NOW SCREENING: PUTTING NAME BEFORE THE TITLE

IAMIL actor Ajith Kumar has been in the news. In a video circulated on January 7, his race car was seen hitting the barrier of a racetrack and spinning out of control. He was then seen getting out of the car and walking, rather unaffectedly, towards an ambulance. The whole thing could have been a scene from one of his movies, but it was real. This happened when he was practicing for an upcoming race in Dubai. The 53-year-old actor owns a racing team and had been serious about the sport for decades.
An emotional response for an incident of this nature, nearly life-threatening, from Ajith's fan base would perhaps have received massive amplification had the actor's fan clubs coordinated or manufactured a reaction. But as early as 2011, the actor had asked for all his fan organisations to be dismantled. He just wanted to be a professional, wanting the imaginary frames of his films to be just that. He did not want to exploit or extrapolate his creative enterprise into the hyperbole of real-life stardom.
In 2021, again, Ajith expressed his desire for a mundane existence when he asked people to cut out the title bestowed on him as 'Thala' (literally 'the head', meaning 'the chief'). Whatever his prompts or provocations may have been, to willingly denounce a title, especially in the world of Tamil cinema, was no ordinary act. In what constitutes the Tamil cinema milieu, it is an established tradition to weld a grand title to the given name of a big actor, as if to celebrate immortal distortion.
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January 11, 2025-Ausgabe von The New Indian Express.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 9.500 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent ? Anmelden
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der January 11, 2025-Ausgabe von The New Indian Express.
Starten Sie Ihre 7-tägige kostenlose Testversion von Magzter GOLD, um auf Tausende kuratierte Premium-Storys sowie über 9.500 Zeitschriften und Zeitungen zuzugreifen.
Bereits Abonnent? Anmelden
Salary looted in TN: TWAD board contract staff lose ₹90 cr annually
IN a case of systematic corruption that's been going on for years, nearly 90 crore is allegedly being looted every year by officials and contractors of the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage (TWAD) Board through an organised racket of underpayment to contract staff across the state.
Heads roll as HC takes suo motu PIL on stampede
THE Karnataka government suspended Bengaluru Police Commissioner B Dayananda and four other police officials on Thursday evening, hours after the Karnataka High Court registered a suo motu public interest litigation taking cognisance of the stampede at Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday.
SP fetes youth who returned ₹2.1 lakh left behind in ATM
Superintendent of Police N Silambarasan on Thursday honoured a 22-year-old man from Ervadi who returned ₹2.1 lakh that was left behind by a person at an ATM.
Made-in-India Rafale fighter jet fuselages to roll out in 2028
IN a major boost to India's defence manufacturing sector, French aviation giant Dassault Aviation has joined hands with Tata Advanced Systems Ltd (TASL) to build a dedicated facility in Hyderabad to manufacture Rafale fighter jet fuselage for global markets.

Apple-Tata Group tie-up for iPhone, MacBook repairs
In a move that could expand iPhone manufacturer Apple Inc.'s footprint in India, the company has announced a partnership with the Tata Group to manage after-sales repairs for its iPhones and MacBook devices in the country.
Off to England with hopes high
India captain coach backs bowling attack and batting unit to thrive during Test series
Chouhan: Punjab, J&K, Haryana, Raj to get water as Pak treaty in abeyance
UNION Agriculture Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan said on Thursday that with the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, the diverted water will now be utilised for farming in Punjab, J&K, Himachal Pradesh, Haryana, and Rajasthan.
Maoist top gun killed in C'garh
IN a big blow to the Maoist leadership, security forces eliminated CPI (Maoist) central committee member Narasimha Chalam alias , 67, in the National park area of Bijapur on Thursday.

Court Bars Quarrying, Mining in Sivagalai Archaeological Site
The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court has directed Thoothukudi district authorities to ensure that no mining or quarrying activities are carried out on land situated within the Sivagalai archaeological site until a final decision is made by the authority.

'Cool' & popular: How chess became a content machine
A couple of days ago, Paris St. Germain (PSG) tweeted a photo of D Gukesh, a very rare crossover between the world champion and an elite football club, to their 5.2 mn followers. It was a reaction of the Indian teen immediately after Magnus Carlsen had resigned during their Norway Chess encounter.