Rajanikanth and Dr.Gayathri Srikanth
Eee Vazi Tani Vazhi (My Way is Unique)
‘Naan oru thadavai sonna, nooru thadavi sonna madhiri’ (If I say it once, I have said it a hundred times).
In his famous movie ‘Baasha’ Rajnikanth says this punch line several times and his viewers, right from the front row to the golden circle go crazy. Rajnikanth, the Indian super star (why they call him South Indian super star?) is an international brand now. For the Japanese audience, he is the Dancing Maharaja. For the South East Asian audience, he is the ‘style wonder’. For the Tamilians he is Thalaivar (a leader with divine qualities). For the street urchins he is Annan (elder brother). He relates to his audience irrespective of age and class. And he is ageless when he is in his character. When the make up is not on, Rajnikanth is just another ordinary fifty eight year old man, dark in complexion and balding. He does not have any qualms to come before his audience without make up and his ‘usual wig’. He flaunts his age with grace. When he makes his public appearance, the phrase that he once uttered in the movie, ‘16 Vayathinile’, “Idhu Eppdi Irukku’ (Howzzat?), seems reverberating and electrifying the air.
Rajnikanth is a phenomenon and anybody who has seen him scorching the silver screen with his stylized performance would never dislike this man as an actor. Despite all his shortcomings (no muscular body, not too tall, no dancing machine, no ‘excellent’ emoting abilities etc etc), he mesmerizes the audience with his unique screen presence. Like many ordinary Indian film buff, I too like him and I feel he is hundred per cent an artist, like any other contemporary artist in India, who does his homework well and bring it out for public appraisal. If you ask me the reason why I review a book on his life in an exclusive art ezine, my answer lies in the former statement. He is an artist.
Gayathri Sreekanth, a Chennai based ophthalmologist is the author of this book. Those people who remember the crazy nights of ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’ hosted by Amitabh Bacchan, must be knowing her face for she had participated in one of the episodes and played the game well up to certain levels. Her reason to write a book on the life and times of Rajnikanth is simple; she is hurt. She is hurt because she has seen, like many of us, volumes after volumes coming on the lives of the Bollywood heroes and heroines. No film historian or journalist has ever attempted a book on Rajnikanth or in that case the legends like MGR, Shivaji Ganeshan, Kamal Haasan, Mammootty and so on. Hence, she articulates the life of Rajnikanth from margins. Hers is a subaltern voice, a subaltern articulation of a mainstream life.
The author too has grown up with the movies of Rajnikanth and her blind faith in the actor and the attitude of a diehard fan find reflection in her words. She is full of awe and reverence. She makes a myth out of Rajnikanth; once you finish reading this book, you get the image of an actor having divine qualities right from the childhood only to be revealed at a later stage. And Rajnikanth, in his mature days became an ardent follower of Swami Raghvendra, a spiritual guru and the actor is said to have visions.
Born on 12th December 1950 in a family of Maharastrian origin settled in Karnataka, Rajnikanth’s original name is Shivaji Rao Gaekwad. He had a difficult childhood thanks to the poor monetary status of the family and after schooling he secured a job in the Karnataka State Transport Corporation as a conductor. The style of this conductor attracted people as he had a special way of giving tickets and taking money. He started acting in plays organized by the workers union. He learned the skills of acting from local theatre groups and watching movies. Later he secured an admission in the Film Institute in Chennai and his conductor friends supported him with money.
Things changed as he got roles in the films of K.Balachander, a famous film maker. Started off with negative roles, soon he became a darling of the audience with his stylized representation of villainy. When audience waited for the villain to make an appearance, the directors realized it was time for making him a hero. Rest is history now.
The book is written almost like a screen play, with sepia toned flashbacks and multi-coloured present. Rajnikanth’s tryst with alcohol abuse, aggression, attempted divorce, affected rivalry with Kamal Haasan, his forays into politics etc are dealt with factual evidences and anecdotes. However, quite often the author absolves the actor of his follies and posits him into the firmament of divinity. When the biographies are written by fans, it is bound to happen. But then, if any film historian or aesthetician attempts a biography on Rajnikanth, what difference they could bring in for deconstructing the myth of Rajnikanth? Gayathri has done her best, despite her admiration for the actor, to analyze his characters and their emotional associations with the audience.
Myth making is a part of the growth of a star. And this is what happening around us these days, especially in the case of Indian contemporary art. Artist’s past is glorified in such a way that they all look really divine people. I remember the opening lines of Mangal Pandey, an Amir Khan movie, ‘When the stories are recounted several times, they achieve the status of myths’ (words mine). We are all myth makers and artists become myths when their stories are recounted several times. They achieve divine status in due course of time. To prove otherwise, one need to do several deconstructions and interestingly, these days none is interested in deconstructing contemporary myths.
In ‘Muthu’ Rajnikanth says: Naan Eppa varuven, eppadi varuvennu yarukkum theriyadhu aana varavendiya nerathil correct-aga varuven (When I will arrive, or how I will arrive, nobody will know, but I will arrive when I ought to).
Hope, our artists also can say something like this. And I like saying this silently, especially when I am put off by some artists’ attitude.
|
