The Indian film audience has also evolved over the last few decades and there has been acceptance of different genres as well.
When Kabali was announced with Rajinikanth, there was a big buzz in the film industry and among the audience. The Superstar signing a new film is of course important news but in this film directed by Pa Ranjith, he would be playing his age. This is perhaps the most defining moment of 65-year-old Rajinikanth’s career that spans more than four decades.
The actor started his career in 1975 at the age of 25 and has essayed almost every single character possible – the hero, the villain, the old, the young and so on. But even in his 50's and 60's Rajinikanth continued to play the young hero romancing beauties like Aishwarya Rai Bachchan and Anushka Shetty among others. When movies like Kuselan and Lingaa failed, questions were raised as to why the ageing Superstar was continuing to play the young romantic hero in his films. Should he not play roles suited to his age? And should he not work with new directors rather than his favourite yesteryear directors like P Vasu and K S Ravikumar?
Bollywood Superstar Amitabh Bachchan - a good friend of Rajinikanth’s - also started his career in Hindi films in the 70's like him, but by 2000 he had moved on to roles that suited his age. He started to experiment with roles and in the last decade has done an assortment of films that showcase his talent and prove how he can keep evolving with the times. Black, Paa, and Piku were some films that showed the audience that there can be no one else like the Big B and no one else could have played those roles better.
The Indian film audience has also evolved over the last few decades and there has been acceptance of different genres as well. Today, it’s no longer about the budget but the content of a film for the audience. For instance, while a film like Naanum Rowdy Thaan became a superhit, a film like Masss failed to make the cut. And there umpteen more such examples in Tamil cinema today.
Given this scenario, it was indeed very wise of Rajinikanth to take the leap of faith and play an ageing don in Kabali and trust a young director like Pa Ranjith. Producer Kalaipuli S Thanu who has also been Rajinikanth’s friend for more than 30 years – and in fact christened him Superstar – was probably another important factor in this new direction.
Kabali is definitely going to change the Superstar’s image and his career. But the question then remains how long Rajinikanth wants to continue to act. Given the new grounds he is treading with Kabali, it is going to be tough to turn back the clock and play the young romantic hero once again. And the audience possibly doesn’t want him to either.
Watch the teaser here:
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 "Rajinikanth-kabali")
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