Director Gnanarajasekaran's Periyar, a biopic on the rationalist leader was released last month. Sathyaraj played the title role and has won rave reviews for his performance. The cast includes Jyothirmayi, Kushboo and director SS Stanley among others. The movie had musical score by Vidyasagar.

Since the movie was about the Dravidian leader, the State government announced a financial assistance of Rs 95 lakh for the movie. Now going a step further, the State government has announced a 50 percent exemption for students, who watch the movie.

The government has also asked various educational institutions to spread awareness of Periyar and ensure that the students watch the movie.