Rajinikanth

Rajinikanth (born Shivaji Rao Gaekwad 12 December 1950) is an Indian film actor, media personality, and cultural icon who works primarily in the Tamil film industry. He has also acted in Bollywood, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, Hollywood and Bengali films as well.

He began acting in plays while working in the Bangalore Transport Service as a bus conductor. In 1973, he joined the Madras Film Institute to pursue a diploma in acting. Following his debut in K. Balachander's Tamil drama Apoorva Raagangal (1975), his acting career commenced with a brief phase of portraying antagonistic characters in Tamil films. After establishing himself as a lead actor in a number of commercially successful films, he began to be referred to as a "superstar" and has since continued to hold a matinée idol status in the popular culture of Tamil Nadu. His mannerisms and stylised delivery of dialogue in films contribute to his mass popularity and appeal.

After earning ₹26 crore (equivalent to ₹43 crore or US$6.3 million in 2016) for his role in Sivaji (2007), he was the highest paid actor in Asia after Jackie Chan at the time. While working in other regional film industries of India, Rajinikanth has also appeared in the cinemas of other nations, including that of the United States. As of 2014, Rajinikanth has won six Tamil Nadu State Film Awards—four Best Actor Awards and two Special Awards for Best Actor—and a Filmfare Best Tamil Actor Award. In addition to acting, he has also worked as a producer and screenwriter. Apart from his film career, he is also a philanthropist, spiritualist, and serves as an influence in Dravidian politics.

Rajinikanth filmography

Rajinikanth is an Indian actor and media personality. Rajinikanth has acted across various film industries such as Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Bengali, and English. He began acting in plays while working in the Bangalore Transport Service as a bus conductor. In 1973, he joined the Madras Film Institute to pursue a diploma in acting. During his stay at the institute, he was performing in a stage play and got noticed by Tamil film director K. Balachander. He made his debut with Balachander's 1975 Tamil film Apoorva Raagangal. The film was critically acclaimed upon release and won three National Film Awards, including the award for Best Regional Film at the 23rd National Film Awards, and the Best Tamil Film at the Filmfare Awards.

During the initial phase of his career he played negative roles before graduating into a lead actor. Though Rajinikanth always refers to Balachander as his mentor, it was S. P. Muthuraman who revamped his image. Muthuraman first experimented with him in a positive role in Bhuvana Oru Kelvikkuri (1977), as a failed lover in the first half of the film and a protagonist in the second half. The film won two Filmfare Awards. The success of the film brought the duo together for 24 more films till the 1990s. By 1980, he became a popular actor in South Indian cinema.Billa (1980), which was a remake of the Bollywood film Don (1978), had Rajinikanth playing dual roles and eventually became his first ever commercial success.Thillu Mullu (1981), which was the remake of the Bollywood film Gol Maal (1979), was Rajinikanth's first full-length comedy film and broke the action-hero mould for which he was known at that time.Nallavanuku Nallavan (1984) won Rajinikanth his only Filmfare Award for Best Actor till date.