Rajinikanth may have made his last Hindi film two decades ago but he can still set the screen alight, blazing away with a gun that has dozens of barrels. As Thalaiva turns 75 on December 12, Dinesh Raheja looks back at his 17 year journey in Hindi cinema.
We continue to celebrate the Thalaiva's 75th birthday with Divya Nair's premiere playlist that celebrates his magnetic swag, emotion and larger-than-life persona.
'I believe that whether it is Rajini sir or Shah Rukh Khan or Dilip Kumarsaab, these stars are blessed with a cosmic energy. It's a phenomenon that is hard to describe, but it makes you fall in love with them.'
This is also the time when South Indian films started doing well, commercially and critically, on a Pan-India scale.
Subhash K Jha lists 10 facts you didn't know about Rajinikanth, who turned 75 on December 12.
'After Saiyaara, a lot of confidence has come in. Hindi is now looking good, especially with Dhurandhar 2 expected in March.'
It's going to be a busy month at the theatres in February.
When it eventually releases, Jana Nayagan is expected to have an opening day collection close to -- or even above -- Rs 100 crore, largely because it is being promoted as Vijay's final movie before he focuses entirely on politics.
The Internet is abuzz with the news of Dhanush getting married to Mrunal Thakur on Valentine's Day.
In a heartfelt tribute to mark 50 years of Rajinikanth in cinema, a fan named Karthik adorned the Rajinikanth temple in Madurai, Arulmigu Sri Rajini Temple, with over 5,500 photographs of the superstar.
'He is a downtoearth person, never carried away by success nor brought down by failure.'
On Wednesday Kamal Haasan, now president of the Makkal Needhi Maiyyam, went over to Rajinikanth's bungalow in Chennai's posh Poes Garden area to seek his friend's blessings ahead of taking oath as a Rajya Sabha member on July 25 in New Delhi.
Vellore-born NZ spinner Adithya Ashok keen to put India knowledge to test in ODIs
AVM Studios launched the careers of Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan.
But for those who come to watch Rajini for a larger-than-life, first-day-first-show vibe, he will not disappoint in Coolie, raves Divya Nair.
While the DMK depends on a 'silver sieve' of welfare schemes to stay in power, its support is slowly draining away under the weight of poor governance, corruption, and voters who are no longer satisfied with benefits alone and now want basic administration to work, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Quite similar to the hero introduction scenes in Kollywood movies, the elaborately staged sequence combines slow-motion shots, silhouettes, and high contrast lighting to enhance the dramatic narrative.
Whether it was in the company of superstars Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan -- or, on rare occasions with both together, among others -- Saravanan's demeanour would stand out, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
I once asked him why he hadn't written scripts for his sons Vineeth and Dhyan. 'I made some suggestions about their scripts, and they haven't discussed their scripts with me after that,' he said with his trademark laugh.
As the year draws to a close, Rediff's Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya takes a look at the hits and misses, the highs and lows, the newsmakers and the dealbreakers in alphabetical order.
It's Diwali in every home, and just like Bollywood, southern stars are celebrating too.
'Thanks Superstar @rajinikanth sir for your warm wishes and inviting, spending time and sharing your wisdom with us.'
The Tamil Film Producers Council (TFPC) has resolved to implement a revenue-sharing model for big-budget films, requiring actors and technicians to share profits and losses. The move aims to address financial pressures from declining theatrical and OTT revenues. The TFPC also mandated staggered OTT release windows and formed a committee to ensure access to theaters for smaller films.
'I wanted to do something different, so I turned Dharamji into Hardy, making him waddle with Naseer's stick-like Laurel.' 'People enjoyed seeing him in these avatars. When you work with an evergreen superstar like Dharamji, you can make such 'items'.'
Rajinikanth, who had been admitted to Chennai's Apollo Hospital on September 20 after complaining of ill health, was discharged on Thursday night.
Bollywood's biggest stars arrived at the Jio World Convention Centre in Mumbai on May 1 to take part in the inaugural edition of World Audio Visual and Entertainment Summit (WAVES) 2025.
The film's director Lokesh Kanagaraj and producer Kalanithi Maran took a collective decision to add a...
'It's heartening to see that the festive energy is being driven not only by star-led blockbusters but also by fresh, content-rich films.'
'That man's charisma and aura on set are just outstanding.'
Buildings were decorated with colourful lights and earthen lamps dotted houses as people across the country thronged temples and celebrated Diwali with pomp on Monday.
'I didn't charge any money for Coolie. Working with him was all the remuneration I needed.'
Catch the blockbuster Saiyaara on OTT this week along with Rajinikanth's action-packed, Coolie.
He is likely to undergo an elective procedure at the cath lab later in the day, a source said.
We see Rajini's trademark style in Vettayan, and all we can hear from the audience is 'Thalaiva!', record A Ganesh Nadar.
Coolie is expected to be an unabashed celebration of the larger-than-life ethos of Rajinikanth, predicts Arjun Menon.
It's going to be a record-breaking day at the box office on Thursday, August 13.
Thirty-six people, including eight children, 16 women died in a stampede at the actor-politician Vijay's rally in Karur on Saturday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin said.
Despite YRF securing a huge 4,500+ screens across the country, the quantum of footfalls fell short.
On the admissions, he said 26 people were treated in the OPD and were discharged. And of the 67 admitted as in-patients, 2 were critical. All others were stable. One of the patients was shifted to the Madurai GH for further treatment.
Pant's attempt to emulate the legendary superstar's cool and confident style brought back memories of Mahendra Singh Dhoni's similar pose from 2016.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Investor Information - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances