Thereafter, M. G. Ramachandran expressed his desire to join this group and insisted that there should be no difference amongst actors on the basis of seniority, and hence, it came to be called the Nadigar Sangam.
As films from all the four southern languages were shot in Madras during that period, it was later renamed Thenn Indhiya Nadigar Sangam (South Indian Artistes Association).
[4] The team purchased over 2,000 square feet (190 m2) of land on Habibulla Road in T Nagar, an affluent neighborhood in Madras (now Chennai).
Upon Ramachandran's appointment as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu in 1977, he approved the Nadigar Sangam's construction of a new building, comprising a preview theatre, a gym and an office space.
Soon after gaining power, the group's leaders met Tamil Nadu's Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, and later asked their members not to work on films which may hurt the feelings of politicians, citing Iruvar (1997) and Desiya Geetham (1998) as examples.
[12] Vijayakanth organized "Star Night" stage shows in Malaysia and Singapore to fundraise for the Nadigar Sangam's accumulated debt, which was at approximately ₹4.5 crore.
[5] Later on in the year, the Sangam staged a 5000 people-strong an anti-Karnataka demonstration in Neyveli, demanding stoppage of power supply to that state, as a result of the Kaveri River water dispute.
[14] Following the launch of his political party Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam, Vijayakanth opted to step down as the President of the Nadigar Sangam and called for elections.
General secretary Radha Ravi filed a defamation complaint to Chennai Police, resulting in the arrest of the newspaper's editor B.
[21] Journalists, including The Hindu editor N. Ram, condemned Lenin's arrest as only being done to appease film stars and demanded his release.
On 6 August 2010, Radha Ravi allowed a long-term lease of the land, which was approximately 18 grounds and worth ₹150 crore at the time, to R. Sarathkumar.
[29] On 30 November 2012, a case was filed at the Madras High Court by film actor Poochi Murugan and P. A. Kaja Mohideen against Sarathkumar and Ravi to stop the land lease to SPI Cinemas.
Murugan also claimed that the land rent set for SPI Cinemas was far less than market value and alleged that both Sarathkumar and Ravi were involved in a conflict of interest due to the fact that the two were brothers-in-law, accusing them of trying to take full control of the trust.
Comedy actor Kumarimuthu was expelled from the Nadigar Sangam over allegations of speaking negatively about the association, after he questioned the intent behind the land lease and building demolition.
"[34] In June 2015, Vishal announced his intention to contest in the upcoming elections with a team against Sarathkumar if the lease agreement to SPI Cinemas was not retracted.
While both teams vowed to commence the construction of the new building, Sarathkumar promised increased pension from the state government, houses for those with over 20 year memberships, and workshops for aspiring actors.
[54] The election took place at St. Ebbas Girls' Higher Secondary School in Mylapore, Chennai on 18 October 2015 peacefully amid a strong police presence, despite a brief altercation between Vishal and Sarathkumar.