IN their long movie careers Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan have acted together only in 13 films, the last many years ago. In many of them they have played adversaries; when they chose to chart their own paths as icons of Tamil cinema competing for the box office pie, they emerged as friendly rivals. Again, when they decided, separately, to take the political plunge, they consulted each other. But, recently, the two hinted that they might, after all, join hands in their political battle with the two Dra vidian majors in the state. “If there is a need Rajini and I shall join hands for the welfare of the people of the state,” Kamal said recently, something that was readily endorsed by Rajinikanth.
Both cited a political vacuum in the state after the demise of Jayalalitha and Karunanidhi as the reason for their pol itical entry, which had riled the two suc cessors—chief minister Edappadi K.
Palaniswami and DMK leader M.K. Sta lin. While DMK leaders and its allies claimed that Stalin had successfully filled the void and swept the Lok Sabha elections, EPS hit out, recalling how even a great actor like Sivaji Ganesan failed to make a mark in politics. “Not everyone can be an MGR or a Jayalalitha to be successful in both films and poli tics,” Palaniswami remarked.
This story is from the December 09, 2019 edition of Outlook.
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This story is from the December 09, 2019 edition of Outlook.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
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