BENGALURU: The sun doesn’t rise until Rajinikanth says good morning!
Rascala! The earth doesn’t revolve around the sun but revolves around Rajinikanth. Mind it!
Such Rajini jokes abound. The frenzy ahead of the release of his 159th film, Kabali, shows how everything defies logic and how Rajini is larger than life for his fans.
Earlier, the nation wanted to know why Kattappa killed Bahubali. But now a fiery Kabali has become the nation’s talking point.
The film is set for release on July 22 after Rajini gave the Censor Board a U certificate!
Fans in Bengaluru are ‘soooper’ excited. Murugan, president, Rajinikanth Fans Association, says, “We have booked tickets in Mukunda Theatre for the first day, while another fans’ association has booked Urvashi Theatre.”
A Rajini movie release is nothing short of a festival for this lot. “We admire the actor for his humility, his down-to-earth approach and his generosity,” he says.
They are maha happy that the Malaysian government is bringing out a stamp in the actor’s honour. Murugan says he wants the Indian government to follow suit and wishes to write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi about it.
Murugan and team are going out of their way to show their adoration for Rajinikanth. They have painted plastic pots with his photos and intend to distribute them to the poor. They have also had Kabali T-shirts custom-made which they will proudly don when they go to watch the movie.
Murugan says, “Rajini sir’s school is now renovated and has good infrastructure. It will be inaugurated on August 15.”
The teaser of Kabali that was released on April 30 has crossed over 25 million views on YouTube. The buzz has led to the birth of brand Kabali that is now on mobile phones, coffee mugs, T-shirts, chocolates and even Kabali action figures. It must amuse Rajinikanth who has not endorsed a single product in his life to find just about everyone jumping on to the Kabali brandwagon. If Rajni-kant, Kabali can!
That the mania has reached a peak is evident with AirAsia announcing a special aircraft for fans in Bengaluru to fly to Chennai to watch the film.
Airtel offers its subscribers a chance to greet Rajinikanth through SMS. Exclusive Kabali recharge packs feature unlimited 2G Internet.
Here comes the silver tribute. Kabali will now adorn silver coins. Muthoot Fincorp partnered with the filmmakers for the roll-out of exclusive coins, which will be available at all their branches.
What is the movie all about? Kabali features Rajinikanth as a don fighting atrocities against Tamils in Malaysia. Directed by Pa Ranjith with music scored by Santhosh Narayan, the film has Radhika Apte as part of the ensemble cast. Taiwanese actor Winston Chao has been roped in to play the antagonist.
Why the title Kabali? The electrifying teaser featuring Rajinikanth in his trademark stylish avatar shows a dialogue where he says he is no ordinary ‘Kabali’ (a spineless yes man). But Kabali, the don.
In Tamil cinema, villains or rowdies have always been stuck with the name Kabali. But the director wanted to break that stereotype and portray Rajini as a crusader.
And Neruppu Da, the song that has set YouTube on fire, was written in 20 minutes, lyricist and singer Arunraja told TV channels. Writing a fiery song that encapsulates the character of Kabali and elevating it to Rajinikanth’s level, was indeed a tall order for this soft-spoken lyricist..
The clock is ticking. And Rajini fans all over have already begun the countdown. After all, it is a thalaivar movie and as he drawls in the teaser in his inimitable style, it’s Kabaaaali da.