Posted on 07/25/2016 4:12:16 AM PDT by sukhoi-30mki
CHENNAI, India — The cinema gates opened before dawn here, home of the Tamil movie star Rajinikanth and ground zero of the nationwide frenzy surrounding the release Friday of his latest action epic. Hundreds of fans shoved their way in as firecrackers burst and car stereos blared one of the movie’s hit songs, “This Is Fire, Dude!”
Then came the bad news: All the tickets were sold out. For the next two weeks. The fans, chased out by police, were heartbroken.
“If I don’t get to watch my favorite star’s new movie on the ‘first day, first show,’ there will be a big black hole in my life,” said Sundar Vaidyanathan, 27, wiping away tears. “After my parents, it is superstar Rajinikanth who is most important to me.”
India’s movie industry is the biggest in the world, producing more than 1,600 new films a year in more than 20 local languages. And Rajinikanth is the biggest star in that firmament, if sheer, over-the-top fan mania is the measure.
He is no superstud. At 65, he is balding and sports unkempt gray stubble. Yet he is so beloved — he boasts 3 million Twitter followers — that his movie release dates are anticipated in India like national holidays.
In Chennai, some companies gave employees the day off Friday so they could go see “Kabali,” Rajinikanth’s first film in two years. Others had booked entire cinemas for their staff. Air Asia flew 180 fans to the city for the first-day showing in a plane custom-painted with the star’s likeness. One county was giving away free tickets to people who pledged to install an indoor toilet, taking advantage of the movie’s popularity to address the issue of widespread public defecation.
(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...
Fans of Rajinikanth offer prayers in front of his poster outside a cinema in Chennai, India, on Friday to celebrate the release of “Kabali.” Hundreds of thousands thronged cinemas across the country for “first day, first show” of the gangster action drama. (Aijaz Rahi/Associated Press)
I thought God was a cow?
And these people VOTE!
Here’s the only Bollywood movie you’ll ever need. A web oldie.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MQkbaVQV-xM
Amid Global Kabali Meltdown, Rajinikanth Spotted Strolling on US Street (video)
I always thought SRK was their biggest movie actor: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shah_Rukh_Khan
Makes a good music video too (dancing on a moving train no less!): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YOYN9qNXmAw
I thought he’d be a ‘twenty something’
SRK doesn’t have the ability to catch grenades in midair and lob it back at the bad guys and light a matchstick by looking at it ...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kXJP7obsfKM
The heroines he romances are 20-somethings.
That was a line by Shatner so it might be his toupee too which of course Weird Al Yankovic bid for on eBay.
now that’s funny......I don’t care who you are
Just goes to show, money beats looks.
Gotta get my ticket, soon!
Look at this stuff right here
“is god”
That is sort of the way the Wapo views Hillary.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.