Petta (பேட்ட) Teaser: A Thalaivar B'day Special
Date: Dec 12, 2018
Rajnikanth, Thalaivar, Super Star - A name synonymous with style in Tamil cinema. He's ruled the roost of Southern Indian cinema for over 35 years! He's the only star I know to have acted in black and white, digital color, motion capture, animation and 3D formats. Truly a living legend! Ask anyone in Tamil Nadu (regardless of age) about Rajni and the first things they'd talk/rave about is his style, charisma, simplicity and spirituality. Just imagine an old, bald actor with average looks and a simple attire - how is it that millions of men and women across India scream their hearts out when this man makes an appearance on screen? There's something truly special him. Highly likely that we'll never get to see the likes of him again. The release of his movies are treated like festivals with celebrations lasting for weeks! I could go on and on about how he literally changed the landscape of Indian cinema. But there are books and documentaries that have done a better job.
Rajni as an actor is underrated. While he's extremely popular for his charisma, style, on-screen presence and off-screen personality, hardly few people talk about his acting chops. Just watch Aval Appadithan to understand what I'm talking about. The man absolutely owns the stage. It's incredible considering he shared screen space with legends like Kamal Haasan and Sripriya.
A lot of his films in the last decade have done fairly well in the box office. Though they were successful commercially, it wasn't truly satisfying across the board. The fans were split and critics were ambivalent at best. But Petta gives me hope :) The teaser took me right back to the 90s. Right from the cult Superstar title card with bgm scored by Deva to the trademark Rajnikanth smile and walk, every moment was perfect. No stunts, no dialogues, no dance sequences, etc., just a man casually smiling and walking to an insanely catchy bgm. Anirudh has done a fantastic job with music for the film. Almost every song in the jukebox is a chartbuster. Karthik Subburaj just might end up giving the fans exactly what they want. I couldn't help but smile from ear to ear while watching the teaser. It brought back memories of vintage Rajnikanth. A carefree time when I loved watching Baasha and Padayappa. The teaser made one things crystal clear - Karthik Subburaj isn't just another Rajni fan. நாடி நரம்பு, சதை, ரத்தம், புத்தில ரஜினி வெறி ஊறிப்போனவனுக்கு தான் இப்படி ஒரு படம் எடுக்க முடியும் :) As for my thoughts about Thalaivar himself in the teaser, the cult Nilambari dialogue sums it up best - வயசானாலும் உன் ஸ்டைலும் அழகும் உன்ன விட்டு போகல :) அந்த சிரிப்புக்காகவே சில்லறையை சிதற விடலாம் :)