M. Subbaraya Aiyar (1885–1963) was a prominent income tax lawyer and philanthropist born in Marayur, Tanjore District in the old Madras Presidency.[1] He started from humble beginnings in the village of Marayur and moved to Chennai as a small boy. He was educated at the Madras Christian College and the Law College in Madras and became a High Court lawyer in 1910 under the law firm headed by Sir C. P. Ramaswami Iyer. Constituent Assembly member Alladi Krishnaswamy Iyer was a close friend of his from this time. He was later associated with D. Srinivasan, a criminal defense lawyer and father of renowned Tamil actor Kamal Haasan. After a successful practice in Income Tax Law, Aiyar co-founded three educational institutions: Vivekananda College, Vidya Mandir[2] and Madras Institute of Technology in Chromepet, Madras.