Search a film or person :

Rajinikanth is a Actor, Scriptwriter, Producer, Playback Singer and Thanks Indian born on 12 december 1950 at Bangalore (Inde)

Rajinikanth

If you like this person, let us know!

Do you like this person ?

I like

I don't like

Birth name Shivaji Rao Gaekwad
Nationality Inde
Birth 12 december 1950 (74 years) at Bangalore (Inde)
Awards Padma Bhushan, Filmfare Awards South

Rajinikanth (born Shivaji Rao Gaekwad 12 December 1950) is an Indian film actor, media personality, and cultural icon. 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 5 million in 2015) 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. The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 2000. At the 45th International Film Festival of India (2014), he was conferred with the "Centenary Award for Indian Film Personality of the Year".

Biography

Family
Rajinikanth married Latha Rangachari, a student of Ethiraj College for Women, who interviewed him for her college magazine. The marriage took place on 26 February 1981, in Tirupati, Andhra Pradesh. The couple have two daughters named Aishwarya Rajinikanth and Soundarya Rajinikanth. Latha runs a school named "The Ashram".

Aishwarya married actor Dhanush on 18 November 2004 and they have two sons, Yathra and Linga. His younger daughter, Soundarya, works in the Tamil film industry as a director, producer and graphic designer. She married industrialist Ashwin Ramkumar on 3 September 2010.

Views
Rajinikanth is a follower of Hinduism, spiritualism, and a strong believer of spirituality. He is also a practitioner of yoga and meditation. Rajinikanth has religiously visited major Hindu temples prior to the release of each of his films; for instance he visited the Tirumala Venkateswara Temple before the release of Sivaji in 2007 and visited Sathya Sai Baba at Prasanthi Nilayam in Andhra Pradesh before the release of Kuselan the following year. He also occasionally leaves for pilgrimage to the Himalayas. He has often referred to Ramakrishna Paramahamsa, Swami Satchidananda, Ragavendra Swami, Mahavatar Babaji, and Ramana Maharishi as his favourite spiritual leaders.

Controversies
In 2002, Rajinikanth undertook a daylong fast to protest the Government of Karnataka's decision to not release Kaveri River water into Tamil Nadu and announced that he would contribute ₹10 million (US$150 000) toward a plan to interlink Indian rivers. He met with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and many experts to canvass support for the project. His hunger strike was independent of the Nadigar Sangam, who organised their own solidarity protest for the same cause. Film director Bharathi Raja lashed out against Rajinikanth, alleging him of dividing the film industry and saying that he was a "traitor who had a tacit understanding with the Karnataka government".

In 2008, Rajinikanth took part in a hunger strike organised by the Nadigar Sangam against Karnataka's stance on the Hogenakkal Falls water dispute. In his speech, which was well received in Tamil Nadu, he warned leaders not to inflame the water project issue for political gains and requested that the issue should be resolved soon. He reprimanded politicians in Karnataka and urged them "to speak the truth" to the public. "They cannot be fooled and will not remain silent if you continue to act in such manner," he stated. The speech led to Vatal Nagaraj, leader of the Kannada nationalist group Kannada Chaluvali Vatal Paksha, demanding an apology from Rajinikanth and threatening that he and his films would be boycotted from the state of Karnataka. The threats were echoed by other pro-Kannada organisations, such as the Karnataka Rakshana Vedike. In a move to save the market of Tamil cinema in Karnataka and ensure welfare of Tamil Nadu-based filmmakers, Rajinikanth apologised for his statements in a brief media appearance on TV9 Kannada. He later thanked the Kannada film industry for allowing the release of Kuselan and lifting the ban the industry had briefly imposed on it. This led to strong reactions from Nadigar Sangam members R. Sarathkumar, Sathyaraj and Radha Ravi, who called the apology a disgrace to Tamils and opined that his speech never provoked the sentiments of the Kannada people.

Rajinikanth's support toward fellow actor Ajith Kumar, who in 2010 condemned the forceful inclusion of Tamil cinema personae in political affairs, broke into a controversy.

Philanthropy
According to Naman Ramachandran, the author of Rajinikanth: The Definitive Biography, most of Rajinikanth's philanthropic activities went unpublicised because he did not want them to be so. Rajinikanth has given away half of his income to charities. In the 1980s, when superstitious beliefs prevented a majority of people from donating eyes, Rajinikanth took the case of campaigning in support of corneal transplantation via television and public speeches. In 2011, Rajinikanth announced his support for the anti-corruption movement led by Gandhian Anna Hazare and offered his marriage hall, the Raghavendra Kalyana Mandapam, in Chennai free of cost for the India Against Corruption members to hold their fast. Rajinikanth's fan associations regularly organise blood donation and eye donation camps and distribute food during his birthday.