When Late Director K Balachander REVEALED Rajinikanth Always ...
When Late Director K Balachander REVEALED Rajinikanth Always 'Broke Rules' During Filming
Superstar Rajinikanth is one of the most popular names of Indian cinema. Having appeared in over 169 films in over four decades, Rajinikanth's appeal only seems to grow more, winning him fans across all age-groups. Much before he became numero Uno, did you know Rajinikanth was first spotted by legendary director K Balachander?
The late director had launched Rajinikanth in Tamil films! In order to avoid confusion with iconic actor Sivaji Ganesan, K Balachander took the name of the character from his film Major Chandrakanth, and named Shivaji Rao Gaikwad as Rajinikanth.
Rajinikanth began his film career with the Tamil film Apoorva Raagangal (1975), directed by K. Balachander. During an interview, the director opened up about Rajinikanth's unique style. K Balachander, who is known for giving attention to diction and modulation, demanded perfection from his actors, told Open Magazine, "I could never make him follow my rules. His was a peculiar type of dialogue delivery. It went against the grammar as I saw it," before adding, "He broke my rules and made some new ones. And I happened to get the credit. I just exposed his facets as much as I could to the world. He went beyond that and became something else, a star of his own making."
In 2021, Superstar Rajinikanth was conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award. On the stage, he gave an emotional speech, Rajinikanth thanked people who played an important part in his life. "I dedicate this award to my mentor, guru K Balachander sir. I remember him with great gratitude and my brother Sathyanarayana Rao Gaekwad, who is like my father, brought me up teaching great values and injecting spirituality in me," he had said.
