Rajinikanth Birthday Special: 3 Movies And Shows That Showcase The Thalaiva Fan Frenzy

For superstar Rajinikanth, age is just a number. He turned 69 today and at his age, he is the only actor who is still commercially viable. He still draws in crowds in droves, fervent fans who stand in a line outside theatres all night to catch the first early morning release at 5 am in the morning. In fact, there are over 50,000 officially registered Rajinikanth clubs with the total number of registered fans in Tamil Nadu alone totalling to over 30 lakhs. He also has over 4 million followers on Twitter. When he fell ill nearly a decade ago, all of his official and unofficial fans got together en-masse to conduct poojas, yagnas, take vows of hardship and observed ritual fasts so that their Thailava could be well again. With so much love, obsession and frenzy surrounding the superstar, it comes as no surprise that the story of his fandom should make its way into popular culture. Several film-makers and TV show writers have attempted to capture this emotion. Here are three popular movies and web series that best showcase the emotion behind Thalaiva.

Enkitta Mothathe is a 2017 Tamil drama film which beautiful captures the emotion of a Thalaivar fan. Set in 1980’s, the story revolves around a group of painters who prepare banners of Tamil films. The group gets divided into two, as Rajinikanth and Kamal Hassan fans. The story traces the first-day-first-show frenzy of these fans and the conflict that arises between the two groups of fans. Click here to watch the film.

Postman is a ZEE5 original Tamil series about a postal department employee named Rajinikanth. As befitting his name, this postman is an ardent fan of Thalaivar and never fails to miss the first day, first show of his favourite superstar. On the day that Baashha releases, postman Rajinikanth plays hookey at work and runs off to catch the first show. Ironically, while returning, he has an accident and slips into a coma for 23 years. When he wakes up, he confronts a different world, a grown up daughter, an elderly Thalaiva and a batch of letters undelivered for over 23 years. Click here to watch the series.

The liftman is a ZEE5 original series that revolves around the misadventures of an elevator operator who takes up a new job in a building. In one of the episodes, liftman Bhau Kadam is inspired by a viral video online and dreams of becoming the next Rajinikanth. So the lift turns into a stage and Bhau is at his absolute best as he entertains people with his crazy acts. Click here to watch the episode.

For more entertainment and drama, watch ZEE5 Original Series Nisha, now streaming on ZEE5.