A great actor and a great human. Review on Rajinikanth

Perhaps no other personality has been so much of a puzzle like Rajnikanth. Media has projected him as the actor with a mass image, but nothing could be a more incomplete description of an interesting person who came up in life through sheer hard work and intensity.

It was the intensity and fire in his eyes that inspired the legend director K Balachander to pick up Shivaji Rao Gaekwad and rename him as Rajnikanth for a small yet vital role in the movie ? Aboorva raagangal ? wayback in 1975.

Twenty-nine years later, the fire in him has matured and moulded into warmth that reaches out to help mankind. Today, Rajni is the actor of the masses. He is a kind-hearted philanthropist. He is a canny businessman. As a politician, he reflects immaturity and inexperience. The saint in him, which expresses itself in way of his mysterious disappearance to the Himalayas puzzles his fans. He is a doting father and also a caring mentor to his daughter Aishwarya. Rajni is the best example of what an average human with all imperfections can achieve in life.

As an actor, life was not easy. Life was never easy to this man, born in a large family and losing his mother at a tender age. His college days at Ramakrishna mutt ingrained a tinge of spirituality and philosophy into his thinking. Necessity for money forced him to work as a bus conductor. His passion for acting drove him to the film institute in Chennai. Destiny brought him to the company of K Balachander. He got a negative role in his first movie. He inched towards roles that were longer, yet negative in his next few movies.

His performances and unique style of emoting won him accolades even when he was not the central character. Mullum malarum, Moondru mudichu, Avargal, Gayatri were all his stepping stones to stardom. He eventually reached where he belonged to ? the top spot !! He developed an image of a fighter hero. But, that would do a huge injustice to his immense talent. The movie ? Thambiku Endha Ooru ? brought out what a great comedy actor was hidden within Rajni.

Perhaps no movie changed the direction of his life like Pandian. For once, his movie contained strong political flavour. The tirade was against the then chief minister. His characterization in his subsequent movies had a lot of political undercurrent. Slowly, Rajni was expressing his intention to involve himself in the political movement in the state. His Mass appeal made him a force who cannot be ignored.

With all humility, the great man addresses K Balachander as his Guru (mentor) even today. Rajni attributes his success to his co-workers and rewards them all generously when he produces movies.

Rajnikanth s personality has multiple facets, like most of us. His quest for spiritual insight made him disappear to the Himalayas for a short while in the year 1989. Philanthropy inspires him to donate for the poor and the physically impaired children. He urged the state governments to act decisively and quickly when his friend and actor Rajkumar was kidnapped.

Media projects Rajni as a mass actor who entertains his huge number of fans with his style and stunts. More recently, they loved to hate him as the indecisive politician. They have done a huge injustice by not focusing on his deep and intensive acting skills. He belongs to the generation of actors who evolved as stars. Rajni is one of the few actors who has done the hero, anti-hero, villain, saint and comedy roles with ease.

To many of his fans, Rajni remains an enigma. Perhaps Rajni is a puzzle for himself. Yet, what makes him immensely popular is his honesty in projecting him with his imperfections. Rajni never tries to be politically correct. He is brutally honest. His films these days make the viewer relax and forget his worries for a couple of hours.

Rajni is a great actor and an even greater human. He will forever remain as the man who created a niche and name for himself. Noone can take the place he has occupied in the hearts of his millions of fans. But, the best aspect of Rajni I love is that he illustrates how inconsequential circumstances can become if we are willing to work with passion and dedication. His life is the best example to illustrate that growth is a hard, frustrating, step by step process and not an escalator ride.