BACK TO BLOGGING. THANK YOU SUPERSTAR.

Writing is an addiction. So here I am, back to the enticing world of blogs after a hiatus of more than two years. Funny, the point of provocation to get back to the clicker-clacker of the keyboard also had to be an addiction. Something I have been hooked to since I was five. Something I’ve grown with. Something that is an inherent part of my South Indian psyche. The phenomenon called Rajnikanth.

Funny again, that the reason I am writing this is a blog of a fellow media person, terming Sivaji the boss of crap. Fair enough. She has every right to be entitled to an opinion. Like an old firend says.."Opinions are like certain orifices in the human body. Everyone has one." But opinions have to be based on facts, logic and closeness to reality. Sadly, hers wasn’t.

First things first, Sivaji is not Rajni’s best movie. Nor is it his worst. It’s not even a yardstick to measure the range or depth of his work. It’s just another Rajni film. Entertaining and in relative terms I place it above the last two movies he’s done, Chandramukhi and Baba. Chandramukhi was too much of a safe script. Proven successful in Malayalam and Kannada. Even the superstar needs the security of a safe bet, once in a while. Chandramukhi was a safe bet. As for Baba, I don’t even want to get started. Arguably, the most forgetful fare from the superstar’s stable.

Sivaji on the other hand is Rajni in his elements. Not quite vintage Rajni. It’s more a Shankar movie than a Rajni one. Shankar’s scripts, whether it’s Muthalvan, Indian, Gentleman or even Anniyan could have had Rajni in the lead. He in fact had gone to Rajni with the Muthalvan role. Word is that Rajni refused because if he did that movie, it would be impossible for him to stay out of politics. (The protagonist in Muthalvan goes onto become CM of Tamil Nadu). Because when you have him as the hero, the entire setting becomes larger than life. And that’s what Rajni is. Larger than reality. An extraordinary escape window for our mundane everyday existences. He does, what we all aspire to. Beat up the baddies, court the beauties and cleanse the system. And do it in style.

It’s a tad dubious that an actor should be judged, just by one work of his. Imagine judging Amitabh after having seen only films like Mahaan or Sharaabi or Mard. And that too by people who haven’t seen Rajni grow over the years. And worse, still by those who don’t understand a word of Tamil. That’s plain unfair. It’s like me trying to judge Almodovar or Kurosawa. I’d never be able to appreciate the nuances as much as a Spaniard or a Japanese.

There’s another myth about Rajni that I’d like to blow. That he’s a bad actor. He’s just a man of antics and a sub-standard actor. I beg to differ. Anyone who’s seen Rajni in Thappu Thalangal, Gayatri, Aval Appadithan or Sri Raghavendra wouldn’t call Rajni a bad actor. It’s a pity that the actor in him has been buried under the superstar. And Tamil cinema shall be the lesser for it.

But there are these two incidents which put the Rajni phenomenon in perspective. Everytime I meet an outsider who asks me about Rajni, I tell them these two incidents. Just as an indicator of where the man began and where he is now. The first one involves Rajni and the legendary Kannada director Puttana Kanagal who gave him one of his first breaks in Katha Sangamam. During the shooting, Rajni walked upto the legendary director and told him..”Sir, I don’t know the ABCD of acting. I was a bus conductor before this.” To which, the witty Puttana replied “Son, don’t worry I was a two-wheeler mechanic before this. So I think we’ll make a good team.”

The second incident happened many years later. In 1992, after Rajni’s superstar status had hit stratosphere. Jayalalithaa was CM of Tamil Nadu in her first term. Brash, arrogant and new to power. Rajni was leaving his home for shooting one morning, when he noticed a huge traffic block outside. Upon enquiring he found out from Jaya’s PSO that the road was blocked because Madam was leaving her residence. The wily Rajni gets off his car, walks up to a nearby tea stall and starts having his regular fare of tea and Wills Navy cut. Within minutes, a huge crowd surrounds him and the whole street becomes a sea of people. The all powerful CM can’t get out of her house. The same PSO comes back to Rajni and says.."Sir you please leave first. Madam cannot move if you don’t leave first. I am sorry for the trouble." Few actors in the country could thumb their nose at a Chief Minister. Least of all, at the all powerful Amma.

Finally it’s only appropriate that I sign off in Rajni style, with the much-publicised (and may I add ridiculed by some) dialogue from Sivaji. “Pigs go in herds. The lion walks alone.” Keep walking Superstar. We’ll never get enough of you.