STORYBOARD
PICK YOUR RAJINI: Superstar actor or successful politician?
ARUN RAM 03.02.2020
When Bear Grylls went with Rajinikanth to Bandipur Tiger Reserve last week, meme factories churned out wisecracks with pictures of the superstar wrestling with tigers, leopards and lions. TOI carried a cartoon showing wild animals fleeing the forest, an elephant screaming, “Run, Rajini has entered the forest”. Some said it was the forest that had entered Rajini, and that ‘Thalaivar’ could carry the Amazon (the rainforest, not the American multinational company) in his pocket — and still have space for the Sundarbans.
‘Rajinisms’ have long been a subject of analysis by film critics, political pundits and management gurus (my favourite is that Rajini’s first decision after announcing his political party would be to recognise the Election Commission of India). As the actor gets ready to finally take the plunge into politics this year, we should prepare ourselves to see the end of this enigma. The moment Rajini becomes a successful politician — hold that punch, dear fan — he will cease to be a superstar actor.
He will have to eventually stop acting if he is serious about his second calling. MGR continued to act till he became the chief minister in 1977, but his movies since the launch of the ADMK (which later became AIADMK) in 1972 — ‘Netru Indru Naalai’ (1974), ‘Idhayakani’ (1975), ‘Indru Pol Endrum Vazhga’ (1977) and ‘Meenava Nanmban’ (1977) — were to buttress his do-gooder image for his eventual ascension to power. The 1978 period film ‘Madhuraiyai Meetta Soundharapandiyan’ was probably a delayed release. ‘Avasara Police 100’ (1990) and ‘Nallathai Naadu Kekkum’ (1991) were posthumous releases using archive footage.
For MGR, movies were vehicles of political stardom, fuelled by the Dravidian movement which had a symbiosis with cinema. He was cautious to avoid negative roles and play only the hero who, while fighting evil and injustice, respected and rescued women. He never smoked or drank on screen. In contrast, many of the roles that propelled Rajini into stardom had dark shades. If even his later roles refused to shrug them off, it is not just because the fans love them, they also added to the ‘Rajini phenomenon’ that logical analysts struggle to decipher.
But Rajini cannot play a reformed underworld king if he becomes the chief minister. A suddenly-samaritan Rajini on screen would just not be the superstar his fans worship. Even MGR couldn’t continue acting once he became the CM at the age of 60. Rajinikanth will be 70 before the 2021 assembly election.
Roger Caillois, the French intellectual who did some seminal studies on superstars, attributes stardom to toil, media promotion and luck — incidentally (my words, not his) the same ingredients make a successful politician. And the similarity looks more striking when Caillois says “small and relative differences are of decisive importance for winning or losing by a hair’s breadth” (a bad opening day can make a movie bomb at the box office, an assembly seat less can cost the CM chair) and that a superstar cannot merely be successful at some activity, he should also be richly rewarded (in terms of seats in elections, money for movies).
Now that it looks certain that Rajini will launch his party, his choice between continuing to act and remaining in politics will depend on the 2021 assembly poll results. And if he has to choose the former, he has to win the election on his debut. Let’s face it, a late entrant that he is into politics, Rajini cannot afford to lose the first time and hope to say in 2026, “Naan vanduttennnu sollu, thirumbi vanthuttenu!”
arun.ram@timesgroup.com
By 2021, the BJP will rule over Tamil Nadu — Sasikala Pushpa, BJP MEMBER POKER FACE That was fast
PICK YOUR RAJINI: Superstar actor or successful politician?
ARUN RAM 03.02.2020
When Bear Grylls went with Rajinikanth to Bandipur Tiger Reserve last week, meme factories churned out wisecracks with pictures of the superstar wrestling with tigers, leopards and lions. TOI carried a cartoon showing wild animals fleeing the forest, an elephant screaming, “Run, Rajini has entered the forest”. Some said it was the forest that had entered Rajini, and that ‘Thalaivar’ could carry the Amazon (the rainforest, not the American multinational company) in his pocket — and still have space for the Sundarbans.
‘Rajinisms’ have long been a subject of analysis by film critics, political pundits and management gurus (my favourite is that Rajini’s first decision after announcing his political party would be to recognise the Election Commission of India). As the actor gets ready to finally take the plunge into politics this year, we should prepare ourselves to see the end of this enigma. The moment Rajini becomes a successful politician — hold that punch, dear fan — he will cease to be a superstar actor.
He will have to eventually stop acting if he is serious about his second calling. MGR continued to act till he became the chief minister in 1977, but his movies since the launch of the ADMK (which later became AIADMK) in 1972 — ‘Netru Indru Naalai’ (1974), ‘Idhayakani’ (1975), ‘Indru Pol Endrum Vazhga’ (1977) and ‘Meenava Nanmban’ (1977) — were to buttress his do-gooder image for his eventual ascension to power. The 1978 period film ‘Madhuraiyai Meetta Soundharapandiyan’ was probably a delayed release. ‘Avasara Police 100’ (1990) and ‘Nallathai Naadu Kekkum’ (1991) were posthumous releases using archive footage.
For MGR, movies were vehicles of political stardom, fuelled by the Dravidian movement which had a symbiosis with cinema. He was cautious to avoid negative roles and play only the hero who, while fighting evil and injustice, respected and rescued women. He never smoked or drank on screen. In contrast, many of the roles that propelled Rajini into stardom had dark shades. If even his later roles refused to shrug them off, it is not just because the fans love them, they also added to the ‘Rajini phenomenon’ that logical analysts struggle to decipher.
But Rajini cannot play a reformed underworld king if he becomes the chief minister. A suddenly-samaritan Rajini on screen would just not be the superstar his fans worship. Even MGR couldn’t continue acting once he became the CM at the age of 60. Rajinikanth will be 70 before the 2021 assembly election.
Roger Caillois, the French intellectual who did some seminal studies on superstars, attributes stardom to toil, media promotion and luck — incidentally (my words, not his) the same ingredients make a successful politician. And the similarity looks more striking when Caillois says “small and relative differences are of decisive importance for winning or losing by a hair’s breadth” (a bad opening day can make a movie bomb at the box office, an assembly seat less can cost the CM chair) and that a superstar cannot merely be successful at some activity, he should also be richly rewarded (in terms of seats in elections, money for movies).
Now that it looks certain that Rajini will launch his party, his choice between continuing to act and remaining in politics will depend on the 2021 assembly poll results. And if he has to choose the former, he has to win the election on his debut. Let’s face it, a late entrant that he is into politics, Rajini cannot afford to lose the first time and hope to say in 2026, “Naan vanduttennnu sollu, thirumbi vanthuttenu!”
arun.ram@timesgroup.com
By 2021, the BJP will rule over Tamil Nadu — Sasikala Pushpa, BJP MEMBER POKER FACE That was fast
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