Rajnikanth is an Indian actor, producer and screenwriter who works mainly in Tamil cinema.  In a career spanning over five decades, he has done more than 160 films that includes films in Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Kannada, Bengali, and Malayalam. He is widely regarded as one of the most successful and popular actors in the history of Indian cinema. Known for his uniquely styled lines and idiosyncrasies in films, he has a huge fan base throughout India and has a cult following. The Government of India honoured him with Padma Bhushan in 2000, Padma Vibhushan in 2016, India's third and second highest civilian honours, and Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2019 for his contributions to Indian cinema.

Following his debut in K. Balachander's 1975 Tamil drama Apoorva Raagangal, Rajinikanth's acting career commenced with a brief phase of portraying antagonistic characters in Tamil films. His major positive role as a scorned lover in S. P. Muthuraman's Bhuvana Oru Kelvi Kuri (1977), 1978's Mullum Malarum and Aval Appadithan received him critical acclaim; the former earned him a Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize for Best Actor. By the end of the decade, he had worked in all South Indian film industries and established a career in Tamil cinema. He then played dual roles in the action thriller Billa (1980), a remake of the Hindi film Don (1978). It was his biggest commercial success to that point, earned him stardom and gave him the action hero image. He starred in triple role in Moondru Mugam (1982), which earned him a special prize at the Tamil Nadu State Film Awards ceremony. The following year, he made his Bollywood debut with T. Rama Rao's top grossing Andhaa Kaanoon (1983). Nallavanukku Nallavan (1984) won him that year's Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actor. In the latter half of the 1980s, he starred in several successful films in Tamil and Hindi, including Padikkadavan (1985), Mr. Bharath (1986), Bhagwaan Dada (1986), Velaikaran (1987), Dharmathin Thalaivan (1988) and Hum (1991).

In 1991, Mani Ratnam's Tamil crime film Thalapathi, earned him major critical acclaim for his performance. He collaborated with Suresh Krissna for many films including Annaamalai (1992) and Baashha (1995); the latter was the biggest commercial success in his career yet as well as the highest grossing film in Tamil for many years. His other success includes P. Vasu's Mannan (1992), Uzhaippali (1993) and K. S. Ravikumar's Muthu (1995) and Padayappa (1999); the latter which went on to become his and Tamil cinema's highest-grossing movie, exceeding Baashha.

After a few years of hiatus, he returned to acting with the comedy horror film Chandramukhi (2005); it went on to become again the highest-grossing Tamil film. His next, S. Shankar's Sivaji (2007) was the third Indian film to enter the 100 Crore Club. He played dual roles, as a scientist and an andro-humanoid robot, in the science fiction film Enthiran (2010) and its sequel 2.0 (2018), both being India's most expensive productions at the time of their release, and among the highest-grossing Indian films of all time.

He has won many awards, including a National Film Award, seven Tamil Nadu State Film Awards, a Nandi Award and a Filmfare Award. Rajinikanth was also named one of the most influential persons in South Asia by Asiaweek. He was also named by Forbes India as the most influential Indian of the year 2010.

Early life and background

Rajinikanth was born as Shivaji Rao Gaekwad on 12 December 1950 in a Marathi family in Bangalore, Mysore State (present day Karnataka). He was named after the Maratha Empire king Shivaji, and was brought up speaking Marathi at home and Kannada outside. His mother was a homemaker, and his father Ramoji Rao Gaekwad was a police constable. His ancestors hailed from Mavadi Kadepathar, Pune, Maharashtra. He is the youngest of four siblings in a family consisting of two elder brothers (Satyanarayana Rao and Nageshwara Rao) and a sister (Aswath Balubhai).[ After his father's retirement from work in 1956, the family moved to the suburb of Hanumantha Nagar in Bangalore and built a house there. He lost his mother at the age of nine.

Rajinikanth had his primary education at the Gavipuram Government Kannada Model Primary School in Bangalore. As a child, he was "studious and mischievous" with a great interest in cricket, football and basketball. During this time, his brother enrolled him at the Ramakrishna Math, a Hindu monastery set up by the Ramakrishna Mission. In the math, he was taught Vedas, tradition and history, which eventually instilled a sense of spirituality in him. In addition to spiritual lessons, he also began acting in plays at the math. His aspiration towards theatre grew at the math and was once given an opportunity to enact the role of Ekalavya's friend from the Hindu epic Mahabharata. His performance in the play received praise from the Kannada poet D. R. Bendre. After sixth grade, Rajinikanth was enrolled at the Acharya Pathasala Public School and studied there till completion of his pre-university course. During his schooling at the Acharya Pathasala, he spent a lot of time acting in plays.

Upon completion of his school education, Rajinikanth performed several jobs including that of a coolie, before getting a job in the Bangalore Transport Service as a bus conductor. He continued to take part in plays after the Kannada playwright Topi Muniappa offered him a chance to act in one of his mythological plays. He decided to take up an acting course in the newly formed Madras Film Institute after coming across an advertisement. Though his family was not fully supportive of his decision to join the institute, his friend and co-worker Raj Bahadur motivated him to join the institute and financially supported him during this phase. During his stay at the institute, he was noticed by the Tamil film director K. Balachander. Balachander provided Rajinikanth with his stage name to avoid confusion with fellow actor Sivaji Ganesan, having taken it from a character's name in his earlier film Major Chandrakanth. The director advised him to learn to speak Tamil, a recommendation that Rajinikanth quickly followed. Though he can read the language, he cannot write in it.

Acting Career

Rajinikanth's next film was director Pa. Ranjith's crime drama Kabali, produced by S. Thanu. The film was released in July 2016. The film became the highest grossing Tamil film of the year grossing over ₹300 crore (US$38 million) and became the fifth highest-grossing Tamil film of all time before being surpassed by his another film 2.0. Also, at the Ananda Vikatan Cinema Awards, the film was nominated at five categories winning all of them, and also won five awards, at the Edison Awards, and two nominations at the 6th South Indian International Movie Awards. He also received his eighteenth nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil for his performance in the film.

In August 2016, it was announced that Rajinikanth and director Ranjith would work together again for a film with Dhanush as producer, titled Kaala, in which Rajinikanth plays a Dharavi-dwelling gangster who fights against corporate takeover of the slum. The film was officially released on 7 June 2018 and received positive reviews from critics. In 2018 he also appeared in S. Shankar's 2.0 reprising the roles of Dr. Vaseegaran and Chitti, alongside Akshay Kumar and Amy Jackson. The film was released on 29 November 2018 and was commercially successful at the box office. The film earned over ₹117.34 crore (US$15 million) worldwide on its first day, which was the second-highest ever for an Indian film. The film crossed ₹520 crore (equivalent to ₹591 crore or US$74 million in 2020) in its opening weekend to be the highest-grossing film worldwide for that week. The film also grossed over ₹655.81 crore (US$82 million)–₹800 crore (US$100 million) at the box office became the highest-grossing Tamil film of the year and second highest grossing Tamil film of all time. 2.0 is the fourth highest-grossing film in India and is the seventh highest-grossing Indian film worldwide. In 2019, Rajinikanth starred in Karthik Subbaraj's Petta, in which his performance received praise for his return to his vintage stereotypical style of acting and grossed over ₹250 crore (US$31 million), becoming the second highest-grossing Tamil film of 2019. The combined gross earnings of Kaala, 2.0 and Petta by the end of January 2019 was determined to be over ₹ 1000 crore according to trade analysts. Rajinikanth worked with AR Murugadoss in the film Darbar, which released in 2020. He played the role of a police officer after 27 years since his last film as a police officer was the Tamil film Pandian. Despite the film receiving mixed reviews, the film grossed ₹250 crore (US$31 million) crore at the box office, making it one of Rajinikanth's highest-grossing films and the highest-grossing Tamil films of 2020. The next project of Rajinikanth was with director Siva, the film titled Annaatthe where he played role of a protective brother. The film was released on 4 November 2021. The film became a commercial success at the box office by grossing around ₹240 crore (US$30 million) beating the collections made by other Tamil films like Master and Maanaadu.

His next 169th film is with director Nelson which was tentatively titled Thalaivar 169. On 17 June 2022, the titled was announced to be Jailer and Rajinikanth will be playing an experienced jailer in the film. The film will be released theatrically in August 2023. Rajinikanth will be doing an extended cameo in his daughter Aishwarya Rajinikanth's directorial comeback titled Lal Salaam. His next 170th film is with director T. J. Gananavel which is tentatively titled Thalaivar 170 and he will be playing the role of Muslim cop. The film will be released in 2024. His next 171st film is with director Lokesh Kanagaraj which is tentatively titled Thalaivar 171.

Acclaim and Criticism

Acting Style

Rajinikanth is widely regarded as one of the most popular actors in the history of Indian cinema. His popularity has been attributed to "his uniquely styled dialogues and idiosyncrasies in films, as well as his political statements and philanthropy". Many also cite reasons for Rajinikanth's popularity as coming from his larger-than-life super-hero appearance in many films, supported by gravity-defying stunts and charismatic expressions, all while attempting to maintain modesty in real-life. Almost every film of Rajinikanth has punchlines delivered by him in an inimitable style, and these punchlines often have a message or even warn the film's antagonists. These lines are usually fabricated to create new ones or even be taken in a comical way, but do not fail to create a sense of entertainment among viewers.

Rajinikanth is one of the highest-grossing actors in Tamil cinema history. After opening his first official Twitter account in 2014, Rajinikanth received over 210,000 followers within 24 hours, which according to The Economic Times was deemed by social media research firms as the fastest rate of followers for any Indian celebrity, as well as among the top-10 in the world. In 2015, a film about his fandom, For the Love of a Man, premiered at the 71st Venice International Film Festival.

Comments on social issue

In 2002, Rajinikanth undertook a day-long fast to protest the Government of Karnataka's decision to not release Kaveri River water into Tamil Nadu, and announced that he would contribute ₹10 million (US$130,000) toward a plan to interlink Indian rivers. He met with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and many experts to canvass support for the project. His hunger strike was independent of the Nadigar Sangam, who organised their own solidarity protest for the same cause. Film director Bharathi Raja lashed out against Rajinikanth, alleging that he is dividing the film industry and saying that he was a "traitor who had a tacit understanding with the Karnataka government".

In 2008, Rajinikanth took part in a hunger strike organised by the Nadigar Sangam against Karnataka's stance on the Hogenakkal Falls water dispute, during which he gave a speech against politicians in Karnataka. It led to the state announcing a ban on him and his film Kuselan (2008). The ban was lifted after Rajinikanth appeared on TV9 Kannada and issued an apology for his speech. He later thanked the Government of Karnataka for lifting the ban and allowing the film's release in the state. The apology and subsequent gratitude towards Karnataka led to strong reactions from Nadigar Sangam members R. Sarathkumar, Sathyaraj and Radha Ravi, who called the apology a disgrace to Tamils and opined that his speech never provoked the sentiments of the Kannada people. Rajinikanth's support toward fellow actor Ajith Kumar, who in 2010 condemned the forceful inclusion of Tamil cinema personae in political affairs, broke into a controversy. In May 2018, Rajinikanth received negative criticism and reactions after justifying police action during the Thoothukudi massacre.

In 2020, Rajinikanth quoted a 2017 article from Outlook, which reported that Dravidar Kazhagam founder Periyar E. V. Ramasamy garlanded the idols of Hindu deities Rama and Sita with footwear at an atheist rally in 1971. His remarks were criticized by supporters of Periyar. In response to the backlash, Rajinikanth stated, “I did not speak on something that didn't happen. I've only spoken on what was reported. It was reported in Outlook also. Sorry, I will not apologise”.

Awards and Honours

Rajinikanth has received numerous awards for many of his films, mostly in Tamil. He received his first and only Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actor in 1984 for Nallavanuku Nallavan. Later he received Filmfare Award nominations for his performances in Sivaji (2007) and Enthiran (2010). As of 2014, Rajinikanth has received six Tamil Nadu State Film Awards for his performances in various films. He also received numerous awards from Cinema Express and Filmfans' Association for his on-screen performances and off-screen contributions in writing and producing.

Rajinikanth received the Kalaimamani award in 1984 and the M. G. R. Award in 1989, both from the Government of Tamil Nadu. In 1995, the South Indian Film Artistes' Association presented him with the Kalaichelvam Award. He was honoured with the Padma Bhushan (2000) and the Padma Vibhushan (2016) by the Government of India. He was selected as the Indian Entertainer of the Year for 2007 by NDTV, competing against the likes of Shahrukh Khan. The Government of Maharashtra honoured him with the Raj Kapoor Award the same year. He received the Chevalier Sivaji Ganesan Award for Excellence in Indian Cinema at the 4th Vijay Awards. Rajinikanth was also named one of the most influential persons in South Asia by Asiaweek.

He was named by Forbes India as the most influential Indian of the year 2010. In 2011, he was awarded the Entertainer of the Decade Award by NDTV for the year 2010 by the then Indian Minister for Home Affairs P. Chidambaram. In December 2013, he was honoured by NDTV as one among the "25 Greatest Global Living Legends". In 2014, he was presented with the Indian Film Personality of the Year Award at the 45th IFFI. Rajinikanth received Dadasaheb Phalke Award at the 67th National Film Awards presentation ceremony, at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, Monday, 25 October 2021.