Only days after Rajinikanth was once again put on a pedestal and sung praises of, the Tamil superstar broke many hearts, falling, without warning, straight at the feet of Yogi Adityanath, the controversial Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh known for his 'bulldozer politics'. After Jailer, fans of Rajinikanth, and non-fans too, were so taken by his superstardom that many somehow buried the burning memories of his remarks during the 2018 Sterlite violence in Thoothukudi. He had claimed then that “anti-social elements” were behind the protests, during which 13 people were killed in a police firing.
Those were days when Rajini seemed to toe the line of the right wing rulers of the country. People watched keenly as he almost plunged into politics, but later withdrew. Many attributed his right-wing affinity to his earnestness for spirituality. Some pointed to Baba, the film that had Rajini play the reincarnation of a saint in the Himalayas in the early 2000s, which seemed to reflect his real-life interest in spirituality.
By the time Jailer came, five years after the Sterlite incident and sufficiently long after his political no-entry, people seemed willing to let go of the past displeasures he caused, especially when Rajini charmed even his critics with the indestructible hero act. The ‘commoner hiding a superhero within’ track that Jailer adopted, worked the same way as his hugely celebrated Baashha did, 28 years ago. But the joys didn’t last long and forgotten memories resurfaced when Rajinikanth was clicked prostrating before Yogi Adityanath, who is also the head priest of the Gorakhnath Math temple. But Yogi Adityanath is not just a religious figure, he is a politician known for his many hateful comments against Muslims, often propagating violence. He had begun the practice of ramming down houses in Muslim majority areas, under the guise of punishing defaulters. Yogi's use of bulldozers to target minorities had earned him the moniker 'Bulldozer Baba'.
So the Rajini-Yogi video appeared to create conflicts in the minds of people who had watched the star lead an anti-caste narrative like Kaala. While some wondered why such a stance should be shocking of an actor who has made controversial and insensitive comments before, it was clear that the man on the screen had once again towered over the one off it. Through Jailer, Rajini was resurrected all over again, the demi-god who could do no wrong. It must have been hard to believe that the Jailer, who they just saw on a big screen, single handedly fighting down every last rogue and standing with justice till the end, could be entirely another person in life. For many, this was not just about separating the actor from the character, this was shaking the fundamental trust one human places on another, after years of blindly following them. Loyalty sometimes can be so strong that it hurts all the more when it finally has to shatter.
South of Tamil Nadu, the Malayalam film industry had erupted with the shocking story of the abduction and sexual assault of a prominent actor in a moving vehicle on a public road in Kochi, six years ago. Actors gathered together to condemn the attack and press for action. But after a few months, when popular Malayali actor Dileep’s name cropped up in the case and a press meet was held by the Association of Malayalam Movie Artistes (A.M.M.A.) to address the incident, the industry’s two beloved superstars – Mohanlal and Mammootty – remained conspicuously silent.
Mammootty watched his co-actors speak but said nothing, while Mohanlal was focused on a notebook he never raised his eyes from. The picture was the antithesis of the angry and loud retorts of the heroes they played in movie after movie. In that press meet, where one of their daring characters would have sprung to the defence of the survivor actor, Mammootty and Mohanlal preferred to take on the role of the extras in the backdrop that no one took note of.
Strongly-worded critiques were passed on the irony of superstars behaving like bored onlookers in a telling scene. Both actors have been reigning the industry for decades, and until then, were hardly ever questioned for their actions, or in this case, inaction. It had taken years for the social media attacks on actor Parvathy to subside after she made a comment about the hugely misogynistic lines of Mammootty’s character in Kasaba. Many had professed naively the need to see ‘cinema as cinema’ while Parvathy had to repeatedly explain the distinction between the portrayal of a negative character and the glorification of such a character.
Mammootty had remained silent throughout the continued attack on Parvathy. In other ways though, he appeared to reach out to women actors who were sidelined for their decision to stand with the survivor actor and question the prejudices in the industry. He and Parvathy played siblings in a later film Puzhu.
Mohanlal, on the other hand, seems uncomfortable when he is in front of a camera and it is not for a film. He is often evasive and attempts diplomacy. When he became president of the A.M.M.A., he said that while he hoped Dileep would be proven innocent, he was with the survivor. Unsurprisingly, memes popped up, showing his character in Kayamkulam Kochunni with each leg on a different boat. He also caused more disappointment – to more than a few of his old fans – when he suddenly lost his cool as a reporter asked him about the nuns’ protest in Kochi a few years ago. Mohanlal, there to talk about a charity venture he initiated, was flustered that the reporter picked the wrong time to ask about the then-ongoing protest of five nuns demanding justice for their rape survivor colleague.
The stars could not wash their hands of the power they know they have over millions, and ask to separate the art from the artist. Especially when it was clear that they not only enjoyed but actively encouraged fans building their larger-than-life images. While they may not openly acknowledge the influence they have over their fans, they are clearly aware of how their every word and deed in public counts. The late Kannada star Rajkumar owned the responsibility he had and declared that he would be careful of what he endorsed, leading a disciplined life in and out of cinema. Younger stars today are all too aware of the consequences their opinions can have, that many prefer to remain silent even when they have an active presence on social media. Mostly sticking to movie updates and harmless photos, few choose to comment about anything else. Only, they can’t get away with commenting on one issue that they think would not bring them the wrath of the ruling powers, and then remain silent for another. Case in point - Black Lives Matter, because that happened in another country.
It was a different story in those days of no internet, when little was known about the personal lives of actors and film audiences had stayed blissfully unaware of how their favourite stars behaved away from the screen. Occasionally, when news of an actor’s love life was sprinkled on gossip columns, fans lapped it up and promptly judged it as right or wrong. As technology took over, the overflow of information and excessive camera clicks revealed too much of the personal. You can no longer blink and miss the antics that you had stoutly denied your idol would exercise ever in a million years.
With technology opening up whole worlds for people, views widened too. People grew more politically aware, more opinionated, and unafraid to express their concerns. The late Telugu star NT Rama Rao was no longer thought of as a god that he played so many times on screen. Stars, who played the righteous hero to the end, are not anymore expected to lay low in real life, when a few words from them could make a vast difference. People are bound to be disappointed and question the actors who take perceivably wrong, immoral, or vacuous stands. They react sharply to actors accused of severe crimes. Many, especially women, chose to stop watching Dileep movies in theatre or television after he was named as an accused in the actor assault case.
It was in a similar vein that people declared they will stop watching Rajini movies after his video with Yogi came out. Arguments fly over the unfairness of boycotting movies, the work of so many, in the name of one problematic actor. The onus, however, should not fall on the viewer but the star who led to it, and the decision makers of the industry who knowingly let it happen, choosing to ignore the wronged one or many.
As industry stalwarts ignore the gaps in their politics on and off screen, conflicted individual viewers can do little more than engage in such small rebellions, like boycotting the films of a star who behaves in problematic ways. But it is not on the moviegoers to course correct the entertainment industry, which rides on money and power. If only the stars, with so much of say, had it in them to act responsibly, let alone empathise.