Being a South Indian, I cannot confine the temptation of writing an article on Superstar Rajinikanth. Let me divulge something before I start the article. I am not a regular Friday release movie fan. I certainly don't recommend star worship being a nuance to build a civilized society. Stars are not born, they are made, is my line. I know the reality of a very big crew slogging day in and day out to bring the shine on a rising star. It is a collaborative effort. Beyond talent, It requires networking, It requires unscrupulous political games to be won, marketing skills,It requires a lot of conviction and effort not by the star alone but also by the people around who are willing to reap the fruits later by the filthy stardom. Nowadays you have media agencies to build your brand, the media manager works perpetually to bring in value to the brand . So given the situation, worshiping a star to a god status is paranormal is what I believe in.
In spite, I would say Rajinikanth is different. He deserves every adoration, reverences and zealot affection showcased by his fans not only during the movie releases but also on the regular days. So am I contradicting between the first statement and the second? Do you see a hypocrite in me? If so... continue reading.
1. Endorsing spiritualism in the Dravidian State : If you have followed the political scenario in TN for the past 6 decades, Both the ruling parties DMK and ADMK have always followed anti spiritual policies. The former and the later clinched the policies of EV Ramaswamy, a renowned atheist. Any celebrity in TN, one among the given political set-ups would vouch for the similar ideologies in their movies or on any of their stage appearances. even a biggie like Kamal hassan wasn't an anomaly to it. But Rajinikanth had never spoken against spirituality. He had never impaired the sentiments of any religion or community anytime in his life. Though he had the luxury to do them. On top, he has always appeared to be explicit and blatant in showcasing his religious beliefs. This straightforwardness in his behaviour made him reach the fans beyond stardom. 2. Principle is the absolute paramount : Many larger than life entrepreneurs had contacted Rajinikanth to endorse their brand or product with a blank cheque and failed in the attempt. This is something uncommon in the showbiz. Since the offering of money is too very tempting. Resisting from the fortune stroke of serendipity is not that easy. Starting from Amitabh Bachchan to SRK to Chiranjeevi to Kamal Hassan, biggest superstars of his age were not able to get through the temptation of endorsing corporate brands. But Rajinikanth had never done it even once. In fact he had acted in only a dozen of films in the last one whole decade yet he did not represent anyone. This shows his principle and how he indestructibly stands by it. 3. Go with the wind...? not always : Thalaivar had never gone with the wind all the time. He maintained a separate legacy and space in state politics in spite of anybody owning the throne. He had never feared to voice his disappointment on Jayalalitha, having her on stage in a function, in 1995. Later he voiced out against her in the following election. Still, during the 1998-99 parliament election he voiced against the PMK who was in alliance with the DMK, which he supported two years before. He gave his opinion about Ram-Sethu issue on stage in front of then CM Karunanidhi and made the intensity of the controversy to get loosen. While an appreciation ceremony was organized for the freebies distributed by the CM Karunanidhi, Rajini spoke about how the freebies would shatter the economy on the very same stage. When he came out of an election booth, he valiantly confessed to the media about the party to which he voted. There are countless occasions and episodes which would showcase how Rajini preferred to take the sides of his own policies rather playing the cards to the favor of the bigwigs. 4. Double standard was never a cup of tea : You can never see or quote anytime on Rajini for mishandling the situation by contradicting himself to the past. He had never been a hypocrite. Once in an interview somebody asked, "Do you believe in astrology?". The answer could have been yes or no. But he said "It depends on who predicts it" . This is what Rajini is. He is a metaphor for truth. His ideologies of being a nationalist, religious, spiritual, way of living hadn't changed over the years. He had always been a man of few words. His interviews would never be redundant and the spoken words will never change over the years in any situation. Finally, Rajini has always been a self critic and he knew his negatives and converted them as his positives is an unbelievable trait one should learn from him. He played with his strengths all his life. In one of the recent interviews somebody asked " how are you so simple?"., for which he said "I don't understand why you people call me simple, when I stay in five star hotels and drive a BMW car". This is why Rajinikanth is a member of everybody's family in the state he lives in. This article never depicted any of his movies or the way of his acting. The idea of this write-up is to make people understand, Why Thalaivar Rajinikanth is a superstar beyond movies and adored by billions. There may be several superstars coming in the lineage. There may be people who would earn more than him in the following years. But Thalaivar Rajinikanth will be the ultimate of all. Like his fan says, One moon, One Star, and one and only Rajinikanth. This article is the dedication to his 45 years completion in cinema. In this 45 years none of his producers became indigent or below par. This is the phenomenality of the Super Star. Hail Rajinikanth!! #45YearsOfRajinismCDP