K. Sriramulu Naidu was a leader in the Justice Party, close friend of Periyar and the first Mayor of Madras in the 1930s and 40s, the capital of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu. His father was the chief translator of the Madras Presidency for the British and was knighted the Rao Bahadur by King George VI, for his tremendous service to the crown. He was an ardent philanthropist who is best known for his generous donation of Kandappa Chetty Street, George Town, to the Tirumula Charities and hundreds of acres of land to the government on which the Chennai International Airport is currently situated. Naidu comes from an esteemed Velama family which includes former Madras High Court justices, lawyers, top government officials, and businessmen.