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Bengaluru turns into Rajini wonderland with release of ‘Jailer’

All the shows are going house full in single screens and bookings are seeing upward trends for the weekend shows in multiplexes as well…reports Asian Lite News

Superstar Rajini mania has gripped Bengaluru following the release of the much awaited ‘Jailer’ movie.  The die-hard fans of Rajinikanth like always have created a festive mood in the city and celebrations began from the wee hours.

The cutouts have conquered the premises of the theaters and many companies have given holiday and free tickets to their employees to watch the superstar on the silver screen. The celebrations in and around the single screens knew no bounds and in multiplexes where usually audiences are found to be reserved also witnessed thunderous response.

The movie shows began at 6 a.m. and the fans were found waiting and celebrating outside the theaters from midnight. All the shows are going house full in single screens and bookings are seeing upward trends for the weekend shows in multiplexes as well.

The rush to the movie is increasing as the morning shows and premier fan shows have generated good opinion on the movie. The fans declared that the movie is going to be a blockbuster. Bengaluru houses a large Tamil population, as Rajinikanth hails from Bengaluru, the local people have cherished special affection towards the superstar. Rajini films are a must watch for cinelovers.

The police has been deputed near single screens to avoid untoward incidents in Bengaluru as the celebrations began from midnight.

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Rajini meets TN Governor, discusses politics

Rajinikanth had shattered the hopes of his fans after announcing on December 29, 2019, that he would be keeping away from politics after giving indications of floating a party…reports Asian Lite News

Tamil superstar Rajinikanth met Tamil Nadu Governor R.N. Ravi on Monday and said that they had discussed politics but refused to divulge details of the discussion.

The meeting lasted 30 minutes.

Interacting with media persons afterwards, Rajinikanth said that the Governor had lived in north India for long and reached Tamil Nadu only recently.

“The Governor reached Tamil Nadu recently and he likes the state very much. He likes the honesty, hard work, and truthfulness of the people of the state. He likes the spiritualism of the people of Tamil Nadu.”

He, however, said that he had no plans to enter politics and said that the meeting with the Governor was only a courtesy call.

Asked whether they had discussed the 2024 general elections, he said: “I cannot say about it now.” He also refused to comment when a media person asked about the GST on milk, curd, and other essential items.

Rajinikanth had shattered the hopes of his fans after announcing on December 29, 2019, that he would be keeping away from politics after giving indications of floating a party.

He also said that the shooting for his next movie “Jailor” will commence either on August 15 or August 25.

The project will also star Kannada actor Shivrajkumar in a key role.

Few months ago, the makers of the film, Sun Pictures shared the title poster of Jailer.

The poster features a blood-stained sickle.

The film’s announcement has left fans excited. It seems like ‘Jailer’ will be an action thriller.

Rajinikanth was last seen in ‘Annaatthe’, directed by Siva, which was released to mixed reviews for Diwali in 2021.

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‘Annaatthe’ Review: Siva’s sentimental drama live up to meet expectations?

It doesn’t take an expert to spot the similarities between Siva’s latest offering and his previous films, notably ‘Viswasam’ and ‘Vedalam’…writes Manigandan K.R.


If you have been an ardent fan of director Siva and have watched his previous films like ‘Vedalam’ and ‘Viswasam’, then you pretty much know what to expect in ‘Annaatthe’.

Siva sticks to his time-tested formula of family sentiment that has worked so well for him in the past. If his ‘Viswasam’ was about the love of a dad for his daughter, then ‘Annaatthe’ is about the love of a brother for his sister.

The story is about Kaalaiyan (Rajinikanth), whose world revolves around his younger sister Thanga Meenakshi (Keerthy Suresh). Life is bliss for the brother and sister until one day, Kaalaiyan realises that it is time to get his sister married.

He decides that the bridegroom who weds her must be within a radius of 5 km from his residence so that he can visit her often and take good care of her. She too says that his decision is her decision and agrees to wed a young man of his choice. On the day of the wedding, however, she elopes with her boyfriend. What happens then is what ‘Annaatthe’ is all about.

It doesn’t take an expert to spot the similarities between Siva’s latest offering and his previous films, notably ‘Viswasam’ and ‘Vedalam’.

Sample this: In ‘Viswasam’, the hero (Ajith), who comes from a rural background, falls in love with a well-educated city-bred doctor (played by Nayanthara). In ‘Annaatthe’, Kaalaiyan (Rajinikanth) comes from Soorakottai and falls in love with a well-educated lawyer (played by Nayanthara).

While in ‘Viswasam’, the hero goes to another city, to the aid of his wife and daughter, despite their relationship having turned sour, in ‘Annaatthe’, the protagonist goes to Kolkata to the aid of his dear sister, even though she had disappointed him and eloped with the man of her choice.

The similarities do not end there. In fact, we are only just getting started. The protagonist of ‘Viswasam’ has a sidekick (played by Roboshankar), who blurts out what are meant to be English phrases or words whenever the hero asks for a translation. In ‘Annaatthe’, Soori plays that role, happily reeling out words supposed to be from the English language.

Both protagonists in both plots come from large joint families. Both wield great clout and, needless to say, are altruists.

It is evident that Siva has banked big on the formula that has worked for him time and again. ‘Vedalam’ and ‘Viswasam’, however, were entertaining; ‘Annaatthe’, which has been made pretty much on the same lines, is not.

What seems to have failed to click is the comedy factor. While ‘Vedalam’ and ‘Viswasam’ had genuine comedy sequences that made the film a light-hearted affair, the supposedly funny parts in ‘Annaaththe’ really fall flat. Forget laughter, they even fail to evoke a smile.

The other factor that has let the film down big time is its logic. ‘Vedalam’ and ‘Viswasam’ were also commercial entertainers, but there was a logical sequence connecting all the events in the plots of these films. That doesn’t happen in ‘Annaatthe’.

On the positive side, Keerthy Suresh does a fantastic job as Thanga Meenakshi. Her performance is impressive as she wins your heart as the adorable sister, who is unable to meet her loving brother as a result of the unfortunate situation she finds herself in.

Rajinikanth comes up with a neat performance yet again. Full marks to the actor for his excellent portrayal of Kaalaiyan, despite age not being on his side. Be it dance or fight sequences, the actor comes up with an energetic performance that is impressive to say the least.

One other factor that works in ‘Annaatthe’ are its dialogues. Some of the dialogues are meaningful and worth taking note of. For instance, the one that Rajini utters to his sister, “Your respect for me and my high expectations from you have invariably come up as a wall between us.” Or, where he says, “What matters eventually is how many people’s faces have a smile when you are alive and how many people’s faces have tears when you die. That will say what kind of a person you are.”

Dialogues apart, Imman’s music for the songs also works.

Yet, on the whole, ‘Annaatthe’ ends up being a sentimental drama that has very little to offer in terms of entertainment.

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67th NFA: Rajini honoured with Dadasaheb Phalke Award

Rajinikanth’s family including his wife Lathaa, and daughter Soundarya Rajinikanth too were present at the event…reports Asian Lite News.

Actors Rajinikanth, Kangana Ranaut, Manoj Bajpayee and Dhanush were feted on Monday at the 67th National Film Awards which were announced earlier this year.

The awards are being presented at the Vigyan Bhawan in the capital. Manoj and Dhanush received their awards for Best Actor for ‘Bhonsle’ and the Tamil film ‘Asuran’, respectively.

Kangana Ranaut was honoured with the Best Actress award for her performances in the Hindi films ‘Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi’ and ‘Panga’.

South superstar Rajinikanth received India’s highest film honour Dada Saheb Phalke Award for his outstanding contribution to the world of Indian cinema. The veteran actor received a standing ovation as he was conferred the award.

Rajinikanth’s family including his wife Lathaa, and daughter Soundarya Rajinikanth too were present at the event.

After receiving the honour, Rajinikanth thanked the central government.

“I am extremely happy to receive this most prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award. My thanks to the honourable central government. I dedicate this award to my mentor, my guru K. Balachander. This moment, I remember him with great gratitude, and my brother Satyanarayan Gaikwad who’s like my father who brought me up by teaching me great values, and spirituality. My friend in Karnataka, bus transport driver, and my colleague Rajbahadur.”

He recalled his days of struggle.

“When I was the bus conductor, he identified the acting talent in me and encouraged me to join the cinema. All my producers, directors, co-artistes, technicians, distributors, exhibitors and the media, press and all my fans. Tamil people – without them I am no body. Jai Hind!”

‘Chhicchore’ director Nitesh Tiwari and producer Sajid Nadiadwala dedicated the Best Film Award to late Bollywood star Sushant Singh Rajput, who passed away in 2020.

Vijay Sethupathy was awarded the Best Supporting Actor for his performance in ‘Super Deluxe’.

Malayalam film ‘Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham’ (Marakkar: Lion of the Arabian Sea) received the National Film Award for Best Feature Film. The film has been written and directed by Priyadarshan, and stars Mohanlal. The actor was also present at the awards show.

‘The Tashkent Files’ won two awards – Best Supporting Actress, which went to Pallavi Joshi and for Best Dialogue Writer.

The 67th National Awards were delayed since last year due to the pandemic.

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Rajini to be honored with Phalke Award

Rajinikanth, who enjoys a demigod status, made his debut in Tamil cinema with “Apoorva Raagangal”. Among his numerous hits are films like “Baashha”, “Sivaji” and “Enthiran”. He is known as Thalaivar or leader by his fans…reports Asian Lite News.

Rajini Kanth is an all time super hero for Tamil and other language film industries in India. Superstar Rajinikanth will be honoured with the 51st Dadasaheb Phalke Award, Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar announced on Thursday.

Javadekar took to Twitter to announce the news. Calling Rajinikanth “one of the greatest actors in the history of Indian cinema”, he said that the actor was being awarded for his contribution in the field of acting, production and screenwriting for Indian cinema.

Posting a picture of the actor, Javadekar wrote: “Happy to announce #Dadasaheb Phalke award for 2020 to one of the greatest actors in history of Indian cinema Rajnikant ji His contribution as actor, producer and screenwriter has been iconic I thank Jury @ashabhosle @SubhashGhai1 @Mohanlal @Shankar_Live #BiswajeetChatterjee.”

Widely regarded as one of the most popular cinematic icons in India, Rajinikanth has also been honoured with the Padma Bhushan in 2000 and the Padma Vibhushan in 2016 by the Government of India.

Rajinikanth, who enjoys a demigod status, made his debut in Tamil cinema with “Apoorva Raagangal”. Among his numerous hits are films like “Baashha”, “Sivaji” and “Enthiran”. He is known as Thalaivar or leader by his fans.

The Dadasaheb Phalke Award is India’s highest honour in cinema. It is presented annually at the National Film Awards by Directorate of Film Festivals of the Information and Broadcasting ministry of the Government of India. The first recipient of the award was actress Devika Rani. Recent recipients include Amitabh Bachchan, Vinod Khanna, filmmaker K. Vishwanath and Manoj Kumar.

PM Congratulates ‘Thalaiva’

After Javadekar made the announcement on Twitter, Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulated Rajinikanth with a tweet, “Congratulations Talaivar”. Soon Vice President M. Venkaiah Naidu too, tweeted.

“Hearty congratulations to Shri @rajinikanth on being conferred the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award. Over the past many years, the versatile actor has been enthralling people by portraying a vast array of roles depicting myriad hues of human experience and emotions.#Rajinikanth,” said Naidu and added: “My best wishes for the renowned thespian’s future endeavours! #Rajinikanth.”

“Popular across generations, a body of work few can boast of, diverse roles and an endearing personality…that’s Shri @rajinikanth Ji for you. It is a matter of immense joy that Thalaiva has been conferred with the Dadasaheb Phalke Award. Congratulations to him,” Modi said.

Rajini is called Talaivar or “Style Mannan” in the Tamil movie industry.

Calling Rajinikanth “one of the greatest actors in the history of Indian cinema”, the I&B minister said that the actor was being awarded for his contribution in the field of acting, production and screenwriting for Indian cinema.

Posting a picture of the actor, Javadekar wrote: “Happy to announce #Dadasaheb Phalke award for 2020 to one of the greatest actors in history of Indian cinema Rajnikant ji His contribution as actor, producer and screenwriter has been iconic I thank Jury @ashabhosle @SubhashGhai1 @Mohanlal @Shankar_Live #BiswajeetChatterjee.”

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