‘Thalaivar’ back on screen, and fans can’t stop celebrating

Chennai/Mumbai: There are many festivals in India and then there is the festival of Rajinikanth, complete with its own rituals, not the least of which is frenzied fans appearing for the first day, first show screening, come summer, winter, rain or hail – or even a pre-dawn start.

And so it was on Thursday with the release of “Kaala”, the superstar’s latest film, being heralded by fans forming serpentine queues outside theatres not just in Tamil Nadu but also in Mumbai as early as 4 am, armed with drums and large cutouts of the man they have come to worship as god.

In accordance with time-honoured tradition, the cutouts were garlanded and bathed with milk, fans showed up with his face literally painted on their bare bodies and some women visited a temple before heading for the theatre.

That the film received lukewarm reviews didn’t seem to matter much for the many ‘devotees’ of the 67-year-old, known as “Thalaivar”, the supreme boss.

The Rajini phenomenon is not just limited to the South. His fans come from places such  as Japan (where he is known as Baba and has a cult following) and Sri Lanka.

Amongst those whistling and clapping as “Kaala” appeared on screen in Chennai was Michael Sathish, a 25-year-old Sri Lankan, who said he watches all Rajini films and saw the first half standing so he could cheer better.

Also in the audience in a Chennai theatre was a Tamil speaking Japanese couple that had come all the way from Osaka just to watch the opening show of the Rajinikanth film. And they do this for most of his releases, they told NDTV.

In Mumbai, the heavy downpour failed to dampen the festive Rajini spirit as his admirers lined up outside multiplexes as early as 12 midnight, armed with drums and carrying their special ‘fans only’ tickets.

“Rajini sir is not a star, he is our god. He is a culture in himself. I inherited my love for him from my parents. They will be proud of me,” said a 20-year-old fan from the Tamil stronghold of Dharavi, who took his place at midnight, six hours before the show began at 6 am.

Many gathered near a 67-feet poster of the actor, which was duly garlanded.

“The poster is 67 feet because Rajini is 67 years old. We were coordinating for months and the auspicious day is finally here. We have prayed for him, danced for him, now we will cheer for him,” Santosh, a member of a Rajini fan club, said.

When told that the collection of his last few films had not matched the stardom, he said, “Can anything ever hurt god? Nothing. His films are our blessings and we are here to take it.”

Reports suggest that the film’s advance booking was not as great as his previous films.

According to Chennai-based trade analyst Sreedhar Pillai, it is too early to give any numbers for the film, directed by Ranjith.

“The advance booking was not very good but the state government’s special permission to conduct morning shows have helped. People are liking the film better than ‘Kabali’ (Ranjith-Rajinikanth previous collaboration).

“We have to wait and see how it performs over the weekend. But it will not take a massive opening like ‘Kabali’ because that released in more screens. And ‘Kaala’ is not getting a full-fledged release in Karnataka, which is a major market for Rajinikanth,” Pillai said.

Kaushik LM, another Chennai-based trade analyst, believes the film, reported to have been made at a cost of Rs 140 crore, will have a good hold over the weekend.

“The Tamil Nadu rights for the film are valued at around Rs 62 crore. Currently, the tracking suggests that the film may slightly fall behind the opening record of Vijay’s ‘Mersal’ as ‘Kaala’ has released on a non-festival day.

“But I am expecting the film to beat ‘Kabaali’s numbers in the long run… The numbers on Monday will be the film’s first litmus test and the following weekdays will provide a fair idea of the lifetime run.”

But Rajinikanth is the rare actor whose popularity triumphs mere numbers.

He gracefully embraces the adulation, balancing his flamboyant movie persona with that of a quiet family man in real life as a husband and father of two daughters.

The actor, who unlike most of his showbiz colleagues does not shy away from appearing in public, greying and bald, is ready for active politics and hopes to do well there with the strength of his followers.

His political persona has already affected his star status with pro-Kannada groups threatening a boycott of the film over his remarks on sharing of the Cauvery river waters, a contentious topic between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

The beginnings of the remarkable star story were humble.

Rajinikanth, whose real name is Shivaji Rao Gaekwad, was born on December 12, 1950, to Ramabai and Ramoji Rao Gaekwad in Karnataka. Before becoming a matinee idol, he did several odd jobs before becoming a bus conductor.

To chase his dream of acting, he quit that job and made his movie debut with K Balachander’s 1975 film “Apoorva Ragangal”.

Balachander rechristened Shivaji as Rajinikanth.

More than 150 films later, Rajini the actor is firmly ensconced in the pantheon of Indian cinema’s most idolised stars.