Teaser Goes Viral

Rajinikanth might find it difficult to replicate the success of MGR and Jayalalithaa in politics.

- Lakshmi Subramanian

When Rajinikanth sneezes politics, Tamil Nadu catches a cold! The Tamil super-star has recently been toying with the idea of entering politics, a vocation many of his fellow actors have embraced. And, in the past week, the “will he, won’t he” aspect has played out in countless memes on social media. Politicians in the state have welcomed him, censured him and even ridiculed him. All this for dropping a hint on joining politics.

It was May 15. Rajinikanth, clad in a black kurta pyjama, was meeting fans at the Raghavendra wedding hall at Kodambakkam in Chennai. There were chants of thalaivaa (leader) as he greeted them with folded hands. “If it is God’s will, I will enter politics,” he said, as the audience erupted.

It was a five-day meet-and-greet, which saw more than 3,000 members from about 40,000 of his fan clubs. Rajinikanth, meeting his fans in person after nine years, obliged them with individual selfies. Behind him, on stage, was a picture that had a white, blossoming lotus. The reference to the BJP was hard to miss. But, he stayed noncommittal on joining politics, as he had done on previous occasions throughout his career.

“This is the right time for him to get into politics,” said J. Ramki, a fan and author, who wrote a book on Rajinikanth called Rajini: Sapthama? Sagapthama?. “All these years, J. Jayalalithaa and M. Karunanidhi were in the fray. If he had come in [then], he would have been a fringe or third player only. There is a vacuum now.”