It was the summer of 1985, a little above five years into being christened “Superstar”. Rajinikant made a bold move playing the protagonist in a rather quiet summer release – Unn Kannil Neer Vazhindaal (If tears well up in your eyes). Those were times when film promotion was unheard of and pre-release media coverage was virtually non-existent. The film quietly slipped into the theaters. In the aftermath, diehard fans of The Superstar panned the film and dismissed it outright. The regional media vented out screaming loud and clear – it wasn’t a Rajini film and that it was a huge let down. What followed was a bolder move with Sri Raghavendra wherein he played his spiritual guru. The biopic failed to quench the thirst of ardent fans. Many career obituaries of The Superstar made rounds. The rest is apparent history.
Fast forward 31 years. Rajini had risen above the realms of regional cinema and transcended into a pan-India and pan-world phenomenon occupying reams of print and gigabytes of digital media. At this juncture, I reckon the ageing superstar made yet another apt but bold move with Kabali.
In the lead-up to release of Kabali, two forces of critical mass were at play in the name of promotion. One was powerful, bankrolled by the production house, vehemently occupying every square inch of media real estate – social media to airplane livery. This force played tactically very well and set it up to perfection with a glossy and well-compiled teaser and promotional activities leveraging the sheer star power. It had a clear agenda and singular goal – set the cash registers ringing. While doing so it may have also set an imaginary vibrant perception in the minds of fans and the like. After all, by definition, teasers in the modern digital world of film promotion are meant to do just that.
The second and more important force was subtle, calmly emphasized by the man wielding the megaphone – the creator and the director himself. I believe this force operated on a parallel platform with lesser muscle power, and with undisturbed conviction reiterating the fact that Kabali wasn’t a traditional Rajini film. Therein was the cue and the clue!
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