the crowd, but not for long. Recognising his age and his legacy, peoplemade way for him. There was no spectacle, no grand speech, just a quiet, dignified act of participation. Yet, in that simple moment, he embodied something larger; a reminder that democracy endures not through systems alone, but through the will of those who show up.Gopu had campaigned for K Kamaraj. “I have seen generations of leaders and have lived to face many elections. I am determined to vote in 2029 and 2031 too,” he said.
