Rajinikanth, the fashion icon: How the famous person outlined swag for generations of followers

​I vividly bear in mind my late father calling me each time a Rajinikanth track performed on TV. Somehow, although a lot from that age is a blur, I recollect the thrill with which I’d run to choose up a black coat with large white buttons on it — that was the closest I needed to those the star wore in Baashhaand Padayappa. I needed to placed on my ‘Rajini jacket,’ seize sun shades, and dance in entrance of my ever-encouraging viewers. It felt like an expertise uniquely my very own — no less than till I grew up and realised that Superstar Rajinikanth is a phenomenon who peddled desires, instilled hope, and outlined fashion to hundreds of thousands, a journey now spanning 50 years.

​For actor Manikandan Ok (of Jai Bhim, Good Night and Lover fame), the spell was forged fairly early as properly, by a shot of Rajini lighting up a matchstick with nothing however his gaze. “At that age — I will need to have been three or 4 — I believed that possibly Rajini sir might actually gentle up issues by simply taking a look at them. He had the charisma to promote that phantasm to a toddler. But Rajini sir’s greatness lies on this: Sivaji launched after I was learning in school, and even in that movie, there’s a shot in a track the place he returns a bullet shot at him by merely taking a look at it. And even after rising up, I loved that rather a lot.”

​Smoking is integral in Rajini’s arsenal of favor statements; from Moondru Mudichu to the lately launched Coolie, solely he might make a vice look that cool. Even faculty youngsters used to roll sheets of paper to emulate his iconic cigarette flip (throwing and catching it easily between the lips). This, after all, has had its personal share of criticism, because it allegedly incited youth to begin smoking.

“Look, ‘Rajinism’ got here to be as a result of children noticed themselves in Rajinikanth — he was a dark-skinned man who instilled vanity in younger southern Indian males. He was the hero they might be. The flipside was that many, like myself, picked up smoking together with every thing else,” says 40-year-old Erode-based auditor and an ardent fan, Narendar B, including that maybe he ought to have thought of the star’s no-smoking recommendation.

“I don’t smoke, however I used to do the cigarette flip with pencils after I was at school. You can’t flip a full-sized pencil, clearly, so I’d wait until it reaches the best dimension to do it,” reminisces Sathyakumaran G, a 36-year-old Chennai-based software program engineer and a diehard fan. Rajinikanth’s iconic sunglass flip captivated Sathyakumaran. “Whenever a movie releases, I’d by some means purchase the sun shades within the form that he wears in that movie, and click on some 10 photos carrying them. I used to carry out his sunglass flip properly after I was about 9 or 10 years outdated, and even now, I do it to indicate off to my youngsters,” he provides.

It will not be mere luck that an actor’s identify has develop into a method assertion by itself — even ‘fashion’ seems a lot cooler with ‘Rajini’ as a prefix. From how he opens a bottle of cola (like in a uncommon industrial for the government-owned cola product Palm Cola), the way in which he pops bubble gum, to one thing as peculiar as pulling the coats to slide palms into pockets, or just strolling, Rajinikanth has typically proven an intuition for turning even the best acts into one thing larger-than-life. But the aura of the famous person is not only concerning the cigarette-flips and sun shades. He single-handedly influenced how Tamil males, and presumably even ladies, dressed and carried themselves.

Rajinikanth, the trendsetter: ‘Stylelu stylelu thaan, ithu tremendous stylelu thaan’

Even as we speak, the star’s many outfits from the ‘80s stay stylish and up to date. Sathyakumaran reminisces a couple of T-shirt the star wore within the double-action movie Johnny, which options arguably probably the most charming on-screen Rajinis. “He wore a T-shirt that reads ‘Music The Life Giver’ with a denim jacket. In a selected scene, carrying a white overcoat, he lit a cigarette whereas leaning on a pillar. Be it that pipe, the thick-framed glasses, or the coiffure he opted for… he seemed so elegant.”

Speaking of hairstyles, Manikandan reminds us of how the star carried off his centre-parting. “The track ‘Rajavukku Raja Naan Thaan’ involves thoughts. Also, he was so good-looking within the ‘Malayala Karayoram’ track from Rajadhi Raja; the truth is, that’s his finest look in my view,” says the actor. Narendar says he nonetheless flips his hair again the way in which Rajini did in numerous movies. “It’s so ingrained. There’s this staple Rajini coiffure that’s so exhausting to keep up however seems slick on thalaivar,” says the fan.

Many on-screen outfits have develop into native fads. ”In Padayappa, he wore a pair of denims that had pockets close to the knees. My household purchased these denims for me. I bear in mind carrying it to high school on that sooner or later that we had been allowed to colored garments,” recollects Manikandan.

The star’s denim outfits, worn in movies like Uzhaippali and Raja Chinna Roja, appear to have a fandom on their very own. “Also, there’s a photoshoot of a clean-shaven thalaivar carrying denim — he seemed so dapper in it. He didn’t recreate that look in any of his movies,” factors out Sathyakumaran.

​Costume designer Praveen Raja, who styled the famous person in his newest movie Coolie, agrees that there’s something particular about how a denim-on-denim outfit rests on Rajini. “The very first thing we shot was the poster wherein he wears a denim-on-denim. Director Lokesh Kanagaraj’s gist for me was that the look needed to emulate Thalapathy — that it needed to be a slipper, a denim, and a shirt.” The denim look in Padayappa, Praveen provides, is his private favorite of the famous person.

Interestingly, denim has taken over theatres in Tamil Nadu ever since Coolie launched on August 14 — all due to Anirudh Ravichander’s ‘Chikutu,’ a T Rajendar-styled earworm that options Rajini in a denim-on-denim. “Right from the day the track was launched, individuals started to put on denim-on-denim outfits. Later, after the audio launch, I noticed many carrying that outfit. Even Lokesh wore denim-on-denim for the interviews through the movie’s promotion,” says Praveen, who was elated by how even the ‘Coolie badge’ from the movie has develop into part of the ensemble audiences put on to look at Coolie.

Padayappa additionally featured one of many many occasions the famous person has donned an outsized jacket. “The denim shirt, the printed shirt, and that darkish blazer that he wore within the ‘Kikku Yerudhey’ track had been all trendsetting,” Praveen says. He grew up watching the star put on outsized jackets in movies like Mannan and Rajadhi Raja. “In truth, we tried the outsized slot in Coolie — for the denim shirt you see within the photoshoot with the watches.”

Sathyakumar will get nostalgic concerning the white overalls from Padayappa. “He paired it with a brown scarf. There are many movies, like Manithan and Arunachalam, wherein he seems so charismatic in white-and-white,” says the fan, mentioning how a selected T-shirt from Pandian grew to become a well-liked fad. “It was a plain T-shirt with a tick mark” — many outfits within the movie featured a tick — “As a toddler, I used to put on that shirt, regardless of it being outsized.”

Baba, although being a forgettable outing for the famous person, discovered a particular place amongst followers for thalaivar’s seems. “We began carrying a whole lot of gentle blue shirts with black pants after Baba. The headband additionally grew to become a pattern; at any time when we got here throughout a purple towel, we’d tie it on our heads and click on photos,” says Sathyakumaran.

​Rajini additionally glamorised the massive boots that had you tuck within the pants. The white sneakers in Annaamalai, the thundu he wears round his waist in Muthu, and the long-lasting scarf he dons in Thalapathy had been all particular seems that grew to become a pattern within the ‘90s Tamil Nadu, say followers.

​Understanding Rajinism: Born expertise, or a talent discovered from sheer perseverance?

Even after 50 years since his debut, the mystique of Rajinikanth nonetheless puzzles many, for the silver display is but to see a star with such grace, swag, and authentic concepts. “Perhaps there could by no means come a star in Tamil with mannerisms that aren’t impressed by Rajini sir,” says Narendar.

Is this expertise he was born with? Manikandan disagrees. “Like the Duryodhana incident (about how he needed to improvise to make the ‘Mahabharata’ character look menacing on stage) that he recited on the audio launch of Jailer, all of it comes down to 1 philosophy that he staunchly follows — to do issues in a different way. Walking is an earthly factor, however with Rajini sir, it seems completely different,” says the actor who shared display with the famous person in Kaala. “That’s a expertise he acquired from years of follow. He questions why one thing is finished a sure manner and tries to alter it, however he received’t do this only for the sake of doing one thing completely different; he effortlessly convinces you,” says Manikandan. He explains how the famous person advised him concerning the many hours that had gone into perfecting his signature cigarette flip.

​Sathyakumaran and Narendar remind us of the a number of cases the place Rajini credited late legendary Sivaji Ganesan as an inspiration. “The swiftness was, after all, pure to thalaivar. In truth, Sivaji had made smoking look trendy in lots of movies. Sivaji sir used to do it slowly, however our thalaivar is kind of quick,” says Sathyakumaran.

​From how Praveen describes his expertise working with the star, you get the sense of a person who needs to redefine himself, even at 74. “He remains to be in his styling period. He is aware of what’s working within the traits. To date, no matter you give him, he’ll put on it and stand in entrance of the mirror. He will do the standing pose and see the way it feels when he strikes; provided that he’s assured, he’ll say, ‘Let’s proceed.’”

Now, 50 years after his debut, Rajinikanth nonetheless has influence on our wardrobes. Watching followers gown up for Coolie, I take into consideration why that ‘Rajini jacket’ meant a lot to me — and I realise I didn’t simply emulate him to look cool. He was considered one of my first heroes. Teenagers insecure about their seems want a job mannequin to show them swag, self-assurance and the sense that they’re worthy of affection. Just placing on my Rajini jacket gave me that confidence. As they are saying, “thalaivar nirandharam” — this legacy is for all eternity.