Rajinikanth, Rajini, Thalaiva, Super Star-these are a few names which make a million hearts pound by mere utterance! The Super stardom of the actor remains unmatched in Tamil Cinema, giving birth to thousands of fan clubs and millions of fans across the globe. Here is an attempt to understand the phenomenon of ‘stardom’ through the lens of fandom.
‘Fandom’ by its definition is the state or condition of being a fan of someone or something. The word ‘fan’ finds its etymological roots from the word ‘fanatic’.
The individual fan gives way to the collective fan base, and eventually a Rasigar Mandram (fan club in Tamil).
It is not long before the Rasigar Mandram becomes a subculture through the ivory towers, however, for fans, it’s a collective indescribable craze.
The Rasigar Mandram becomes a locus of streamlined and organised support system to the Star. As Sara Dickey mentions in her book ‘Cinema And The Urban Poor In South India’, the fan clubs are a form of tightly organised state-wide or nationwide networks. Sara even went on to conclude that certain fan-clubs displayed a caste make up and were eager to give their so called ‘party line’ in sensitive matters.
Rituals and Psychology
Many Rasigar Mandrams have Rituals and events pre-planned before and during the release of the movie. Humongous cut outs of the star are prepared, garlanded and anointed with milk. But, why such cut outs?
Tapping into the fan’s psychology, the reason for such massive size of the cut outs could be traced to show the star to be larger than life! The fans treat the aura of the star through the cut outs as worth fixating their own aspirations.Moreover, the tangibility of the cut out gives them a sensorial satisfaction of having accessed the star himself!
Most cut-outs would have the star in a manner that he would gaze right at the audience, furthering a more personal connect with the onlooker.
The Fans thronged the theatre for the first day first show at 4:00am. Attending the first ever show is still treated as a benchmark In the instance of say, the movie ‘Kabali’, the Fans thronged the theatre for the first day first show at 4:00am. Attending the first ever show remains a benchmark for ‘loyalty to the star’, among many Rasigar Mandrams. Some of the fan clubs even went to the extent of booking multiple shows in a single day in order to facilitate the tickets for all its members.
The fans mimic, embody and imbibe the idiosyncrasies of the star, in a bid to consume their hero as much as possible. These may be the famous sunglasses swirl of Rajini, the walk, mesmerising smile or the other mannerisms specific to Rajinikanth.
A section of fans even tend to ‘reorganise’ their lives and everyday activities to consume more of the star. In recent years, social media presence has allowed the worshippers to enter the network of stars. This has shifted the balance to some extent. The attention that the fan manages to get from the star even through intangible mediums is considered worth the effort (by them) and hence, the fans often become obsessive and start to enjoy stardom themselves.
The fans and a new narrative:
It has often been observed that the fans, both individually & collectively, become the carrier of a plethora of information about the Star. To such an extent that they sometimes act as Historians by providing details about a star’s life that even the ever-so active media might have missed. This way, the fans create a new narrative for the star. For example, Yasuda Hidetoshi, a man mesmerised by Rajinikanth’s character in the movie Baasha, gave himself the name ‘Japanese Autokaren’ (an Autorickshaw driver in Tamil)
Interestingly, Yasuda even went onto learn the Tamizh language to be able to converse with his idol one day.
The components of a fan club:
Sara Dickey’s experiences reveal another interesting facet of the fan clubs ie. the gender component. The Clubs constitute majority of men, usually late teens. Three reasons that a scholar like Sara deduces for such a lopsided gender composition and representation in fan-clubs is that women, especially in the same age group, are expected by the Indian Society to marry, making it difficult for them to remain ‘active participants’ in public activities of the fan club. Couple this reason with the fact that women of the same age group face more restrictions of movement as compared to men, making it a difficult task to contribute by presence in the day to day running of the fan clubs.
In terms of economic standing in the society, Sarah deduced that the lower middle class and middle class formed the majority in any fan club. The level of education was also found to be low in the fan clubs, which could be an area to be exploited as it makes the majority more gullible and impressionable. As a result, the star can use the majority to reinstate his political views and gain instant support. In other words, the fan clubs become a vehicle of propagating political agendas and messages, outrightly. The songs may also provide lyrical support to the political ideology of the star. Specific lines of songs like ‘Ethana Sandosham, Veera Thurandara, Katravai Patravai etc. and dialogues also contribute in this regard.
The lower level of education directly correlates with the occupations that the majority of fans be in (lower on the occupational hierarchical rung). The star resonates manifolds by playing characters of downtrodden humans fulfilling aspirations, thus empowering the fans—even more so Rajini himself comes from humble beginnings. For example, Rajini plays a charioteer cum servant in Muthu, an auto driver in Bashaa who is revealed to be fitting as the don of Mumbai.
A poor milkman in Annamalai, goes on to achieve the status of a millionaire.
Rajinikanth’s songs carry the message of revolution, hard work, determination, etc. and portray a certain profession to be larger than life. Example:
Vandenda Palukaaran (I, the Milkman) from the film Annamalai, sings the virtues of a milkman.
Autokaaran from Bashaa portrays the autorickshaw drivers to be a godly figure.The profession too, is glorified.
Enthralled the audience as a porter (coolie) in Uzhaipaali (Hard worker) and the list goes on where songs would convey the messages of grit or good human values.
For example: Oruvan Muthalali (there is only one Boss), Vazhkaiyil Ayiram tadaikkal (Turn even a 1000 boulders into stepping stones) Vetri Nichchayam (our victory, inevitable), Ammavai Azhaikada Uyir and Uyirum neeye signify the glory of motherhood.
The commercial logic:
Different industries emerge and thrive around the Star, thus giving stardom, a commercial logic. Over the years, it has even displayed a syndicated organizational character. From special edition accessories with printed Punch Dialogues such as pens, T-shirts etc. to a full-fledged aircraft or a sky scraper carrying the theme. When Rajinikanth’s movie KABALI released, the Malaysian Airlines unveiled a special Kabali Aircraft to carry fans from Malaysia to Chennai (India) for the first day first show of the movie. Kabali themed taxis joined the fleet in many countries.
The autorickshaws in Chennai either had the poster or at least the famous dialogue from the teaser, inked on the back and front. Some fans prefer to tattoo these punch lines on themselves due to hyper-affection. The commercial logic covers a large spectrum.
The fan clubs also perform other functions.
Which eventually become a tool of promotional activities and branding for the movies that the star is involved in. Actions such as charity and merry events Rajinikanth’s birthday celebrations, mass prayers (when Rajini underwent surgery) were carried out by the Fan clubs. Example: Malararattum Manidaneyam, an initiative to distribute welfare measures for the poor in Vellore, Tamil Nadu, was conducted by die hard Rajini fans.
Rajinikanth’s decision to enter politics had caused the Rasigar Mandrams to act as a vehicle for conveying, furthering and outrightly propagating political agendas and messages. The recent songs also provide lyrical support to the political ideology of the star. Specific lines of songs like ‘Ethana Sandosham, Veera Thurandara, Katravai Patravai etc.
Dialogues have also immensely contributed in this regard.
Small Differences in the mundane and innovation peppered with style; all this with highly relatable day to day activities and situations. It may be flicking sweat, tossing a coin, lighting a match, wearing shades or even dusting a speck off oneself, when Rajini does the same on screen, it becomes a trend! His punch dialogues resonate with the fans due to their relevance beyond the reel world.
Example: Andavan Sollaran , Arunachalam Mudikkaran (Arunachalam) , Magizhchi (Kabali), Idu eppudi irukku? (16 Vayadiiule),Yen vazhi Thani vazhi! (Padayappa), Seeviduven! (Murattu Kaalai), to name a few.
One mood, one dialogue, one song, that’s all it takes for the charismatic Rajini to connect with millions, across generations. He has been an addiction to many for over four decades now. A human given a godly status by many, to be referred or looked upto, in all situations of life. Thaliava, Superstar, Rajini —he, on many occasions, has transcended beyond the glorious taglines. Rajinikanth, simply put, is an ‘emotion.’
References:
Dickey, S. (n.d.). Note on transliteration. Cinema and the Urban Poor in South India,(37-39),(137-149). doi:10.1017/cbo9780511557972.001
Rajinifans.com/gallery
https://www.thehindu.com/entertainment/movies/rajinikanth-birthday-special/article25723795.ece
