Growing up in Cumbum, Theni (then, Madurai district) movies were the only form of entertainment, and I used to frequent cinema halls a lot.
I studied in Madurai as well, and there were some pretty crazy movie fans there. The most interesting aspect was that there was a huge fan base for Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger. Just like how a Rajinikanth film’s release would be celebrated, the release of an Arnold film would be like a festival in Madurai. There used to be paal abhisekam ,dancing and music... pretty much like the first-day-first-show festivities for any Tamil superstar today. Back then, since exposure to media and films were very limited, I used to wonder while looking at Arnold’s posters... ‘How can any man in the world have such massive biceps?’ I remember getting goosebumps watching Predator in the theatre, and even today, when I watch the film back, I think of that time.
When Predator released in 1987, Arnold had more than a dozen rasigar mandrams (fan clubs) in Madurai. Since Schwarzenegger was difficult to pronounce for the people there, he was called ‘Arnold Sivaji Nagar’ by his fans (laughs). I remember watching Predator at the Maapillai Vinayagar theatre, and I distinctly remember seeing several bodybuilders lining up to flex their muscles in front of Arnold’s poster, and they would salute him before proceeding inside for the screening.
Arnold Schwarzenegger in a scene from ‘Predator’
A few years later, during the release of Thalapathi (1991) , I was staying in a hostel, and there, you either had to be a Rajinikanth or a Kamal Haasan fan. I was a part of the Rajinikanth fan group. So, for us, Thalapathi ‘s release was a big deal. And since we stayed close to the Kerala border, I had a lot of Malayali friends, and we were all excited about the prospect of watching Rajinikanth and Malayalam star Mammmotty together. I think I watched the film at Cumbum’s Thambees or Deva Bala theatre. At that time, there was a new model of Bata slippers that used to be in vogue, and I had pestered my dad to buy it for me. I wore those slippers and a new shirt to go watch the film, and I had ₹5 that I kept carefully in my pocket to buy kaara kadalai (spicy nuts) during the intermission.
There was a lot of commotion to get the film tickets, and I managed to get one with much difficulty. But, in the process, I lost one slipper and my pocket also tore. Someone flicked my ₹5 as well! I had to skip munching on kaara kadala but watching Rajinikanth and Mammootty, together, on the big screen made my day bright.
Karthik Srinivasan is an advertisement and celebrity photographer, and a brand ambassador for Sony Alpha. He is the founder of K’s Academy of Photographic Arts, which teaches aspirants who want to get into photography, and is a regular at P3 events in the city.
