Tamil Nadu /ˈtæmɨl ˈnɑːduː/ (Tamiḻ Nāṭu [t̪amɨɭ naːɖɯ] ( listen)) is one of the 28 states of India. Its capital is Chennai, the largest city. Tamil Nadu lies in the southernmost part of the Indian Peninsula and is bordered by the union territory of Pondicherry, and the states of Kerala, Karnataka, and Andhra Pradesh. It is bound by the Eastern Ghats in the north, the Nilgiri, the Anamalai Hills, and Palakkad on the west, by the Bay of Bengal in the east, the Gulf of Mannar, the Palk Strait in the south east, and by the Indian Ocean in the south.

Tamil Nadu is the eleventh largest state in India by area and the seventh most populous state. It is the fourth largest contributor (as of 2010) to India's GDP and ranks tenth in Human Development Index as of 2006. Tamil Nadu is also the most urbanised state in India. The state has the highest number (10.56%) of business enterprises and stands second in total employment (9.97%) in India, compared to the population share of about 6%.

The region has been the home of the Tamil people since at least 500 BCE. Its official language Tamil has been in use in inscriptions and literature for over 2000 years. Tamil Nadu is home to many natural resources, Hindu temples of Dravidian architecture, hill stations, beach resorts, multi-religious pilgrimage sites and eight UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

Christopher Richard "Rick" Stein OBE (born 4 January 1947) is an English chef, restaurateur and television presenter. He is currently the head chef and co-owner of "Rick Stein at Bannisters" at Mollymook, New South Wales, Australia, owns four restaurants in Padstow, a fish and chip shop in Falmouth, Cornwall and has written or presented a number cookery books and television programmes.

Of German descent, Stein was born in Oxfordshire to Eric and Dorothy Stein, and attended Uppingham School and studied English at New College, Oxford. Later, he moved to Padstow, Cornwall where he had spent many childhood holidays.

Stein opened his first business in Padstow in 1974, and now specialises in fish cookery. His business operates four restaurants, a bistro, a cafe, a seafood delicatessen, patisserie shop, a gift shop and a cookery school. His impact on the local economy of Padstow is such that it has been nicknamed "Padstein" despite the phrase being openly disputed by Rick himself.

In 2009 Stein made his first acquisition in the nearby trading village of St Merryn, which is 3.5 miles from Padstow. When taking over the Cornish Arms public house, which is located on the outskirts of St Merryn, Stein's stated aim was to 'keep it a traditional Cornish pub'.

Vijaya Thesingu Rajendar is a Tamil film actor and director as well as a film score composer, screenwriter, singer, comedian, dancer and playback singer. He is also a politician in Tamil Nadu, India.

Rajendar starred in several films in the late-1980s in lead roles, which were mostly his own productions; his most recent being Veerasamy, which was also directed by him. He is currently the host on the Sun TV television shows Arattai Arangam and Comedy Clown as well as Pogo Live! on Pogo. A former member of the DMK, he launched his own dravidian party, the Thayaga Marumalarchi Kazhagam in 1991. In 2004, he rebranded his party under the name All India Latchiya Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam. He has stated that during the 2011 assembly elections, he would consider competing alone but later it was reported that his party did not file any nominations. Born as simply T. Rajendar, he later added the name "Vijaya" to his name due to numerological reasons, but later returned to his original name.

Rajendar was born to Desingu Udaiyar in the village of Athur near Mayavaram (now known as Mayiladuthurai) on May 9, 1955.