By the time Rajinikanth made an entry in director K. Balachander’s Appoorva Raagangal in a minor role, Kamal Haasan had already established himself as an actor with huge potential. But even in the film, Mr. Rajinikanth’s arrival as M.R. Bhairavi’s husband upsets the calculations of Mr. Kamal Haasan, the hero.
Over the years, banking on his style and punch dialogues, Mr. Rajinikanth refused to fall into an “image trap” and played negative characters, while Mr. Kamal Haasan was always cast as a hero. The two actors’ approach to cinema is explained by their respective roles in Moondru Mudichu , 16 Vayathinile, Ilamai Oonjal Aadukirathu , Allauthinum Arputha Vilakkum and Ninaithaley Inikkum . “Mr. Haasan earned the moniker Kaathal Ilavarasan (prince of love), Mr. Rajinikanth earned very negative titles like Parattai . Moreover, he made a clear distinction between the film world and his personal life. That is why he appeared on public platforms without make-up. Even Mr. Rajinikanth used to say that he was a director’s actor while Mr. Kamal Haasan was versatile and was always ready for experiments,” said writer S. Ramakrishnan.
Mr. Rajinikanth sought to concentrate on an image makeover only after his political confrontation with the late Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, when he went on to openly support the DMK-TMC combine during the 1996 elections.
“ Annamalai showed how particular Mr. Rajinikanth was about the role. It was followed by a series of films portraying him as a good samaritan and paying special attention to his dialogues, which would linger in the memory of audiences,” said Mr. Ramakrishnan, who scripted the dialogues for Baba .
In politics, however, Mr. Haasan pre-empted Mr. Rajinikanth, even though the latter had always been regarded as a potential political player. “Mr. Rajinikanth enjoys goodwill among the people, while Mr. Haasan banks on his native identity. But both of them do not have the organisational structure that is vital for electoral success. They may be ready for a tie-up with others,” he said.
