At a time when there has been much talk about superstar Rajinikanth's possible political entry, the title of his next film has, interestingly, references to the Tamil cause. Produced by Wunderbar films, owned and run by his son-in-law Dhanush K. Raja, and directed by Kabali fame Pa Ranjith, Kaala will be the story of a don in Mumbai who fights for the Tamils.
Kaala aka Karikalan, the title of Rajinikanth's 164th film, has been trending worldwide ever since it was announced by Dhanush on Thursday morning. There has been much speculation over the story line and the expected punch dialogues.
Reports had earlier claimed that Rajinikanth would play the role of popular gangster in Mumbai, Haji Mastan. Apparently, Haji Mastan’s foster son sent a legal notice saying any story line or film about Mastan should be cleared by him. He also had rubbished the very thought that Haji Mastan was a gangster. However, Wunderbar films later released a statement clarifying that the story was not about Haji Mastan.
However, Kaala will also be a gangster from Mumbai. And, like Kabali, he too will address the issues of the suppressed class.
The title of the film has sparked off a lot of discussions on various social media platforms as the word 'Kaala' has different connotations. As director Ranjith says, it can be a reference to the God of Death, Yama. In Tamil, 'Kaala' or 'Kaalan' means Yama. In Sanskrit, it means black, destiny, fate and death. As the title denotes the powerful Tamil, fans now expect that the sturdiness will be reflected in the film also.
'Karikalan' stands for bravery. It was another name of slain LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran. It was also the name of an ecological wizard Chola King who fought for establishing peace and tranquillity, refurbishing Tamil Nadu’s Cauvery basin. For Tamilians, Karikalan has the same place of Alexander the Great, the brave, charming emperor who conquered the world.
However, Ranjith says Kaala or Karikalan in the film is from the Nellai community in Tamil Nadu and he would be playing the leader. He became a gangster to protect not just his own community but the entire Tamils. His role will be that of a leader who is committed to the life of crime and also to his people.
This is not the first time Rajinikanth playing the don or the gangster or a community leader. It began with his high spirit Baasha way back in 1995, in which he played a similar role, a Tamil don in Mumbai. The film was one of the best in Rajinikanth’s career and took him forward among his die-hard fans. In fact, the recent re- release of Baasha witnessed packed cinema halls. Called as Manick Baasha aka Manickam and very much loved by his community, the protagonist does away with all the bad men. He played the role of an auto-driver in Baasha. In Mani Ratnam’s Thalapathi, he played the role of a man committed to crime just for the sake of loyalty and devotion. In Thalapathi, the actor played the role of Surya, a loyal friend of Deva (played by Mammooty). At the end, Rajinikanth's charecter even faces the bullet for his friend. The latest in a similar story line was Kabali which released in July last year, where he played the role of Kabali, a gangster in Malaysia, who is unconditionally loved by the people.
The first look posters of Kaala indicates how Rajinikanth will again play the role of a man who is into crimes but all for the good of the people. In one poster, he is seen sitting on a car, with the arrogance of a gangster. As the poster suggests, he could be a man of negative actions, but might not commit any heinous crime. He will only be the saviour of the masses, an ageing don in Mumbai’s Dharavi.
But at a time when there has been much talk about Rajinikanth's speculated plans to enter politics and when his much expected next 2 point 0 has been postponed to January 2018, Kaala is a big bet for Rajinikanth as he will be shown as the leader of the masses in the film.
However, for his fans, who were recently asked by the actor to be ready for a war, Kaala could be a step to the beginning of the war.
