'Kaala': Lesser known facts of ‘Thalaivar’ Rajinikanth

Superstar Rajinikanth is once back to the silver screen once again with the latest release ‘Kaala’, a gangster drama directed by Pa Ranjith. Like any other Rajini film, ‘Kaala’, too, has huge expectations among the audiences and is likely to create havoc at the box-office. With the film finally in theatres, here are some lesser-known facts about ‘Thalaivar’ Rajinikanth you would love to know.

Rajinikanth was born to a Marathi family based in Begaluru. His mother was a housewife and his father was a police constable. Before entering into films, Rajinikanth did many odd jobs including that of a bus conductor. It was the legendary filmmaker K Balachander who christened Shivaji Rao Gaekwad as Rajinikanth in his debut film ‘Apoorva Raagangal’. Since then, he’s more famously known by his screen name. With back-to-back blockbusters in the ‘80s, Rajinikanth is arguably the biggest star in Indian cinema.

Unlike other actors, Rajinikanth started off playing menacing villain in films. Be it ‘16 Vayathinile’ or ‘Moondru Mudichu’, Rajinikanth gave some memorable performance in a negative role. After playing supporting roles in films, he acted in ‘Mullum Malarum’, directed by J Mahendran that turned the table for Rajinikanth. Before its release, ‘Mullum Malarum’ faced a lot of issues from the producers. Interestingly, it was Kamal Haasan’s timely assistance that helped the release of ‘Mullum Malarum’, which went on to become one of the landmark films in the history of Tamil cinema. Upon release, Rajinikanth’s character Kaali became a pop-culture phenomenon in the industry.

The ‘80s saw the phenomenal growth of Rajinikanth in the industry. Several films have turned out to fetch enough moolah for the producers. However, an interesting fact is that Rajinikanth remade several Amitabh Bachchan’s films in Tamil cinema. Some of the films that were remade include ‘Billa’, ‘Thee’, ‘Padikathavan’, ‘Dharmathin Thalaivan’, ‘Mr Bharath’ and ‘Panakkaran’ to name a few. In fact, Rajinikanth is a very good friend of Amitabh Bachchan and has acted together in many Hindi films. In the 1985 film, ‘Geraftaar’, Rajinikanth acted with counterparts Amitabh Bachchan and Kamal Haasan in the film.

The camaraderie shared between Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan, the two pillars of Tamil cinema, is nothing new to the audience. Groomed by the legendary filmmaker K Balachander, both Rajini-Kamal first appeared together in ‘Apoorva Raagangal’ in 1975. Since then, Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan have acted together in eleven films that are often regarded as classics. Despite being on-screen rivals, both the superstars have always maintained a cordial relationship with each other. However, it was Haasan who apparently advised Rajini to create a niche for himself. The duo last acted together in the period film ‘Alavudinum Arputha Vilakkum’ (1979). In a recent interview, Haasan revealed that their friendship spans over a period of 40 years.

Long before Aamir Khan, Rajinikanth was perhaps the first Indian actor to discover a market in Japan. When his ‘Muthu’ released in 1995, the film received an overwhelming response from fans in Japan. The film, which was dubbed and released there, became successful at the box-office. ‘Muthu’, directed by KS Ravikumar, achieved a strong Japanese fanbase for Rajinikanth. It’s also worth mentioning that a die-hard Rajini fan flew down all the way from Japan to watch his gangster drama ‘Kabali’ in Chennai.

Rajinikanth is someone who has mostly restricted himself to acting and has entertained the audience for over 40 years now. However, Rajinikanth has written screenplays for two films ‘Valli’ and ‘Baba’. Despite high expectations, both the film bombed at the box-office. The ‘Enthiran’ star has also crooned in films like ‘Mannan’ and ‘Kochadaiyaan’. Also, Rajinikanth is reportedly the only actor to have acted in all the formats including 3D and motion capture films.

Rajinikanth was touted to be the highest paid actor in India and second highest in Asia when his action-thriller ‘Sivaji’ hit the screens in 2007. The film, directed by Shankar, opened to rave reviews from critics and went on to become one of the highest grossing Tamil films ever. Reportedly, ‘Sivaji’ performed exceptionally well in the overseas market. His much-anticipated sci-fi thriller 2.0 is now the costliest Asian film ever to have been made. Earlier, his Enthiran was made on a whopping budget of Rs 150 crore.

Putting decades of speculation to rest, superstar Rajinikanth formally announced his political entry into politics in December last year. At 67, the actor is currently appointing office bearers for his Rajini Makkal Mandram and is expected to launch the party and its ideology later this year. Since his political entry, Rajinikanth has been vocal on several issues lately. The actor landed in a controversy following his statement regarding the Cauvery water sharing issue, which ultimately lead to a ban on the film ‘Kaala’ in Karnataka. Also, Rajinikanth’s “spiritual politics” has gotten mixed reactions from political leaders and commentators. After dominating Tamil cinema, the Rajini-Kamal rivalry continues in politics too.