Kannan Pillai was just another lookalike of Rajinikanth, a struggling actor in Mumbai. When I met him around two decades ago at Kamalistan Studio, he was happy to be interviewed and showed all the tricks that ‘Thalaiva’ did on screen (Diehard fans will recollect the flourish with which Rajinikanth does a cigarette toss before lighting up and frequently utters ‘Theek hai, Theek hai’ in the film Moondra Mudichu, in which he co-starred with Kamalahasan and Sridevi).
Later, a visit to Japan would prove life-changing for Kannan, conferring on him the yen of prosperity, as his shows in the country proved popular. He has a son and a daughter – the latter is also named Aishwarya, like Rajinikanth’s offspring. Kannan has a house in Andheri and a 5,000sq ft bungalow in Palani in Tamil Nadu.
As he is often mobbed for selfies, he disguises himself, with a cap and a limp when he steps out. Imagine what would happen if the ‘dancing maharaja of Japan’, Rajinikanth, were to do so.
When Rajinikanth, the star of Tamil films ranging from Apoorva Raagangal to Mullum Malarum tried his luck in Hindi, he was made a caricature of sorts and never accepted as a solo hero – having shared screen time with Amitabh Bachchan and Sunny Deol as co-stars.
Offices In South India Declared Holiday On Jailer's Release
What changed this was Tamil films being dubbed in Hindi and shown on Hindi satellite channels. This set off the trend of Rajinikanth jokes, which have now metamorphosed into memes. Rajini could do anything – and that is now a reality, with as many companies in Chennai and Bengaluru having announced a holiday on the release date of his latest film, Jailer.
Other stars release their films on holidays. But when Rajini releases his film, it becomes a holiday. And so it was with his latest release, Jailer. Some offices in the south gave their staff the day off to go watch the film. Fans, both in India and abroad, are over the moon, raving about his performance and pointing out how advance bookings were sold out at various theatres. Reportedly, the film is believed to have crossed the $1.25m mark at the US box office.
The Rajini frenzy ranges from processions by his fan clubs, block ticket bookings by many firms and fan clubs, ‘abhishekams’ of his film posters with milk among others. This time around, a Japanese man, Yasuda Hidetoshi, travelled all the way from Japan to meet Rajini and watch the premiere of the film in Chennai. Hidetoshi speaks Tamil but can’t speak English. Rajini films like Sivaji the Boss have been huge blockbusters in the land of the rising sun.
Admittedly, the box office of Rajini films is lesser than what it used to be and perhaps, that is the reason why Rajini wants Jailer to be known as a Tamil film – to get back to his roots rather than succumb to the current pan-India frenzy of the south Gen Z.
Jailer will perhaps change all that and Rajini, who draws Rs 100 crore per film, lesser than Vijay (Rs 150 crore) and Ajith (Rs 140 crore), will be ready to show that Sivaji is the Boss!
We live in a country where a chaiwala can become the PM and a bus conductor can be the greatest superstar.
