No one in the film industry, India and abroad, would not know Rajinikanth; such is the charisma of the superstar.
Starting his career playing villians, ‘Thalaivar’ Rajinikanth soon turned the
tables and became India’s hero.
‘Pera kettaale chumma adhirudhulla!’ (Doesn’t
everything quake at the mere mention of my name?) – one of the most popular lines of ‘Thalaivar’ from his
2007 blockbuster ‘Sivaji’, projects on his fans, who almost worship him like
God.
The mere mention of Rajinikanth’s name invites
love, respect and admiration.
If you think re-makes tend to dial
down the craze around a movie, enter Rajinikanth’s world. He not only re-lives characters but also
holds the potential to bring them back from the dead.
On his 70th birth
anniversary, here are five blockbusters starring Rajinikanth that are remakes
of Hindi movies:
1. Shankar Salim Simon
Don’t let the alliteration confuse you. Yes, ‘Shankar Salim Simon’ is said to be a remake of the Hindi-language action drama ‘Amar Akbar Anthony’, starring Vinod Khanna, Rishi Kapoor and Amitabh Bachchan.
Released in 1978, ‘Shankar Salim Simon’ was directed by P Madhavan starring Vijayakumar as Shankar, Jaiganesh as Salim and Rajinikanth assuming Bachchan’s role as Simon. The remake made a whopping Rs 9 crore in box office collections.
2. Thillu Mullu
Did Amol Palekar’s classic movie ‘Gol Maal’ leave you in splits with Palekar playing the role of twin brothers? Rajinikanth played Palekar’s part in its reported Tamil remake.
Thillu Mullu, directed by K Balachander, hit the theatres in 1981. It was a remake of the 1979 blockbuster ‘Gol Maal’ starring Amol Palekar and Utpal Dutt. It is not known to many that Rajinikanth had to shave his moustache for the first time on screen for this film. He was reluctant, but Balachander convinced him. Interestingly, Rajinikanth met his future wife Latha on the sets of the film.
3. Billa
Undoubtedly one of the biggest hits of Rajinikanth’s career was ‘Billa,’ supposed to be the remake of Amitabh Bachchan’s 1978 action thriller ‘Don’. Helmed by R Krishnamurthy, ‘Billa’ hit the screens in 1980. This was the first time in his career when Rajinikanth played a dual role – the feared-by-all gangster Billa and the street entertainer Rajappa.
4. Thee
‘Aaj khush toh bahut hoge tum?’ – Yes, definitely, because the Hindi blockbuster ‘Deewar’ was purportedly remade by R Krishnamurthy in 1981 starring none-other-than our Thalaivar. Rajinikanth played the lead role in the remake ‘Thee’ and Suman played his brother, assuming the roles of the much-loved duo Amitabh Bachchan and Shashi Kapoor.
5. Mr Bharath
Directed by S P Muthuraman, ‘Mr. Bharath’ was claimed to be a remake of ‘Trishul’, starring Amitabh Bachchan, Shashi Kapoor and Sanjeev Kumar in the lead roles. In this blockbuster-hit, Rajinikanth plays the role of a son seeking revenge from his father for cheating on his mother. This movie was released in 1986.
Even after completing 45 glorious years in the film industry, Rajinikanth has a worldwide fan-following. Cheers to our Thalaivar for turning 70 this year.
