Coolie is expected to be an unabashed celebration of the larger-than-life ethos of Rajinikanth, predicts Arjun Menon.
Vijay, with his chief ministerial ambitions, is a one-man army, at least as of now, and his campaign team considers him omnipresent. He has to be present in all districts, if not all constituencies at the same time, as there is no second-line leader or platform speaker in the party, who can draw crowds, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
If Team Rajini expected Kaala to carry the superstar's political message off-screen, it may have proved counter-productive. If the not-so-infrequent presence of Muslim residents of Dharavi, including that of Kaala's ex-love Zarina, in many scenes is expected to convey a political message, it is a no-brainer, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
What is noticeable in both movies is the willingness with which both the ageing stars -- Kamal is 68 and Rajini, four years older at 72 with a kidney transplant that he has not shied away from acknowledging -- have learnt to respect their age and bodies, notes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Will Vijay will go the most successful MGR/Jayalalithaa way, or that of Vijayakanth, Seeman or Kamalahaasan, or will he end up as another Rajinikanth who cries wolf at the last minute and quits the scene even before it all had really begun, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
Rajinikanth's visible electoral strength is his constant mouthing of the term, 'aanmiga arasiyal', or 'spiritual politics', without he having to explain what it is. By implication, it is all that what Dravidian politics is not about. It may imply anti-corruption, being against Periyar's forgotten anti-god, anti-Brahmin dictum, but also ends up covering 'Tamil pride', which begins with Tamil language where, as a Maratha from Karnataka, he has more to defend himself. However, in the contemporary national context, aanmiga arasiyal is seen as a front for Rajini to market his brand of 'soft Hindutva' but identified even more with the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in political terms, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
This is important because he is to be seen as a sure winner before criss-crossing the state to campaign for candidates of the party or an alliance, highlights N Sathiya Moorthy.
Despite its minor flaws, lack of logic, and lecture-style moral narrative, Vettaiyan should be enjoyed in a theatre amid Rajini fans and their wolf whistles, endorses Divya Nair.
The BJP may have to wait a little longer in Tamil Nadu to tie up with the superstar because, despite early and intermittent signals to the contrary, Rajinikanth has been going slow on his political project. Instead, he has been busy with two films on hand. One is acclaimed film-maker Shankar's 2.0. He has also quickly signed up for another movie produced by Sun Pictures of Kaalanidhi Maran, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Looking back at Rajinikanth's film journey.
If the Congress lost in Tamil Nadu in 1967, never to return, or the DMK and the AIADMK have kept their place in power and electoral politics since then, it owes not to their love or hatred for gods or for one religion over another. Instead, they had always been linked to performance and incumbency/anti-incumbency factors. There may be something in such constructs for Rajini's strategic team to consider, especially if the superstar is to enter direct politics by around this time next year. But then, they would need to brush up their homework more than at present, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
D Gukesh credited mental conditioning coach Paddy Upton for helping him tame the 'emotional pressure' of competing at the World Chess Championship.
Vijay has a lot of young and middle-aged women fans, but as voters, they are possibly now with the DMK, or remain with the AIADMK. Recapturing this constituency would have helped Vijay's political launch and the GOAT script and dialogues could have gone a long way in helping out. But the kind of script and screenplay and the unusually and equally unnecessary long run-time (3 hours, 3 minutes) that GOAT offers takes the film experience over the heads of those that are not familiar with secret agents and uranium theft in Tamil cinema, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'There was a time when a movie star could win an election just by stepping into politics. That era is over.'
Indicators are that there has been little enthusiasm for Rajinikanth's entry into politics, owing possibly to his 'hide-and-seek' game over the subject since the early to mid-nineties. That was when Rajinikanth was already a superstar, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Lal Salaam is not a movie A Ganesh Nadar would recommend.
"Been a long journey but I'm super grateful to the people who stood by my side to help me to get where I am today. Thank you Nitin bhai, Rajini sir and everyone at the NCA, who've been tirelessly helping me. Much love and much appreciated," Shreyas said on Twitter.
The latest updates from the Tamil film industry.
A relatively quiet foray by actor Vijay into politics through the TN rural local body elections last month has captured the attention of many, reports Shine Jacob.
Rajinikanth and Kamalahaasan's new generation movies of the twenty-first century may make bigger money than their earlier films but leave behind a lesser impact. That would make the difference between their success and failure as politicians, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Where do Vijay and his TVK expect to get their votes from? Vijay has a huge fan following among women, but will they automatically become his voters like they had done for MGR's AIADMK, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
Warner swapped the superstar's face with his and posted a funny video on Instagram.
Vellore is one of the two seats that the DMK alliance won by the narrowest of margins in 2019. For the DMK's vote-score to be so low in a constituency with a substantial Muslim population has not missed the BJP strategists' eyes, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
If you'd like to know more about Rajini the actor, Saisuresh Sivaswamy offers a wide selection.
Sidharth Roy Kapur, president of the Film and Television Producers Guild of India, Vivek Oberoi, Anupam Kher, Madhur Bhandarkar and producer Boney Kapoor were also a part of the event, held at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Gukesh aims to keep improving after becoming India No 1 without sponsorship support
At 70, going by hospital records made public, most age and health-related arguments put out against super-star Rajinikanth's entry into politics, before he withdrew citing a 2016 kidney-transplant, hold good for Sasikala, too, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
'Every day, after 'pack-up', Khansaab and Deepika would come for dance practice and rehearse till around 1-1.30 am.' 'The weather was a challenge because while on screen, it looks warm and sunny, it was actually bitterly cold, with a sharp, stinging wind which had the actors and dancers shivering in their summer clothing.'
The film will go on floors after Rajinikanth is done shooting for Robot sequel.
In many ways, Kaala sets a fine example of a leader who inspires his team and never gives up on them.
Which of these Dussehra releases are YOU waiting for?
Despite the technological hype, it is still extremely tough to connect with the virtual characters, especially Rajinikanth, whose larger-than-life persona cannot be captured by any path-breaking technology
'I always believed films don't have any language.'
Veteran striker Surinder Kaur will lead a 22-member Indian women's hockey squad in the five-match Test series against New Zealand from May 13 to 23.
The two screen legends met in Chennai, on September 15.
The latest updates from the Tamil film industry.
All this and more in Subhash K Jha's Bollywood Buzz.
'The BJP has been wooing him for quite some time.' 'But he didn't join the BJP; he started his own party.' 'Remember he has Hindus, Muslims and Christians as his fans.' 'He will never antagonise any of his fans.'
Veer Arjun Singh finds out what a bunch of passionate bikers can teach us about the adrenaline-fuelled hobby
