M. A. Chidambaram (or MAC, as he was fondly called) born on October 12th, 1918, was the third son of Dr Rajah Sir Annamalai Chettiar, the founder of Annamalai University.
MAC started off with a scooter factory in Mumbai. SPIC was established later. Besides being a pioneering industrialist, MAC is also remembered for his contribution to several other fields. He started the Tamil Isai Sangam to promote music in Tamil. His trust contributed substantially to the Voluntary Health Service started by Dr K. Sanjeevi.
He was President of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for a term and its Treasurer for a record number of years. He was also President of the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association for more than three decades. Through his efforts, Chennai now boasts a Cricket stadium of international standards – the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, at Chepauk. MAC was Mayor of Chennai in 1955.