Saif-Kareena Wedding

Saif-Kareena Wedding

Saif Ali Khan entered into matrimony with five year long girlfriend Kareena Kapoor in Mumbai on Tuesday, October 16, 2012.

Saif (42) has two children - son Ibrahim and daughter Sara - from his previous marriage to actress Amrita Singh. After the death of his father, Saif was anointed the new Nawab of Pataudi.

Kareena (32), who is the fourth generation member of the famous Kapoor family which boasts of names like Prithviraj Kapoor and Raj Kapoor, is one of the most sought after actresses in Bollywood today. She was last seen in Madhur Bhandarkar's 'Heroine', which released in September. Kareena was in a relationship with Shahid Kapoor earlier.

New Addition -- Wedding and Reception Dresses - below

 ' Saifeena - The couple '

Saif and Kareena featured together for the first time in the 2008 movie 'Tashan'. He further cemented his relationship by inking Kareena's name on his left arm in Hindi. They also paired up for LOC Kargil', 'Omkara' and 'Kurbaan'.  The actor duo, popularly called 'Saifeena', has appeared in several advertisements also.They were last seen in Khan's home production 'Agent Vinod' in March this year,  after which they officially declared their intention to tie the knot.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Invitation (Daawat-e-Walima)

Although Saif and Kareena had maintained silence on their much awaited wedding, it was Saif's mother Sharmila who came out with the October wedding date.

Sharmila Tagore visited India's President Pranab Mukherjee to extend the wedding invitation of her son Saif Ali Khan with Kareena Kapoor.Reports have it that the President spent almost 15 minutes with her at the Rashtrapati Bhavan. News is that even though he is unlikely to attend the ceremony, he congratulated her on the wedding. The wedding speculated to take place on October 16.

****************************
Conversion to Islam:

Sharmila Tagore had converted to Islam after her marriage to Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi and changed her name to Begum Ayesha Sultan. Earlier during an event, when asked if she would convert to Islam, Kareena had said, "It is a very personal question and I cannot answer it."

****************************

Here we are presenting details of every function  :

Sangeet Ceremony
Sunday,  October 14, 2012
Venue : Saif Ali Khan’s new duplex apartment in Bandra

The much-anticipated wedding of Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor started with an intimate sangeet ceremony for family and close friends on Sunday evening at Saif’s new duplex apartment in Bandra. The bridal couple arrived at about 9 pm, followed almost immediately by their guests.

Sunday night, the couple’s sangeet and dinner, which was held at Saif Ali Khan’s Khar residence, was attended by 50 guests, including their families and friends, and close associates of Sharmila Tagore. The theme for the party was ‘Indian.’

Outfits

Kareena looked gorgeous in wedding sangeet outfit designed by Manish Malhotra. It was a traditional golden- orangish-yellow lehenga, with a very short-sleeveless golden choli, and a mango-coloured dupatta. Kareena Kapoor also wore a jasmine (motia) gajra in her hair, dark green bangles on her wrists and beautiful gold - emerald wedding jewellery. This jewellery included a kundan wedding necklace, earrings and matha tikka.

A clean-shaven Saif Ali Khan wore a white Nehru jacket over simple white kurta and churidar-pajama.

Saif’s daughter Sara looked beautiful in an Abu Jani-Sandeep Khosla outfit.


Kareena's elder sister Karisma wore a green lehenga by Manish Malhotra, who tweeted a picture of Karisma and himself against a backdrop of garlands inside the house.

Guests

The first guests to arrive were Saif’s sister Soha Ali Khan with her beau Kunal Khemmu, followed by

Amrita Arora and husband Shakeel Ladakh.

Saba Ali Khan was receiving guests.

Neetu Singh and Reema (Kapoor) Jain came in together. Reema's son Armaan Jain who, incidentally is being launched as an actor by Saif’s Illuminati Productions, arrived later.

Ranbir Kapoor, Kareena’s other cousin, couldn’t make it to the party. Malaika Arora Khan,

 Tussar Kapoor, Sanjay Kapoor with wife Maheep graced the occassion.

Judging by the vans parked near the building, the party was catered by the restaurant Joss, which specialises in European and Asian cuisines. Guests danced to songs like Disco Deewane, Halkat Jawani, Radha and Disco Dancer which were played on a loop.

Karan Johar choreographed the Sangeet program.

*******************************************
Mehendi  Ceremony
Monday,  October 15, 2012
Venue : Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai.
 
Close friends and relatives attended Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor's mehendi ceremony held at Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai.

Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan attended the second of their pre-wedding functions last evening, a mehendi and sit down dinner for close family and friends at the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Mumbai.

Outfits:

For her mehendi function, Kareena Kapoor wore a medium-pink sequinned sari, with a sleeveless pink blouse.  Kareena Kapoor also wore a lot of diamond jewellery, which included a sparkling necklace and danglers and left her hair down. Here is a photo of her in her silver car, leaving for the mehendi venue.

Saif Ali Khan wore a black suit with bow for his mehendi function. He reached to the mehendi venue, in a black BMW car.

Kareena's sister Karisma wore a cream embellished outfit.

While Saif's sister Soha wore a vibrant pink sari and gold blouse. Soha's boyfriend, actor Kunal Khemu, was in black tie just like Saif.

***********************************************

Registered Marriage
Tuesday , October 16, 2012
Venue : Fortune Heights, Saif's residence in Bandra, a western Mumbai suburb.
Time : 02 pm

Bollywood star couple Saif Ali Khan, 42, and Kareena Kapoor, 32, tied the knot today, October 16, in a registered marriage ceremony, at Fortune Heights, Saif's residence in Bandra, a western Mumbai suburb.

"It was a registered marriage with three witnesses -- Kareena's father Randhir Kapoor, her mother Babita and Saif's mother Sharmila," marriage Registrar Surekha Lokhare from Bandra Family Court today. Saif, the Nawab of Pataudi entered his original name in the marriage application. Saif Ali Khan signed his papers in the name of Sajid Ali Khan.

"The notice was submitted on September 12 and they had requested that the registry be held at their residence," she said, adding that they were charged the normal fee of Rs 1000.

Outfits :

Kareena wore a green salwar-kurta with a heavy embellished red dupatta wrapped around her. She teamed it up with minimal jewelry, red bangles and left her hair open.

Saif, simply dressed in a grey kurta and white pajamas, came out with his new wife to greet fans from his balcony.

Randhir Kapoor and his elder daughter Karisma later waved to the waiting fans and media from the balcony of the house.

"We are very happy that they have got married, the way they wanted. Two lovely people have got married, without any conversions, about caste, creed or anything. Two lovers got married to two lovely people and I am very happy," said Randhir Kapoor.

"I would request the fans of Saif and Kareena to pray for the happiness of the newly weds," he added.
He also confirmed that the actress would be retaining her surname and be called 'Kareena Kapoor Khan.'

Greetings :

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan was among the first to wish the newlyweds, tweeting: "Happiest marriage bond to my friend Saif Kareena. May Allah keep ur family healthy, happy. Just saw it is registered, sealed & delivered."

Kareena's ex-boyfriend Shahid Kapoor also wished the couple luck and said that he hoped Kareena would keep acting after her marriage.

***********************************
Vow - Exchanging Ceremony
Tuesday, October 16, 2012   
Venue : The Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Colaba
Time - 09 pm

After the registered court marriage, Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan went to the Taj Mahal Palace hotel in Colaba for a private party, where they exchanged wedding vows  by exchanging rings and garlands.

  Nik was Saif's best man. Saif's son Ibrahim was the ring bearer.

Outfits:

For the vow-exchanging ceremony, Kareena Kapoor wore the same heavy royal traditional gharara choli that Sharmila Tagore had worn for her nikaah ceremony with Saif's father, Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi. This outfit had been gifted to Sharmila Tagore by Begum Sajida Sultan of Bhopal, her mother-in-law.

The bride's wedding wedding trousseau was made up-to-date for the occasion. The groom wore a brocade Lucknavi achkan by designer Raghavendra Rathore.

Guests:
This  ceremony was attended by the members of the Kappor family -- Mrs.Krishna Raj Kapoor, Reema Jain with son Armaan, Karisma with children, Ranbir Kapoor with parents Rishi and Neetu, Raiv (Chimpu) Kapoor, Mrs.Neela Kapoor, Aditya Kapoor, Kanchan Desai, Nikhil Nanda with Shweta Bachchan and son.

Other bollywood celebrities such as Shah Rukh Khan and Gauri, Sonam Kapoor, Anil Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Karan Johar, Fardeen Khan, Tusshar Kapoor , Atul Agnihotri, Alvira and Sohail Khan's wife Seema, Amrita Arora with husband Shakeel Ladak, Priety Zinta and DJ Aqueel.

Ratan Tata , the high profile industrialist also attended the function.

**********************************************

 Dawat-e-Walima (Wedding Reception)
Thursday, October 18, 2012.
Venue:31, Aurangzeb Road
New Delhi

The grand reception was held at 31, Aurangzeb Road.

Dressed in elegant sherwanis and colourful ghararas, lehengas and saris, some of the country's noted personalities attended the grand event, hosted by Saif's mother, veteran actress and Begum of Pataudi, Sharmila Tagore. The celebrations marked the culmination of a five-day wedding gala for Saif, 42, and Kareena, 32.

"Bless the couple and join in our happiness," Sharmila, who looked regal and resplendent in a gold sari, told reporters here outside the well-decked government bungalow at Aurangzeb Road here.

The Dawat-e-Walima (wedding reception) of star couple Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor here on Thursday saw the who's who from politics and Bollywood in their finery

Outfits:

Sharmila Tagore was dressed in a gold saree.

Saif wore a black sherwani, reportedly designed by Raghavendra Rathore.

Kareena wore a deep burgandy gharara with maroon dupatta which has an old world charm to it. Manish Malhotra was behind this exquisite piece. Kareena went for a contrasting green neck-piece.

The new bride looked like a true royal bride.

Family :

Kareena's parents Randhir Kapoor and Babita were also present. Karisma Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor,
Neetu Kapoor, Ranbir Kapoor, Reema Jain and other family members were present.

Guests:

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's with wife Gursharan Kaur, Congress general secretary Mr. Rahul Gandhi and Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit,graced the occasion. Among other attendees at the event were ministers Farooq Abdullah, Rajiv Shukla, Jyotiraditya Scindia, Kamal Nath, Congress' Renuka Chowdhary and Marxist leader Sitaram Yechury of CPM, Bharatiya Janata Party leader Arun Jaitley and Ravi Shankar Prasad, Planning Commission Deputy Chairman Montek Singh Ahluwalia, former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, politician-writer Shashi Tharoor with his wife Sunanda and Mr. Subrato Roy.

Representing the film circuit were director Madhur Bhandarkar,  actor Nandita Das, Lyricist  Prasoon Joshi, independent filmmaker Ashvin Kumar. Director Imtiaz Ali, who directed Khan in the film Love Aaj Kal and Kapoor in Jab We Met expressed his best wishes to the couple.


From the fashion fraternity were designers Ritu Kumar, Meera and Muzaffar Ali and Manish Malhotra.  Musician Ustad Amjad Ali Khan and artist Anjolie Ela Menon were also spotted.

Celebrities from the world of cricket included Bishen Singh Bedi, Kapil Dev with his daughter Amiya Dev and Ajay Jadeja.

Security:

There was something about Aurangzeb Road tonight. Traffic on the stretch from the Claridges Hotel till the Race Course Metro station was diverted. No pedestrian entry was allowed either.
With a guest list so eclectic and VIP such as this, the security was upto the mark. At least a force of 300 security personnel were appointed for the event since 6 pm on Thursday, an official told IANS.And media stood guard outside.

Decor:

The 31, Aurangzeb Road bungalow, decorated in a cream-and-rose Mughal theme, was crammed with guests. The entrance glowed with hanging diyas and was decorated with jasmine (mogra) flowers. A major attraction at the entrance was an intricately embroidered carpet, said to be an over a century old possession of the Pataudi family.

According to the buzz, the interiors for the function were inspired by the Mughal period, and the set up had several royal artefacts.

This was the last in the wedding revelry of one of the most awaited unions of tinsel town.


*****************************************
The Delhi Reception
Thursday, October18, 2012.

Antique props have been used for the grand mughal-themed reception for Saif Ali Khan and his new bride Kareena Kapoor in a spacious government bungalow on Thursday.

UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Deputy Chairman of the Planning Commission Montek Singh Ahluwalia, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit, BJP leader Arun Jaitley, former cricketers Kapil Dev and Abbas Ali Baig are among the invitees for the Dawat-e-Walima, being organised by Saif's mother Sharmila Tagore.

"We are decorating the entire place. The theme is off-white and gold with mogra flowers. We have a stage set up inside and it is all going to be in mughal style. We have used antique props, about 200 years old for the decoration," Tipsy Anand, from event management company Good Earth, told PTI.

"The reception will start around 8pm and we have been given a guest list of 500-600 people here," she added.

For the reception, Kareena, 32, will wear a pink gharara or a pink-blue or green sari, her designer Manish Malhotra said, while Saif, 42, will don a Raghavendra Rathore creation.

Since a lot of VVIP movement is expected, security around the venue has been tightened.

"We are expecting a lot of politicians and B-town celebs so we will be taking extra precaution so that the guests don't have trouble entering the venue. We will be only allowing people who are on the guest list," said a representative of a Proman securitytech, engaged for the purpose.

**********************************************
The Royal Gharara:

The vintage 'joda' was gifted to screen icon Sharmila Tagore by her mother-in-law, Begum Sajida Sultan of Bhopal. Her mother-in-law wore it in 1939 and Sharmila wore it for her wedding with cricketer Mansur Ali Khan Pataudi in 1969.The gharara was very old so Sharmila gave it to Ritu Kumar to be restored and embellished.

Under the direction of avant-garde designer Ritu Kumar, twelve skilled craftsmen worked for four months to revive the splendour of the antique 'joda' belonging to Begum of Bhopal which actress Kareena Kapoor wore for her wedding.

Ritu said she recreated the ancient costume by using gold Benaras fabric, woven in the likeness of the fabrics used for the original ensemble.

The traditional bridal attire consists of a kurta, farshi paijama and dupatta made of rust and gold tissue which contrasts subtly with the soft green satin gote at the hem.

To recreate and contemporise the costume of the era gone by, a team of twelve old craftspeople who understood the stitches and their use on three dimensional surfaces, were employed for four months.

The embroidery was recreated in the likeness of the original by master artists excelling in the craft of zardozi. The 'odhni' is original from the time of the last century and was repaired to form the final part of the ensemble.

Later designer Manish Malhotra worked painstakingly on the antique Pataudi gharara that has been restored by Ritu Kumar for Kareena Kapoor’s wedding, doing the final fittings and adding a touch of embroidery here and there.


**********************************************


Saif Ali Khan (42)

* Real Name -------- Sajid Ali Khan
* DOB --------------- 16 August 1970)
* Father ------------- Nawab of Pataudi, Mansoor Ali Khan,  a former captain of the Indian cricket team
* Mother ------------ Sharmila Tagore(actress), a great-grandniece of poet Rabindranath Tagore.
* Wife --------------- Kareena Kapoor Khan
* Ex-wife------------ Amrita Singh
* Sisters ------------ Saba Ali Khan and Soha Ali Khan
* Children ---------- daughter Sara and son Ibrahim- from his previous marriage to actress Amrita Singh.
* Pat.Grandfather-- Iftikhar Ali Khan cricketer who played for England and then for India as the captain 
* Pat.Grandmother --Sajida Sultan, Begum of Bhopal
* Great-granduncle --Pakistani general Sher Ali Khan Pataudi
* Education---------Lawrence School, Sanawar, Lockers Park School ,  Hertfordshire,WinchesterCollege
*  Languages -- Urdu/Hindi and Bengali as well as English.
* Hobby ------- Playing guitar
* Production company----- Illuminati Films' first film Love Aaj Kal, which became a box-office success.

 ** Awards:

     * Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003) Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor,
     * Hum Tum (2004) National Film Award for Best Actor

* After the death of his father, Saif was anointed the new Nawab of Pataudi.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Kareena Kapoor Khan (32)

* Real Name ---------------- Kareena Kapoor
* Nick Name----------------- Bebo
* DOB-------------------------21 September 1980
* Spouse---------------------Saif Ali Khan
* Father---------------------- Randhir Raj Kapoor
* Mother--------------------- Babita Kapoor
* Sister----------------------- Karisma Kapur(Lolo)
* Brother-in- law----------- SanjayKapur
* Education ---------------- Jamnabai Narsee School, Welham Girls School, Mithibai College,Harvard University.
* Niece ---------------------- Samiera Kapur
* Nephew-------------------- Kiaan Kapur
* Grandfather ----------- Raj Kapoor 'The great showman'
* Grandmother ---------- Mrs. Krishna Raj Kapoor
* Maternal grandfather- Hari Shivdasani
* Great Grandfather -- Prithvi  Raj Kapoor
* Granduncles ---------- ShammiKapoor, Shashi Kapoor
* Grandaunts ------------ Mrs. Neela Kapoor, Jennifer  Kapoor
* Uncles --------------------Rishi Kapoor, Rajiv Kapoor, Karan Kapoor, Kunal Kapoor, Aditya Raj Kapoor
* Aunts --------------------- Neetu Kapoor, Ritu Nanda, Reema Jain, Kanchan Desai, Sanjana
* Cousins ----------------- Riddhima, Ranbir Kapoor, Nikhil Nanda, Natasha, Armaan Jain
* Debut Film ------------ Refugee

** Awards:
   
* Refugee (2000) --------Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut
* Chameli (2004)---------Filmfare Award for Special Performance
* Dev (2004) --------------Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress
* Omkara (2006) -------- Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress
* Jab we met (2007) ----Filmfare Award for Best Actress
* We are family (2010)- Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress

*  She is one of the most sought after actresses in Bollywood today. She was last seen in Madhur Bhandarkar's 'Heroine', which released in September.

* Kareena was in a relationship with Shahid Kapoor earlier. She ended her three-year relationship with Shahid Kapoor while they were working on the film 'Jab We Met' (2007).

* Kareena Kapoor's wax statue at madame tussaud :

****************************************************
 Congratulations ! Our best wishes are with them.
****************************************************

Rajinikanth "The Super Star"

 Rajinikanth "The Super Star"

Rajinikanth is a celebrated actor of the South Indian film industry i.e. Tollywood.

Rajinikanth, fondly called “Rajini”, is the superstar of Tamil cinema. Born as Shivaji Rao Gaekwad, Rajinikanth has established his name in the Tamil film industry, rather all over South India. He is in the Tamil film industry for the last 35 years.

(New Addition - Three Memorable Movies of Rajinikanth ---below )

** Details :

* Real Name ------------------Shivaji Rao Gaekwad

* Reel Name ------------------Rajinikanth

* DOB --------------------------12th December 1949

* POB ---------------------------Bangalore

* Father--------------------------Ramojirao Gaekwad

* Mother-------------------------Ramabai

* Brothers-----------------------Sathya Narayana Raoand Nageshwara Rao

* Sister-------------------------- Shrimathi Aswathamma

* Wife---------------------------- Latha Rajinikanth

* Daughters-------------------- Aishwarya and Saundarya.

* Sons-in-law------------------ Dhanush and Ashwin Ramkumar

* Grandchildren -------------- Yathra and Linga

* Guru --------------------------- K.Balachander

* Spiritual Guru---------------- Satchithananda Swamiji

* Ardent Devotee of---------- Shri Raghavendra

* Favourite Pets -------------- Dogs

* Favourite Colour------------ Black

* Favourite City --------------- Chennai

* Favourite Place ------------- Himalayas

* Favourite Food ------------- Non-Vegetarian items

* Favourite Dress ------------ White Khurtha

* Favourite Books ------------ Books written by Shri Ramana Maharishi

* Favourite City --------------- Chennai

* Favourite Drinks ------------ Juice & Curd

* Favourite Place ------------- Pooja Room of his house

* Favourite work --------------- Self-driving

* Favourite Hollywood ------- Actor Sylvester Stallone

* Favourite Indian Actor ----- Kamalhaasan

* Favourite Actress ----------- Rekha (Hindi)

* Favourite Role --------------- Romantic Roles

* Favourite Language -------- English

* Favourite Films -------------- Hollywood Films

* Favourite Novel -------------- Kalki's Ponniyin Selvan & T. Janakiraman's Amma Vanthal

* Favourite Writer ------------- Jayagandhan

* Favourite Poet --------------- Kannadasan

* Favourite Musician --------- Illayaraja

* Favourite Speaker ---------- Vattal Nagaraj

* Favourite Songs ------------- Songs sung by Chandrababu

* Favourite Film ---------------- Veera Kesari (Kannada)

* Favourite Politician ---------- Singapore President Lee Quan-u

* Unforgettable Leader ------- Mahatma Gandhiji

* About Mahatma Gandhiji -- Form of Truth; Great Yogi

* About Bharathiar ------------- Real Rebel Poet

* About Kamarajar ------------- Real "Padikatha Methai"

* About Periyar ----------------- Real Spiritualist

* About Annadurai ------------- Great Leader

* About Kalaigar --------------- The only leader for Tamil Community

* About M.G.R ----------------- Guardian to Tamil Cinema

* About Shjivaji Ganeshan -- Dictionary of Tamil Cinema

* About Jayshankar ----------- Sportiveness

* About Shivakumar------------ Punctuality

* About Kamalahaasan ------- Sincerity

* Message to Fan -------------- Live & Let Live

* Health Sutra ------------------- Yoga and Meditation

* About Rajinikanth ------------ I live for myself ; I don't care anybody but I respect everybody.

* Favourite Quote -------------- Happiness begins when ambition ends.

* Favourite Proverb ------------ Beware of Everything -that is un true; stick to the Truth shall succeed slowly but steadily
 * Most Valuable Item---------- Appreciation Letter from K.Balachander for the film "Mullum Malarum"

* Address--------------------------18, Ragaveera avenue,Poes Garden, Chennai- 600086

    

Childhood :

The superstar of Tamil cinema, Rajinikanth was born on 12th December 1949, to a Maratha family living in Karnataka. He was the fourth child to his parents Ramojirao Gaekwad (father) and Ramabai (mother), who named him Shivaji Rao Gaekwad. His brothers are Sathya Narayana Rao and Nageshwara Rao. He has one sister. Rajinikanth did his schooling at the Acharya Paathshala in Bangalore and then continued his studies at the Vivekananda Balak Sangh, a unit of the Ramakrishna Mission. Rajnikanth lost his mother when he was five years old.

Early Life :

During the early years of his life, Rajinikanth struggled a lot because of poverty. After completing education, he took up various jobs like carpentry  in Bangalore. Rajnikanth also worked as a bus conductor for the Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation. Before entering the film industry, he used to practice stunts at Rama Hanuman Temple, near his house. Later on, he joined Madras Film Institute, where he learned acting and was acquainted with the nuances of cinema. He was discouraged a lot by his fellow film institute students. He also attended a theatre and participated in stage plays.

K Balachander, the director who has an uncanny knack of creating stars, first met Rajinikant at the film institute, where he was a student. Balachander glanced at the dark young man and crisply asked him to meet him in his office the next day. When Rajinikant walked into his office gingerly, Balachander informed him he was going to act in his next film. Overwhelmed by the sudden offer from a big director, Rajinikant just could not believe his ears. It's a feeling Rajini still recounts whenever in the mood of reminiscence.

Later, Balachander confided in his close friend and associate Ananthu, "Watch out! There is a fire in the young man's eyes. One day he will take Tamil Nadu by storm." How true the prediction turned out!

Debute In Films :

Rajinikanth made his debut in the film industry, as an actor, in a Kannada film named “Katha Sangama”, in 1975. Although “Katha Sangama” was his first film, it was K.Balachander’s directorial venture - Apoorva Ragaangal - a Tamil film, which brought Rajinikanth to limelight. Rajinikanth maintains that K. Balachander is his mentor, who recognized his talent. Under his tutelage, the actor sharpened his acting skills. At first, he was offered anti-hero roles in films. He played the role of villains in his own style and the unique brand of villainy allured the movie buffs to his films during the period.

Personal life :

Rajinikanth tied the knot with Latha Rangachari, an English literature graduate, hailing from an elite Iyengar family, on February 26, 1981 at Tirupati. 

During the 1980s, Latha worked as a playback singer in Tamil cinema. She sung a few songs in films; notable examples include "Netru Indha Neram" from the Kamal Haasan-starrer 'Tik Tik Tik (1981) and "Kadavul Ullamae" from Anbulla Rajinikanth (1984). She also contributed to Rajini 25 (1999), a musical album that commemorated Rajinikanth's 25 years of his career.

The couple has two daughters - Aishwarya and Saundarya. Aishwarya  married  Tamil actor Dhanush on November 18, 2004 and they have two sons named Yathra and Linga.

 Saundarya is a graphic designer and also works as a film director and producer.

Saundarya  married  industrialist Ashwin Ramkumar on September 3, 2010.  She has worked with her father in a number of Tamil films, including ‘Sivaji - The Boss’ and ‘Chandramukhi’. 

In 1991, Latha founded The Ashram, a philanthropic school for young children based in Velachery, Chennai, which she currently heads. She is expected to work with her daughter Soundarya Ramkumar Rajinikanth for producing the film Rana.

Latha is the sister-in-law of veteran playwright Y. Gee. Mahendra, while she is also related to former actress Vyjayanthimala. She married Rajinikanth on February 26, 1981 at Tirupati, whom she met during an exclusive interview. The couple has two daughters, Aishwarya and Soundarya. Her elder daughter, Aishwarya married actor Dhanush in 2004 and they have two sons, Yathra and Linga. Her younger daughter Soundarya married Chennai-based Industrialist Ashwin Ramkumar in 2010.

Filmography :

 Year             Films

1975 - Apoorva Raagangal                (Tamil)

1976-  Katha Sangama                      (Kannada)

1976-  Anthuleni Katha                      (Telugu)

1976 - Moondru Mudichu                 (Tamil)

1977 - 16 Vayathinile                        (Tamil)

1977-  Chilakamma Cheppindi          (Telugu)

1978-  Bhuvana Oru Kelvikkum        (Tamil)

1978-  Bairavi                                   (Tamil)

1978 - Mullum Malarum                    (Tamil)

1979 - Ninaithale Inikkum                 (Tamil)

1979-  Dharma Yuddham                 (Tamil)

1980 - Billa             (double role )     (Tamil)

1980-  Johny          (double role)      (Tamil)

1980-  Murattu Kaalai                      (Tamil)

1980-  Netrikan                               (Tamil)

1981 - Thillu Mullu                           (Tamil)

1982 - Moondru Mugam                 (Tamil)

1983 - Andha Kanoon                      (Hindi)

1983- John Jani Janardhan               (Hindi)

1984-  Naan Mahaan Allu                (Tamil)

1984 - Nallavanuku Nallavan           (Tamil)

1985 - Sri Raghavendra                   (Tamil)

1985 - Geraftaar                             (Hindi)

1987-  Uttar Dakshin                       (Hindi)

1988-  Bloodstone (appearance)      (English)

1988- Rajadhi Raja                          (Tamil)

1989 - Chaalbaaz                             (Hindi)

1991 - Thalapathi                             (Tamil)

1991 - Hum                                     (Hindi)

1992 - Annamalai                             (Tamil)

1993-  Valli                                      (Tamil)

1993 - Ejaman                                 (Tamil)

1995 - Badsha                                 (Tamil)

1995-  Muttu              (dubbed in Japanese)

1995-  Bhagya Debata                     (Bengali)

1997 - Arunachalam                         (Tamil)

1999 - Padayappa                            (Tamil)

2002-  Baba                                     (Tamil)

2005 - Chandramukhi   (dubbed in German)

2007 - Sivaji: The Boss                    (Tamil)

2008 - Kuselan                                (Tamil)

2010-  Enthiran (Robot)                   (Tamil)

Current Project :

 Raana

** Awards :

* 1982- Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor for Moondru Mugam

* 1984- Nallavanuku Nallavan--1st. Filmfare Award for Best Film Actor

* 1984- The Kalaimamani Award

* 1989- M G R Award

* 1995- Kalaichelvam Award by SAFA Association

* 1995- Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor for Muttu

* 1999- Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor for Padayappa

* 2000- Padma Bhushan by Govt. of India

* 2005- Tmil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor for Chandramukhi

* 2007- Tamil Nadu State Fim Award for Best Actor for Sivaji

* 2007--Indian Entertainer of the year by NDTV

* 2007- Raj Kapoor Award by Govt. of Maharashtra

* 2010- Chevalier Shivaji Ganeshan Award for Excellence in Indian cinema

* 2011- Entertainer of the Decade by Indian Home Minister P. Chidambaram

Religeous Belief :

Rajinikanth is a follower of Hinduism, spiritualism, and a strong believer of spirituality.He is also a practitoner of yoga and meditation. Rajinikanth is known for visiting temples prior to the release of each of his films. He also occasionally leaves for pilgrimage to the Himalayas. He has often referred to Swami Satchidananda, Ragavendra Swami, Mahavatar Babaji, and Ramana Maharishi as his favourite spiritual leaders.

Basically a religious person, Rajnikant has always owned up his faith. "I was brought up by the Ramakrishna Mission and it's from there that I have inherited this religious frame of mind," he keeps saying. Even his films have him openly sharing his faith. In Arunachalam he mouths that famous line, "God decides and Arunachalam executes it." His public meetings are always spiced with humour and embellished with anecdotes from mythology.

Infuence In Politics :

In 1995, Rajinikanth began supporting the Indian National Congress after meeting Prime Minister Narasimha Rao. In 1996, when the Congress Party decided to align with All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK), Rajinikanth supported Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK)and Tamil Maanila Congress (TMC) alliance. The TMC used a bicycle as their election symbol and used an image of Rajinikanth riding a bicycle from the film Annamalai in their posters. Rajinikanth said, "Even God cannot save Tamil Nadu if AIADMK returns to power." Rajinikanth wholeheartedly supported the DMK and TMC alliance and asked the people of Tamil Nadu and his fans to vote for that alliance. This alliance had a complete victory in 1996. In 1996, Rajinikanth supported the DMK-TMC alliance in parliamentary elections.

In 2002, Rajinikanth undertook a daylong fast to protest the Government of Karnataka's decision to not release Kaveri River water into Tamil Nadu and announced that he would contribute 10 million toward a plan to interlink the Indian rivers. He met with Indian Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and many experts to canvass support for the project.

During the 2008 hunger strike organized by SIFAA during the Hogenakkal water dispute, he reprimanded politicians in Karnataka.

Local fan associations of Rajinikanth in Tamil Nadu continuously speculated his entry in politics. But he  was not interested in politics and thus, was only committed to working in films. He said that nobody can force him to enter politics, just as no one can stop him from entering it.

In 2008, Rajinikanth also took part in the SIFAA-organized one-day hunger strike with other Tamil film personalities, demanding the government of Sri Lanka to stop the civil war and to provide Sri Lankan Tamils their rights and traditional land in the island nation.

Rajnikant's phenomenal success and his sway over the masses make people speculate whether he will follow the footsteps of the late MGR and enter politics.  When pressed, Rajnikant answers in his own inimitable style, "Yesterday I was a conductor, today I'm a star, tomorrow what I'll be only He knows!"

Modest Lifestyle:

Ego and starry airs are unknown to Rajnikant. During breaks he hardly ever rushes to his air-conditioned makeup room. Instead, he prefers to sleep on the sets, even without a pillow, merely covering his eyes with a wet cloth. He never comes to functions with a retinue behind him and even prefers to drive his own car.

Popularity :

Rajinikanth has been called the most popular South Indian film actor of his time.Rajinikanth's popularity has been attributed to "his uniquely styled dialogues and idiosyncrasies in films, as well as his political statements and philanthropy". Many also cite reasons for Rajinikanth's popularity as coming from his larger-than-life super-hero appearance in many films, supported by gravity-defying stunts and charismatic expressions, all while attempting to maintain modesty in real-life.

Rajinikanth also faces international popularity through the World Wide Web. "Rajinikanth facts" or "Rajinikanth jokes" are satirical factoids about Rajinikanth. They are widely circulated in text messages and over internet.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Rajinikanth  In  ICU  In  Singapore Hospital :

The superhero took ill on April 29, the first day of filming for the big budget project 'Raana', and since then he has been in and out of hospitals.

Rajinikanth had been taken to Singapore on May 29, 2011 for further treatment. His wife Latha Rajinikanth and his youngest daughter Aishwarya and some of the close relatives  accompained him for the treatment.

Rajinikanth was admitted in Mount Elizabeth Medical Centre in Singapore but much of the details about his health condition were not revealed to the media.

Sources said that  Rajinikanth might undergo kidney transplantation but there was no official announcement regarding his health condition. It had also been said that Doctors will come to a conclusion in a couple of days time if Rajinikanth needs a Kidney transplantation or not.

Rajinikanth wasadmitted in the ICU ward and his condition was said to be stable

 The whole country wished 'The Superstar' to return back healthy.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Biography :

Book--             ' The Name Is Rajinikanth '

Published by--   Om Books Internationals

Price--              Rs. 490

Author--            Dr. Gayatri Srikanth ( She is an opthalmologist and has written the book without

                     meeting  the Superstar even once.)

************************************************

Three Memorable Movies of Rajinikanth

(1) Hum (1991)

Hum is a 1991 Hindi Language film directed by Mukul S. Anand. This was the last successful film for Amitabh Bachchan in the early 90s before he announced his temporary retirement immediately after the release of this film for five years. 

Details:

* Presented by ------- Dinesh Gandhi

* Directed by ---------    Mukul S. Anand

* Produced by --------    Romesh Sharma

* Banner --------------- Romesh Films

* Screenplay by -----     Ravi Kapoor, Mohan Kaul

* Story by -------------    Ravi Kapoor, Mohan Kaul

* Cinematography---     W. B. Rao

* Editing by -----------    Kuldeep Mehan, K. Ravi Kumar

* Music by ------------    Laxmikant-Pyarelal

* Lyrics by ------------ Anand Bakshi

* Choreography ----- Chinni Prakash

* Release date(s) ---    February 1, 1991

* Running time -------    171 mins

* Country --------------    India

* Language -----------    Hindi

Star Cast :

*   Amitabh Bachchan as---- Tiger/Shekhar Malhotra

*   Rajinikanth as -------------- Kumar Malhotra

*   Govinda as ------------------ Vijay Malhotra

*   Kimi Katkar as -------------- Jumalina Gonsalves (Jumma)

*   Deepa Sahi as -------------- Aarti (Kumar's wife)

*   Shilpa Shirodkar as ------- Neeta

*   Danny Denzongpa as ---- Bakhtawar

*   Anupam Kher as ----------- Inspector Giridhar

*   Kader Khan as ------------- General Rana Pratapsingh/Chittor

*   Romesh Sharma as ------ Gonsalves

*   Anu Kapoor as ------------- Havaldar Arjun Singh

*   Deepak Shirke as --------- Pratap (Tiger's father)

*   Shiva Rindan as ----------- Captain attack

*   Asha Sharma as ----------- Tiger's step-mother

*   Guddi Maruti as ------------ Tomatoes seller

*   Viju Khote as a ------------- College principal

*   Shammi as ------------------ Aarti's mother

*   Baby Tabassum as ------- Jyoti (Munni) (Kumar's daughter)

Story :

Tiger (Amitabh Bachchan) works for the local Don Bhaktawar (Danny Denzongpa) but never hesitates to revolt against him if he harms his friends or family. 

When his girlfriend Jumma (Kimi Katkar)'s brother Gonsalves (Romesh Sharma) is killed by Bhakhtawar for revolting against him, Tiger promises revenge. However Tiger's father Pratap (Deepak Shirke) intervenes and is killed accidentally. 

When corrupt police officer Girdhar (Anupam Kher) finds out that Tiger is on the hunt for Bhakhtawar, he kills Bhakhtawar's family and frames Tiger. Bhakhtawar is arrested soon after learning of his family's death for countless murders and promises to avenge his family's death by killing Tiger when he returns.

Tiger is forced to go on the run with his two step-brothers. Jumma decides to stay behind so that Tiger can fully concentrate on looking after his brothers.

 Many years later, he is now known as Shekhar and is living a happy life with his two grown-up brothers Kumar (Rajinikanth) and Vijay (Govinda) as well as Kumar's wife Aarti (Deepa Sahi) and a daughter, Jyoti.

 During this time, Bhakhtawar is released from jail and is on the hunt for Tiger/Shekhar, still under the assumption that Tiger was the one who murdered his entire family. 

He returns to his area, where he finds many of his henchmen awaiting his return; there he learns that Girdhar has become a rich businessman (with the money that was stolen from Bhaktawar), and that Tiger was supposedly dead. 

He doesn't believe this, and attempts to hunt down Tiger. Girdhar, meanwhile, is attempting to sell faulty tanks to the Indian Army with the help of some corrupt officers, but his plan is foiled by the General (Kader Khan). Girdhar arranges for the kidnapping of the General, and replaces him with a look-alike actor. Vijay is in love with the General's daughter Neeta (Shilpa Shirodkar), and originally the real General did not approve of their love, but the replacement agrees to their love.

Bhaktawar eventually discovers that Tiger is alive and living under the name Shekhar, and manages to kidnap Aarti and Jyoti when they visit Aarti's mother. Shekhar gets wind of this news and goes to Bangalore with Vijay and Kumar to find out what happened. Someone insults Aarti at the bus stop, and Shekhar beats him up as if he were Tiger, which worries Kumar and Vijay. Kumar investigates the kidnapping at a local police station and learns that Shekhar isn't who he says he is, and confronts him. Shekhar tells him and Vijay everything about their past, and they all go to confront Bhaktawar.

 Also, Shekhar learns that Jumma has become a famous actress and is shooting in Bangalore as well. The climax follows, as all the characters learn of everything that has happened and confront each other.

** Production :

 The film was shot in various locations including Mumbai, Bangalore, Ooty and Mauritius.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Awards :

* 1991 – Filmfare Best Actor Award Amitabh for Hum

* 1992  - Chinni Prakash for Hum - (Jumma Chumma De De)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

** Sound Track :

* Music by ------------    Laxmikant-Pyarelal

* Lyrics by ------------ Anand Bakshi

    Song(s) --------------------------------------------------- Singer(s)

*  "Ek Doosre Se Karte Hain "-------Udit Narayan, Alka Yagnik, Sudesh Bhosle, Mohammad Aziz, Sonali

*  "General Sahab Karo Tayari" -----Alka Yagnik, Vinay Mandke, Sudesh Bhonsle

*  "Is Pyaar Ki Hum Pehchan " -------Alka Yagnik, Vinay Mandke, Sudesh Bhonsle, Mohammad Aziz

*  "Jumma Chumma De De" ----------Sudesh Bhonsle, Kavita Krishnamurthy

*  "Kagaz Kalam Davaat" --------------Mohammad Aziz, Shobha Joshi

*  "Le Le Chumma Le Le" -------------Kavita Krishnamurthy

*  "Sanam Mere Sanam" ----------------Amit Kumar, Alka Yagnik

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Interesting Facts :

* Kimi Katkar's claim-to-fame came in the movie, Hum (1991), where she played the lead actress opposite the legendary actor Amitabh Bachchan. In the film, she was cast as Jumma. The song "Jumma Chumma De" from this movie, sung by playback singers Sudesh Bhonsle and Kavita Krishnamurthy, became an instant hit and brought her stardom.

* The film 'Hum' ranked second in top grossers of 1991 at the Box Office and was declared as "Hit" .

**************************************************************

 

(2) Sivaji "The Boss" (2007)

Sivaji is a 2007 Tamil political thriller film directed by S. Shankar and produced by AVM Productions with Rajinikanth and Shriya Saran in the lead roles. The film revolves around a well-established software systems architect, Sivaji, who returns home to India after finishing work in the United States. On his return, he dreams of giving back to society with free medical treatment and education. However his plans face a roadblock in the form of the influential businessman, Adiseshan. When corruption also arises, Sivaji is left with no option but to fight the system in his own way.

Details :

* Directed by --------- S. Shankar

* Produced by -------- M. S. Guhan, M. Saravanan

* Written by -----------    S. Shankar, Sujatha Rangarajan

* Cinematography---- K. V. Anand

* Art Direction ---------Thotta Tharani

* Editing by ------------    Anthony Gonsalves

* Music by -------------    A. R. Rahman

* Studio ----------------    AVM Studios

* Distributed by -------AVM Productions , Pyramid Saimira , Ayngaran 
* Release date(s)-----June 14/15, 2007

* Running time --------185 minutes

* Country ---------------India

* Language ------------    Tamil

* Budget ---------------    INR60 crore (US$11.34 million)

* Box office ------------    INR128 crore (US$24.19 million)

Star Cast :

* Rajinikanth as ................... Sivaji Arumugam / M.G. Ravichandran,

* Shriya Saran as ................ Tamizhselvi Ramalingam

* Suman as ......................... Adiseshan

*  Vivek as .......................... Arivu (Sivaji's uncle)

*  Manivannan as ................ Arumugam (Sivaji's father)

* Solomon Pappayya as ...... Thondaiman ( Tamizhselvi's neighbour)

* Raghuvaran as ................. Dr. Chezhian, Sivaji's friend.

* Cochin Haneefa as ........... Kuzhanthai Velu, a minister installed by Adiseshan.

* Vadivukkarasi as ............... Sivaji's mother.

* Pattimandram Raja as ....... Ramalingam, Tamizhselvi's father.

* Uma Padmanabhan as ...... Tamizhselvi's mother.

* Nayantara ......................... special appearance in the song Balleilakka.

Story :

The film begins in medias res, with a masked person being brought to the Central Jail in Chennai, India. When asked by a fellow-inmate for the reason behind his imprisonment, the masked person replies that he is imprisoned for attempting to do good for the people. The masked person is revealed to be Sivaji (Rajinikanth).

The film then winds into a flashback that shows him returning to Chennai from the USA as a software systems architect. He establishes a non-profit trust called the Sivaji Foundation to build a network of hospitals and educational institutions to serve the poor free of cost. 

However, he faces the obstacles of a corrupt civil service. Sivaji pays the bribes demanded by the government officials for the greater good of the people, but at one stage, the bribes demanded become so high that he has to mortgage his house to pay them. He also faces another obstacle in the form of Adiseshan (Suman), an influential businessman and philanthropist, who sees Sivaji Foundation as competition, because he too runs educational institutions and hospitals which are profit-making centres for him. Using his political strings, he ensures the government repeals the permits they issued on the construction of Sivaji Foundation. Sivaji approaches a lawyer to fight his case, selling his own car to pay the lawyer's fee. However in court, he is forced to admit he bribed numerous officials. This undermines his case and the judge passes a stay order on the construction of Sivaji Foundation.

In parallel, Sivaji falls in love with an orthodox girl named Tamizhselvi (Shriya). Her family is initially scared and angered by the overbearing nature of Sivaji's family, though they eventually accede to Sivaji's request for Tamizhselvi's hand in marriage after a lot of persuasion. However upon asking for his horoscope, an astrologer predicts impeding doom leading up to Sivaji's death if the two are united. When Tamizhselvi refuses the proposal due to her concern for Sivaji, he calms her fears and manages to convince her to marry him.

Following Sivaji's loss in the court case, Adiseshan insults him and gives him a INR 1 coin, challenging him to try beggary for survival. Ironically, using this very coin, he turns the tables around and forms a plan. He uses the coin to make a phone call to Adiseshan, blackmailing him to give him INR 100 crore. He then obtains details on people who have black money, and blackmails them to give him half of their illegal wealth. He informs the Income Tax Investigation and Vigilance Department about the details of the illegal money held by the tax evaders (including Adiseshan) and they are arrested by the Income Tax department and brought to court. He then transfers the money to bank accounts (owned by friends and contacts) around the world, who deposit the money as donations to the Sivaji Foundation, making the money usable and legitimate. Sivaji reopens the foundation, and soon begins to realise his dream of providing free, good quality education, infrastructure, services and employment to people in every district of Tamil Nadu. His adversaries, led by Adiseshan, seek to find out how he converted their illegal money to a usable form and for this they use the CBI. They take advantage of Tamizhselvi's innocence by threatening her with danger to Sivaji's life unless she reveals about how Sivaji converted the illegal money to an usable form. Fearing for him, she turns over his laptop with all the information regarding the various money transactions from people who had black money to his friends' bank accounts around the world. With presentable evidence, Sivaji is arrested by the CBI and the scene returns to the beginning of the film with Sivaji in the Central Jail.

In the jail, Adiseshan and the police force Sivaji to open his laptop as it has a voice recognition system. When Sivaji refuses, Adiseshan loses control and mercilessly assaults him, to the point that it seems that Sivaji had died due to the injuries sustained in the assult. To cover this up, Adiseshan and the police organise for thugs to shoot up the police van that will carry Sivaji's dead body, making it look like murder by a third party. Sivaji however was merely faking his death; he was informed of the plans to kill him by a sympathetic police officer prior to the interrogation. Left alone in the room, he electrocutes himself. Sivaji's friend Dr. Chezhian (Raghuvaran) and Tamizhselvi intercept the police van (informed by Sivaji after he got the police officer's warning) and manage to cart away Sivaji's 'dead' body under the cover of a bus before the thugs could open fire. In Sivaji's stead they plant a dummy. While everyone thinks that Sivaji is 'dead', Dr. Chezhian revives him using a defibrillator. Following Sivaji's 'death', Adiseshan and the CBI still try to open Sivaji's laptop by using people who talk like Sivaji; however this fails and all the data in the laptop is erased.

A few days later, while everyone wonders about the future of Sivaji Foundation, the revived Sivaji returns to take control over the foundation in a disguise of a friend, M.G. Ravichandran (N.T. Ranga Rao in Telugu, A. Bachchan in Hindi). Though Adiseshan immediately realises that Ravichandran is none other than Sivaji, he is unable to prove this to the police due to the tangible evidence of Sivaji's 'death'. 

Ravichandran promises to avenge Sivaji's 'death' and eventually manages to corner Adiseshan in the terrace of his medical college and fights him. After their fight, a blinded Adiseshan is killed in a stampede.

The film ends with an epilogue which shows the foundation's success and India becoming a top country in the future due to Sivaji's plans.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Making of Sivaji 'The Boss':

* The first filming schedule was at AVM Studios situated in Chennai, India on November 28, 2005. The film's launch was a secret event, with only pivotal members of the cast and crew being called for attendance for the event. 

* Shooting began at Ramoji Film City in Hyderabad and the first shot taken was the Vaaji Vaaji song.

* About the leading lady for the film, there were initial speculations on who would essay the role. 
 Aishwarya Rai, Rani Mukherji, Ayesha Takia,Trisha, Nayantara and Jyothika were rumored to bag the role.However, the air was cleared when Shankar and Rajinikanth announced that Shriya Saran would essay the role as Rajinikanth's love interest.

* The voice of Kanika, an actress, was used as a voice-over for Shriya.

* Actress Sunaina was signed up to make a special appearance in the film. The scene was later deleted and her role was left uncredited; the same occurred for Vinu Chakravarthy. 

* Nayantara, who had earlier acted with Rajinikanth in Chandramukhi (2005), was also signed up later to do an item number in the film.

* Names of Mohanlal, Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt, Nana Patekar and Prakash Raj cropped up for the portrayal of the antagonist's role in the film. In March 2006, Suman was confirmed as the person 
selected to play the role of Adiseshan. Prior to this, Suman had acted with Rajinikanth in Thee (1981).

* In early 2006, a magazine came out with a cast list that included mimicry artists, Cochin Haneefa, Chinni Jayanth and Mayilsamy.

* The names of support cast for the film was released in a phased manner.By mid-2006, Manivannan, M. S. Baskar, Livingston, Vadivukarasi, Pyramid Natarajan, Uma Padmanabhan, Pattimandram Raja, Vannakam Thamizhuzhagam Revathi, Solomon Pappayya, Muthukaalai, Nellai Siva, Bose Venkat and M'Sia Prabhu were selected for the film.

* In 2005, Chennai's oldest operative studio, AVM Productions, which was run by M. S. Guhan and M. Saravanan, approached Shankar in making a film under their production house. Utilizing the budget available from AVM, Rajinikanth was signed for the film. 

* The art director, Thotta Tharani suggested the use of Ramoji Film City to the director. The Vaaji Vaaji song was picturized with an intention to showcase a Babylonian palace.The Sahana song was sort of a challenge to Tharani. After listening to the lyrics of the song which speaks of the four seasons, Tharani thought of using the idea he used in Japan. He made use of acrylic and glass with the former on the floor to allow dance movements. K. V. Anand, the cinematographer, seemed to have a tough time in lighting up these sets made of glass. Once he had the sketches and the idea ready, the technicians at the Film City created the sets. Tharani believed that the coordination with Anand was important. Tharani contributed to similar creations for the music shop where Tamizhselvi worked as a saleswoman, and the scene here being followed up with a fight sequence in an open-air theater. Tharani's sketches and ideas came out in the form of a set of paintings titled, Unsung.

* The fair look of Rajinikanth's character in the film was through a year's effort using computer-generated imagery which was performed by a Chennai-based firm. The color tone of one of the British dancers in the background of the Style song was used by these technicians. French hair-stylist Sandrin Veriar Seth designed two different and distinct hair-styles for the regular film and 13 hair-styles for one of the songs. 

* Shankar had already completed filming one song when Manish Malhotra was approached for designing Rajinikanth's wardrobe. He was responsible for not just the regular costumes but also accessories such as shoes and jackets.

* Brinda choreographed the Balleilakka song in Wai, a hill station near Pune with hundreds of people for eight days. Shooting problems due to Rajinikanth's following in his native Tamil Nadu prompted them to choose Wai for the song.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

** Special screenings

* Rajinikanth used his political affiliations to screen the film for several politicians. Rajinikanth flew to Hyderabad to showcase the film for the former Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister, Chandrababu Naidu, on June 14, 2007.

*  At the screening, Rajinikanth told the media that he would invite the Chief Minister, Rajasekhara Reddy, for a special viewing as well. 

* Rajinikanth said that he had screened the film to current and former Tamil Nadu Chief Ministers, Dr. Karunanidhi and Jayalalitha, respectively, and that India's Finance Minister, P Chidambaram, was also keen to watch the film.

* A private screening was shown to Amitabh Bachchan, as well.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

** Release :

 Worldwide, the film was estimated to have been released in about 750 screens and opened to near full opening.

 India  Release:

* The film was supposed to be released on the Tamil New Year's day, April 14, 2007. With post-production delays, the film was released worldwide on June 15, 2007. The Indian censor board certified the film on May 17, 2007 with minor screen and dialogue cuts, although the exact details of these cuts were not officially revealed.

* Sivaji was released in 16 theaters in Chennai and is reported to have collected 13.5 million INR within the first four days, a record of sorts for Tamil films. 

* The film was released in 303 screens in Tamil Nadu, 300 screens in Andhra Pradesh; 12 screens in North India and 145 screens across the rest of the world. 

* The film also debuted well in Kerala and in Bangalore. Despite protests from pro-Kannada groups, the film debuted in 13 theatres.

* In the national capital, New Delhi, the film debuted on 4 screens in PVR Cinemas. Based on what the distributors claim, there was "overwhelming response to the film", with the number of screens increasing to 12 by the second week.

* The film made a good debut in the nation's other metros as well such as Mumbai and Kolkata.

* Even in non-traditional markets for Tamil films like Pune and Baroda, the film made had a good opening. 

* On July 15, 2007, AVM Productions, the producers of the film, announced their decision to dub the film in Hindi because "the response has been phenomenal for the movie".The dubbed version released on January 8, 2010 in India, almost three years after the release of the original version.

* Satellite rights for Sivaji were sold for INR4 crore to Kalaignar TV, ultimately enjoying success worldwide.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

International Release :

* After post-production delays, it was released worldwide on June 15, 2007 in Tamil, and subsequently released in Telugu as a dubbed version on the same date. The film was also dubbed in Hindi, which released on January 8, 2010. Satellite rights for Sivaji were sold for INR4 crore to Kalaignar TV,[6] ultimately enjoying success worldwide.

* Internationally, Sivaji had good screenings in Malaysia with reports of the film causing a riot to break out in three states due to delays and cancellations of the screenings.The film eventually was released in residential suburb by a local minister, it gross 8 million in Malaysia.

* Sivaji made a debut with 150 screenings of the film in Singapore. 

* In Sri Lanka, the film debuted across 70 theatres with all 700 shows running at near 100% capacity. 

* In the Persian Gulf that contains a sizeably large Indian diaspora, the film opened to a full house. Owing to the enthusiasm, a non-profit organization distributed 1000 tickets to laborers and domestic help across Dubai enabling them to watch the film.

* In Canada, the film released in 10 screens in 3 major cities along with special screenings for the Tamil diaspora in the smaller cities.

* It also became the first Tamil film to be screened for over 100 consecutive days in Toronto at two Cineplex theatres.

* In United Kingdom, the film debuted on the box-office list at # 9 with earnings of about £14000 per screen - the highest screen average in 2007. It was the first South Indian film to enter UK Top 10. In United States, Sivaji was released in 24 theaters with subsequent additions of 19 and 21 theaters for the Tamil version and Telugu version respectively.

* The producers of the film claimed that the film was going to be dubbed in Chinese and Japanese by Ayngaran International, the holder of international rights of the film. 

* The response in Cape Town was disappointing.

* The box-office collections in Johannesburg and Durban allowed it to become the first Tamil film to feature in the South African box-office top 10.

* Singapore Airlines bought a 3-month exclusive in-flight screening rights to the film, a first for the airline for any Tamil film.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Reception :
  
* Budget ---------------    INR60 crore (US$11.34 million)

* Box office ------------    INR128 crore (US$24.19 million)

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Critical response :

* The Hindu, in a review about the story, said that the lead character carrying out a rebellion against corruption was something "not be true to life". It concluded by saying that "the story sags towards the end". It, however, went on to appreciate the performances of the prominent actors, the soundtrack, art direction, photography and the animation from the film.

* Hindustan Times review said that the director, Shankar, was not creative enough for the film  but appreciated the other technical departments and suggested a good response at the box office. 

* The Times of India had a similar review about the story saying that "it had nothing new to offer" but promised it to be entertaining and gave it four stars.

* One review from Rediff.com summed the film by saying, "No logic, only Rajni's magic". About the story, it says, "Unfortunately, (the) message is lost in the maze of illogical and sometimes absurd sequences". The review, however, praises the performances of Rajinikanth, Shriya and Vivek and the technical crew.

*  A vernacular entertainment portal, referring to Rajinikanth, says that the film is "... an absolute celebration of one man who can make millions feel good about life just by walking in elegance, by stroking his hair, or just by being there on screen. It goes to praise Vivek's comical interludes and adds by saying "though defying superhuman powers, the fights choreographed by Peter Heinz, and the extremely lavish sets created by Thotta Tharani stand out. Camera work of K. V. Anand is first rate throughout, Antony's editing crisp and Sujatha's dialogues are rock solid." A. R. Rahman's score and Shankar's directorial abilities were also lauded in the review.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Controversies:

* The film 'Sivaji' attracted criticism and litigation, including accusations of plagiarism and defamation. Jaya Rajadevan, one of the film's assistant directors, sought an injunction in civil court to stop screening of the film for alleged plagiarism. Rajadevan claimed that he had written the film's story and had discussed it with Shankar's manager in 2005. Although the court sent notices to S. Shankar, among others, the screening of the film was not stopped.

* M. Satyamoorthy, on July 9, 2007, also sought to stop screening of the film, alleging that it defamed the Indian National Congress, a political party, as well as its President, Sonia Gandhi, and the Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh. Satyamoorthy cited a scene in which portraits of Gandhi and Singh are visible behind Adiseshan's (the villain's) chair, implying he was a member of the Indian National Congress. Satyamoorthy also claimed 500 million INR in damages from the film's producer, director and lead actor to be paid to the Tamil Nadu section of the Indian National Congress party.

* A month and a half prior to the film's official soundtrack release, three songs from the soundtrack were leaked into the Internet. The songs, however, were only unofficial with low quality, where the official versions were composed slightly different and sung by different artists.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Awards :

** 2008 National Film Awards

    Won — Silver Lotus Award for Best Art Direction ---- Thotta Tharani

    Won — Silver Lotus Award for Best Special Effects - M.S. Indian Artists, Chennai

** 2008 Filmfare Awards South

    Won — Filmfare Award for Best Music Director ------- A.R. Rahman

    Won — Filmfare Award for Best Cinematographer --- K. V. Anand

    Won — Filmfare Award for Best Comedian ------------ Vivek

    Won — Filmfare Award for Best Villain ------------------ Suman

    Won — Filmfare Best Art Director Award (South) ---- Thotta Tharani

    Nominated — Filmfare Award for Best Actor ----------- Rajnikanth

    Nominated — Filmfare Award for Best Film ------------ Sivaji

    Nominated --- Filmfare Award for Best Playback Singer Female - Chinmayi

** 2007 Vijay Awards

    Won — Vijay Award for Favourite Hero --------------- Rajnikanth

    Won — Vijay Award for Best Music Director -------- A.R. Rahman

    Nominated — Vijay Award for Favourite Heroine --- Shriya Saran

    Nominated - Best Playback Singer Female ---------- Chinmayi

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

** Soundtrack:

* Music : A.R. Rahman
* Lyrics : Vairamuthu, Muthukumar, Blaaze , Vaali , Vijay

    Song                                             Singer(s)    
* "Balleilakka" ---------------S. P. Balasubrahmanyam, A. R. Reihana, Benny        
* "Style" -----------------------Blaaze, Tanvi, Ravi "Rags" Khote, Suresh Peters        
* "Vaaji Vaaji" ----------------Hariharan, Madhushree            
* "Athiradee" ---------------- A. R. Rahman, Sayonara        
* "Sahana" -------------------Udit Narayan, Chinmayi            
* "The Boss" -----------------Naresh Iyer, Blaaze, Raqueeb Alam        
* "Sahara" --------------------Vijay Yesudas, Gomathishree        

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Interesting Facts:

* The director, Shankar, realized that Suman lacked the wry smile needed for his character.This conspicuous smile of Adiseshan was made possible with a denture.It was Shankar's idea again to adorn the character with spotless dhoti, shirt, shoes, a Rolex watch and Ray Ban sunglasses.

* After consulting Sivaji Ganesan's family to avoid any issues with the film's name, the project was subsequently announced in August 2005.The film was eventually named Sivaji, after Rajinikanth's name at birth - Sivaji Rao Gaekwad with a tagline, 'The Boss'.

* In the United Kingdom, 13 seconds of the film was cut as the original film showed Rajinikanth throwing a firecracker into his mouth, lighting it and then spitting it out at Pattimanram Raja. This was done to enable the film to have a 12A rating, while the Ayngaran UK DVD release was uncut and was given an 18 rating by the BBFC. It was also the first Tamil film to be genuinely released on a 1080p High Definition Blu-ray disc.

*********************************************************

(3) Enthiran (Robot) (2010)
 
Enthiran is a 2010 Indian Tamil science fiction film co-written and directed by S. Shankar. The film features Rajinikanth in dual roles, as a scientist and an andro humanoid robot alongside Aishwarya Rai while Danny Denzongpa, Santhanam, Karunas, Kalabhavan Mani, Devadarshini, and Cochin Haneefa play supporting roles.The film's story revolves around the scientist's struggle to control his creation, the android robot whose software was upgraded to give it the ability to comprehend and generate human emotions. The plan backfires as the robot falls in love with the scientist's fiancée and is further manipulated to bring destruction to the world when it lands in the hands of a rival scientist.

The film released worldwide on 1 October 2010, along with its dubbed versions: Robo in Telugu and Robot in Hindi. Produced by Kalanithi Maran, it is believed to be India's most expensive film since its release. Upon release, it also made the largest worldwide opening for an Indian film.

Details :

* Presented by ---------Kalanithi Maran
* Directed by -----------S. Shankar
* Produced by---------- Kalanithi Maran, W. Hansraj Saxena
* Written by ------------Shankar, Sujatha Rangaraj, Madhan Karky
* Screenplay by -------S. Shankar
* Cinematography-----R. Rathnavelu
* Editing by -------------Anthony Gonsalvez
* Music by --------------A. R. Rahman
* Lyrics by --------------Swanabda Kirkire, Kash n' Krissy
* Studio -----------------Sun Pictures
* Distributed by--------Sun Pictures, Gemini Film Circuit, Eros International
* Release date(s)-----1 October 2010
* Running time --------185 minutes
* Country ---------------India
* Language-------------Tamil

Star Cast:

* Rajinikanth ------------- Dr. K. Vaseekaran and Chitti Babu
* Aishwarya Rai --------- Sana
* Danny Denzongpa --- Dr. Bohra
* Santhanam ------------- Siva
* Karunas ----------------- Ravi
* Devadarshini ----------- Latha
* Sabu Cyril -------------- Agent Shah
* Kalabhavan Mani ----- Pachaimuthu
* Revathi Sankaran ---- Vaseekaran's mother
* Delhi Kumar ------------Vaseekaran's father
* Cochin Haneefa ------ traffic police
* Raaghav ---------------- college rogue
* Shriya Sharma -------- curious student

Story :

Dr. Vaseekaran (Rajinikanth), a scientist specialized in robotics, creates a sophisticated android robot (Rajinikanth) in his own likeness after a decade of intensive research, with the intention of joining it to the Indian army. Vaseekaran explains to his assistants Siva (Santhanam) and Ravi (Karunas) that the android must first be observed for its interaction with humans. His mother (Revathi Sankaran) suggests naming it Chitti Babu.

At the International Robotic Conference in Chennai, Vaseekaran introduces Chitti to the delegates. In the meantime, it is revealed that Vaseekaran's mentor, Dr. Bohra (Danny Denzongpa) is preoccupied in a project to create a similar android. Meanwhile, Chitti endears himself to Vaseekaran's girlfriend, Sana (Aishwarya Rai) and helps her cheat in her medical school exams. When they are caught, Sana lies to the investigators that she does not know Chitti; thus Chitti learns that humans may choose to lie for self-preservation.

Vaseekaran prepares Chitti for a panel evaluation by the Artificial Intelligence Research and Development (AIRD) Institute, which is headed by Dr. Bohra. The panel enquires whether Chitti's build conforms to the Three Laws of Robotics of Isaac Asimov. Vaseekaran replies in the negative. During evaluation, Chitti stabs Vaseekaran at Bohra's command, though not fatally. Bohra convinces the evaluation committee that Chitti could not be relied upon in the battlefield as he can be easily manipulated to turn against his own men. Vaseekaran decides to modify Chitti's neural schema to allow him to understand human behaviour and emotions. Chitti gets angry once on Vaseekaran, which assures him and Sana that Chitti can now feel emotions. Later Chitti applies his text book knowledge of symphysiotomy to successfully handle the complicated childbirth of Latha (Devadarshini), Sana's friend. The procedure is covered live by the media. Dr. Bohra arrives to congratulate Dr. Vaseekaran on the achievement. He also lets Chitti pass the AIRD evaluation.

 Chitti then begins to see Sana as its romantic interest and makes advances. This triggers a confrontation between Vaseekaran and Chitti. Sana tries to explain to Chitti that to her he is only a friend and asks him to forget her. Chitti later deliberately fails in an evaluation conducted by the Indian Army. Enraged by the act of insubordination, Vaseekaran chops Chitti into pieces and throws it away in a landfill site.

Bohra retrieves Chitti's parts and reassembles it. He gives Chitti a new appearance, and embeds a "red chip" inside Chitti, converting him into a ruthless terminator. Chitti gatecrashes Vaseekaran and Sana's wedding, then kidnaps and imprisons Sana. Chitti begins to create replicas of itself and kills Dr. Bohra. Soon, Chitti's army of robots cause mayhem in the city and takes over the AIRD Institute. Vaseekaran undertakes the task of stopping Chitti. Disguised as one of the robots, he successfully infiltrates the AIRD Institute and instructs the police to cut power supply to the entire city. When Chitti and his army are about to run out of charge, they seize vehicles on the road and use the batteries to recharge themselves. 

Chitti eventually finds Vaseekaran, but as Chitti is about to kill him, the police force strikes AIRD. One of the robots is immobilized by a grenade explosion and is taken into custody by Vaseekaran. He uploads a worm into Chitti's network which temporarily brings down the robot army. Chitti identifies the source of the worm and sends a "self-destruct" command to the robot. The robots assemble in the shape of a giant and chase Vaseekaran's armoured bus. Vaseekaran uses the data he had backed up from the destroyed robot to de-magnetise the robot army, collapsing the giant formation. Chitti gets captured by a huge magnetic wall, allowing Vaseekaran to access Chitti's internal control panel, through which he instructs all the other robots to self-destruct. He removes the red chip, causing Chitti to calm down.


In a court hearing, the jury rules capital punishment for Vaseekaran, citing the large number of casualties and damages to public property caused by the robot army. Chitti, explaining to the court that the law allows it to be treated as material evidence, if not as a witness, explains that it was Dr. Bohra who caused Chitti's deviant behaviour. He shows the court, using his eyes as 3D projectors, the video footage of Dr. Bohra installing the red chip inside him. The court drops all charges against Vaseekaran, while ordering that Chitti be dismantled in order to avoid further mishaps of the same kind in future. Back at the lab, Vaseekaran tells Chitti to dismantle itself. While taking off its own parts one by one, Chitti apologizes to Sana and Vaseekaran for the problems it had caused. Vaseekaran comforts Chitti saying that the latter alone was not responsible for what happened. And that humans were responsible too as Chitti only learned from them.Chitti finally takes out its head, dismantling itself.

The plot advances to 2030 in a museum, where children are escorted by a guide which displays of Chitti's body parts arranged. The guide tells the students that Chitti was the most advanced humanoid robot ever created, but was dismantled "after sometime". A curious student (Shriya Sharma) asks why, to which Chitti's head responds, "I started to think".

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Making of " Enthiran " (Robot):

* After completing Nayak: The Real Hero in 2001, Shankar announced a project with Kamal Haasan and Preity Zinta titled Robo to be produced by the now-defunct production company Media Dreams.Despite announcing the project, due to a lack of backing, the project was canceled and Shankar began work on Boys.In 2005, Shankar made another project, Anniyan, which was mistaken to be the renamed title for Robot. In July 2007, Shahrukh Khan was signed on to be the male lead of Robot as well as the producer of the film.However, in October 2007, Shahrukh Khan and Shankar officially called off the project due to creative differences.

* After further media speculation about Aamir Khan, Hrithik Roshan and Ajith Kumar being roped in, official reports surfaced in early January 2008, that Rajinikanth was finalized for the project. Later in January 2008, Ayngaran International and Eros Entertainment agreed to become the producers of Robot. The film was unable to keep the name Robot in Tamil Nadu due to the English title as the government there exempted entertainment tax to films with Tamil.It was confirmed in September 2008 that the film has been renamed as Enthiran.

* In December 2008, Eros cited the failures of Drona and Yuvvraj for putting them under financial pressure. Soon, Ayngaran International too claimed that it was affected by the global financial crisis of 2008, forcing both production houses to transfer the project to Sun Pictures, who also attempted to negotiate a deal with HBO Films to release the film with English subtitles in the West.

Casting:
 
Apart from the original decided casting of Rajinikanth in the lead role, S. Shankar as director, and A. R. Rahman as film composer, the rest of the cast was named over the following year. Several heroines were approached to essay the lead female role with Aishwarya Rai, Priyanka Chopra, Deepika Padukone, Asin Thottumkal, Trisha Krishnan, Shriya Saran, Priyamani and Nayantara. In late January 2008, Aishwarya Rai was announced as the heroine of the project and she later confirmed her appearance in the film to the news channel, Aaj Tak. For the lead antagonist role Amitabh Bachchan, J. D. Chakravarthy, Narain and Arjun Sarja were considered, but Danny Denzongpa was signed for the role. Comedians Santhanam and Karunas were signed up to portray important roles in December 2008.

Sujatha Rangarajan originally announced as the dialogue writer of the film, died during the production stages, with Madhan Karky Vairamuthu being named as his successor. Along with Shankar's usual directorial assistants, Manoj Bharathiraja, son of noted filmmaker Bharathiraja, was signed on to be an assistant director. Sabu Cyril was signed up as the art director, while R. Rathnavelu took up the post of the cinematographer, after K. V. Anand, Manikandan, Nirav Shah, Tirru, and Ravi K. Chandran all opted out.

The music composed by Rahman  featured lyrics by Vairamuthu and Pa. Vijay, while Raju Sundaram  choreographed dance moves. The film would be edited by Anthony Gonsalves and visual effects by V. Srinivas Mohan. Manish Malhotra and Mary E. Vogt, known for her work in Inspector Gadget (1999) and the Men in Black series, together were in charge of costume designs. Along with Vogt, Yuen Woo Ping, the stunt co-ordinator for Enthiran, and the leading US-based Legacy Effects—formerly known as Stan Winston Studio—who were responsible for animatronics in the film, made their Indian cinema-debut.


Filming :

* The robotic mannequin seen in Enthiran was constructed by animatronics company Legacy Effects in the United States.

 
* Filming began on 15 February 2008 in Chennai, when portfolio photographer Venket Ram did a photo shoot with Rajinikanth.

* Following this initial shoot, S. Shankar and R. Rathnavelu went on a world tour for location-hunting. The team visited Vienna, Austria; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and Hanoi, Vietnam to pick suitable locations.

* The first three photo sessions were held with Rajinikanth in Mumbai and Chennai, with Aishwarya Rai featuring in the fourth session. The film's visual effects supervisor V. Srinivas Mohan revealed in a video interview that the film would be a pioneer in India, incorporating previsualization techniques for seamless rendering of the computer-generated imagery and animatronics.

* The first schedule of the film commenced on 8 September 2008 in Peru, where a song sequence featuring Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai was shot under the choreography of Raju Sundaram and Claudia Bruckmann at the historic site of Machu Picchu. Other scenes for the song were finished off in the United States and then Brazil. Another song was shot in Lençóis Maranhenses National Park in Brazil.

* The shooting for the second schedule continued in the Indian state of Goa, where the initial talkie portions were filmed for ten days.

* The third schedule for the film included shooting in Himachal Pradesh for a song, which was then followed by scenes being canned in and around Chennai. Scenes featuring a Robotics conference involving Rajinikanth, Aishwarya Rai, Santhanam and Karunas were carried out at Sri Sivasubramaniya Nadar College of Engineering and the Vellore Institute of Technology with over four hundred students being used as extras.

*  A set depicting the Robot formation was created in a period of 45 days.The final schedule of filming was held on 7 July 2010, on which the entire cast and crew took part in a celebration on the sets, commemorating the completion of the two-year filming process.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Interesting Facts :
 
* After nearly a decade of pre-production work, the film was shot over two years beginning in 2008.

* The film marked the Indian cinema-debut of Legacy Effects, which was responsible for the film's animatronics.

* The film's background score and soundtrack, which was composed by A. R. Rahman, became the best-selling world album on the iTunes Store in three countries within a few days of its digital release.

*  The android robot appearing in the film is shown with the left half depicting his human-like form with skin while the right half shows the original form, without the human skin.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Enthiran (soundtrack):
 
* The film's soundtrack, composed by A. R. Rahman, was released on 31 July 2010. It coincided with a promotional event held at the Putrajaya International Convention Centre in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

* The soundtrack album's release rights were purchased by Think Music for INR7 crore (US$1.6 million).

* After the second day of release, the album reached number one on the Top 10 World Albums chart on iTunes in the United States, United Kingdom, and Australia, making it the first Indian album to reach the spot.

* The Telugu album released on 6 August, while the Hindi album released on 16 August.

Track listing

Tamil (Enthiran)
   
           Song                                                     Singer                                         Lyricist  
       
* "Pudhiya Manidha" --- S. P. Balasubramaniam, A. R. Rahman, Khatija ---Vairamuthu
* "Kadhal Anukkal"-------------- Vijay Prakash, Shreya Ghoshal ----------- Vairamuthu
* "Irumbile oru Irudhaiyam"--- A. R. Rahman, Kash n' Krissy----- Madhan Karky, 
* "Arima Arima"------------------ Hariharan, Sadhana Sargam ----- Vairamuthu
* "Kilimanjaro" ---------------- Javed Ali, Chinmayi ----------------- Pa. Vijay
* "Boom Boom Robo Da" -- Yogi B, Kirthi Sagathia, Swetha , Tanvi ---- Madhan Karky 
* "Chitti Dance Showcase" -- Pradeep Vijay, Pravin Mani, Yogi B


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hindi (Robot)

    Song                      Singer(s)                                                                      Lyricist

* "O Naye Insaan" --------- Srinivas, A. R. Rahman, Khatija  --- Swanand Kirkire
* "Pagal Anukan" ----------- Mohit Chauhan, Shreya Ghoshal ------ Swanand Kirkire   
* "Naina Mile" ----------- A. R. Rahman, Suzanne, Kash n' Krissy ----- Swanand Kirkire, 
* "Arima Arima" ------------Hariharan, Sadhana Sargam ------------Swanand Kirkire
* "Kilimanjaro" --------------Javed Ali, Chinmayi ---------------------- Swanand Kirkire
* "Boom Boom Robo Da" ---Yogi B, Rags, Madhushree, Kirthi , Tanvi  -- Swanand Kirkire
 * "Chitti Dance Showcase" ----Pradeep Vijay, Pravin Mani, Rags, Yogi B
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Telugu (Robo)
    Song                           Singer(s)                                                Lyricist

* "O Maramanishi" -------S. P. Balasubramaniam, Srinivas, Khatija ----Sudaala Ashok Teja
* "Neelo Valapu" --------------Vijay Prakash, Shreya Ghoshal -----Vanamali
* "Inumolo O Hrudayam" ---A. R. Rahman, Kash n' Krissy ----Sudaala Ashok Teja, 
* "Arima Arima" ----------------Hariharan, Sadhana Sargam ------------- Vanamali
* "Kilimanjaro" -----------------Javed Ali, Chinmayi ------------------ Bhuvana Chandra
* "Boom Boom Robo Ra" ---Yogi B, Kirthi , Swetha ,Tanvi  --- Bhuvana Chandra
* "Chitti Dance Showcase" ---Pradeep Vijay, Pravin Mani, Yogi B

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Controversies :

* In August 2010, a few media reports claimed that Sun Pictures had sold the distribution rights of Robo, the Telugu version, to Telugu film producer Chadalavada Srinivasa Rao in Andhra Pradesh for INR27 crore, who planned to release the film in the state under his banner 'Tirumala Tirupati Venkateswara Films'. The claim was later denied by Sun Pictures, who clarified that the company had not yet sold any distribution rights to anyone.Sun Pictures initially accused him of falsely claiming to have brought the rights. After an initial unsuccessful attempt to take legal action on Sun Pictures, Srinivasa Rao lodged a complaint with the Andhra Pradesh Film Chamber of Commerce against the film studio, claiming that they had been "defaming and cheating" him. A spokesperson from the company said that "We bought the rights for Rs 27 crore and sent them Rs 2 crore as advance. Sun Pictures, from Chennai, has also sent us a letter acknowledging our purchase. But they have now sold the rights to Thota Kanna Rao for a slightly higher price. We have been deliberately defamed and cops too are refusing to register a case against them here."A formal investigation was launched following a police complaint from Sun Pictures and two individuals, Udhayakumar, a production manager, and Surendran, his accomplice and employee of Tirumala films, were arrested for illegally trying to sell the film distribution rights by creating a fake document that claimed the distribution rights of Robo were to be sold to Srinivasa Rao.

* A controversy regarding the film's plot also originated that month as Indian author Vijayarke claimed that Enthiran's story was similar to that of his 2002 science fiction novel, Man Robot, and demanded a credit for himself in the film. Vijayarke claimed that he realized the similarity after hearing S. Shankar narrate the plot during the film's audio launch, after which he emailed the director with his novel's story, seeking clarification
* Yet another scandal broke out after the release of the film when a Tamil novelist, Aarur Thamizhnadan, made a complaint with the Greater Chennai Police against the director and producer of the Enthiran, claiming that they had plagiarised the story idea from his novel Jugiba that was published in a vernacular magazine Iniya Udhayam in 1996. In 2007, the same group published the novel as the book titled Thik Thik Dheepika.

*  Arnika Nasar, a popular science fiction writer, also filed a case with the Chennai Police stating that the film was made by Shankar after he had "stolen" the central plot from a novel Nasar had published before in 1995.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Release :

* On 1 October 2010, the film opened with 2,250 prints in approximately 3000 screens worldwide, including 1400 screens in Tamil Nadu,128 screens in Kerala, 45 screens in Karnataka, and 1000 screens with 750 prints in North India.

* The film was released by Sun Pictures in Tamil Nadu; Gemini Film Circuit released the film across North India, while Seven Arts released the film in Kerala.

* The film opened in 300 screens overseas. Ficus Movies handled distribution of the film in its different languages in North America.

* The film was also screened at the 12th Mumbai International Film Festival, the 21st Bath Film Festival, the 10th Tromsø International Film Festival, and the 24th Tokyo International Film Festival where it won a special award under the section "Winds of Asia-Middle East".

Critical response

** Enthiran has received widespread critical acclaim in India :

* On the review-aggregation website ReviewGang, the film scored 7.0/10 based on 9 reviews.

* Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama gave it 4/5 stars and said "On the whole, ROBOT is a crowd-pleasing and hugely mass appealing tale of android revolution with a thrilling plot, rich and imaginative screenplay, super action, astounding effects and most importantly, Rajnikant, who is the soul of the film. It's the Big Daddy of all entertainers. Miss it at your own risk!"

* Behindwoods gave the film 4/5 stars, highlighting the film's direction and visual effects. On Rajinikanth's performance as an antagonistic robot, the website claims that "no one other than Rajnikanth could have pulled off this character [...] exuding brilliance and charisma in every frame."

* Aniruddha Guha of Daily News and Analysis wrote, "The film has the best special effects ever seen in an Indian film [...] Robot, simply put, is one of the most entertaining Indian films – across all languages –ever made" giving it 4 stars.

* Nikhat Kazmi of Times of India rated it 4/5, calling it the perfect getaway film.

* Bhama Devi Ravi of Times of India gave 4/5 stars noting "Who would have thought you would root for anyone other than Rajni in his film?"

* Zee TV gave it 4 stars and noted "Rajnikanth, who enjoys demi-god status in India, has hit it big again. His latest film ‘Robot’ is a roller-costar ride, where you will see not one Rajni, but hundreds of them eating up helicopters, smashing cars, battering planet earth and creating havoc, like never before."

* Krishnakumar Padmanabhan of Rediff reviewed the Hindi version saying "In the end, this movie is as much about special effects as it is about Rajni" giving it 4/5 stars.

*  Anupama Chopra of NDTV said that Rajinikanth makes Chitti endearing, while giving it 3.5/5 stars.

* Pavithra Srinivasan of Rediff gave the film 3.5/5 stars and said "All said and done, this is a Shankar film where he strikes the balance between science fiction and masala quotient. Whichever way you look at it, Endhiran is one of those rare films that give you just enough material to pull you in."

* K. K. Rai from Stardust called the film "a good entertaining flick." and gave it 3.5 stars.

* Oneindia.in said "Endhiran guarantees super fun for the entire family and Rajinikanth re-establishes the fact that what no body can, only Rajini can!"

* Kaveree Bamzai of India Today said "It's Happy Diwali, folks."

* Karthik Subramanian from The Hindu said "Actors tend to get lost in special effects movies. But not so in Enthiran. Rajinikanth and Aishwarya Rai Bachchan carry the movie on their shoulders, and considering the fact that much of the acting must have been in front of green screens, one has to say that nothing looks artificial right through."

* Moviebuzz from Sify said "Shankar’s Enthiran-The Robot, will make you completely surrender to power of visual extravaganza and the technical finesse. His sci-fi dream project is groundbreaking, bigger but not better. Go for it for Rajinikanth, he is in rocking form. Taste the thunder."

* Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN said "In the end, it's the fantastic special effects and an inspired performance from Rajnikant that keeps the film fresh" giving it 3/5.

*  Mayank Shekhar from Hindustan Times gave a rating of 3/5 and said "Leave aside jokes running on the Internet. This film, just a few feet too long, is fine entertainment by itself."

* Bryan Durham from MiD DAY gave 3/5 and said "This movie deserves full marks simply for perfectly casting the ever-dependable Rajni and making the most of the VFX at its disposal. Take a bow, Shankar."

* Shubhra Gupta from The Indian Express gave 3 stars and quoted "If I had a choice, I would have headed off to Enthiran , wherein I could have experienced Rajinikanth the way he is meant to: in Tamil, surrounded by swooning devotees armed with camphor and coconuts."

* Sanjukta Sharma from Mint said "The star of the new Rajinikanth flick is its director; and love’s a pain in a romcom about two depressed strangers. The acrobatics and gimmicks are all here—with superb production value and the kind of technology that have gone into making it, they look insanely cool."

** The film also received good response from overseas :

* Lisa Tsering from The Hollywood Reporter said "Rajnikanth is such a badass that Chuck Norris is afraid of him. So goes the Internet lore of a 60-year-old South Indian screen icon so potent that fans build temples to him, women swoon and men just shrug and give up," further citing "The film's climactic battle scene drags, but that is a minor misstep. Writer-director S. Shankar has been working on getting this film made for the past decade, and he clearly is so thrilled to get "Robot" into theaters that his enthusiasm is infectious. Filmgoers with a taste for the absurd will be richly rewarded."

* Genevieve Koski from the AV Club stated "Before you go into Enthiran hoping for a something like an IndianCrank, nothing but high-octane action featuring K’nex-style robots, be warned: It isn’t that. It can be loosely defined as a science-fiction/action movie, yes, but it’s also an Indian movie made for Indian audiences, which means it gives over a lot—and I mean a lot—of time to the chaste romance between Rajinikanth and Rai, as well as many musical numbers."

* After a screening at the Mumbai International Film Festival, American film director Oliver Stone praised Enthiran for being very "original".

* In a personal appreciation letter to S. Shankar following the film's release, K. Balachander described Shankar as India's James Cameron, Enthiran as India's Avatar, and Sun Pictures as India's MGM.

* Frank Paiva of MSN Movies named Enthiran as the seventh best film of 2010.

* On 13 December 2010, the Internet Movie Database (IMDB) announced its top-205 films of the world during the year 2010 amongst which Enthiran was in the top 50, holding the 39th spot with a score of 7.4/10. It is also the only Tamil film to be featured in this list.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Box office Collection :

* The film received positive critical acclaim and became a commercial success, collecting the largest opening weekend revenue of any Tamil film.It was claimed to be the highest-grossing Indian film of all time. It also went on to receive appraisals from notable celebrities in India and across the globe. The following year, the film won a number of awards during many ceremonies, including that year's National Film Awards and Filmfare Awards South, mainly for its art direction and special effects, which were handled by Sabu Cyril and V. Srinivas Mohan, respectively.


* Ajay Vidyasagar, Chief Operating Officer of Sun TV Network maintained that Enthiran's revenue accounted for approximately 30 per cent of the total revenue for the company's fourth-quarter in 2010. He also added that the film, produced on a budget of INR132 crore (US$24.95 million) by Sun Pictures should have made a minimum of INR375 crore (US$70.88 million) worldwide, with the company's share being INR179 crore (US$33.83 million). By those accounts, it is the highest grossing Indian film of its time.

* However, other credible sources put the earnings at less, from INR250 crore (US$47.25 million) to INR255.5 crore (US$48.29 million), while some sources place the figure even higher than INR405 crore (US$76.55 million). All of these figures would place Enthiran as the top grossing Tamil film, and somewhere in the top three grossing Indian films of all time.

 Following are the estimates broken down by time and region :
*  Enthiran grossed INR62 crore (US$11.72 million) from all versions in the first weekend,and INR117 crore (US$22.11 million) in the first week, thus becoming the first Indian film to cross this mark in a week.

*  The film netted INR60 crore (US$11.34 million) in Tamil Nadu, INR30 crore (US$5.67 million) in Andhra Pradesh, INR20 crore (US$3.78 million) in Kerala and INR4 crore (US$756,000) in Karnataka. In Chennai alone, Enthiran grossed a record INR6.3 crore (US$1.19 million) in ten days. During the first week, the film's Tamil and Telugu versions fared exceptionally well, while the business of the Hindi version (Robot) remained ordinary, and did not make as much impact as Enthiran with around INR11.3 crore (US$2.14 million) nett in the first week and INR5.9 crore (US$1.12 million) in the second week.


* The film did a bit better at select single screens in Maharashtra but overall poor, especially in the regions of Delhi and Punjab. In the first week, Robot netted INR2.4 crore (US$453,600) in Mumbai and Thane from 107 screens, INR96 lakh (US$181,400) in Delhi from 27 screens, and INR56 lakh (US$105,800) in Ahmedabad from 28 screens.The Telugu version Robo grossed INR3.7 crore (US$699,300) as share in Nizam in three days. At the end of its screening, the film grossed INR60 crore (US$11.34 million) from Telugu version.

Overseas  Collection :
* According to Eros International, Enthiran had grossed INR61 crore (US$11.53 million) overseas—including INR20 crore (US$3.78 million) in the United States, INR8 crore (US$1.51 million) across Europe, INR7 crore (US$1.32 million) in the Middle East, and INR21 crore (US$3.97 million) in South East Asia.The film is likely to be amongst the top five grossing Indian films in overseas markets.

* In Malaysia, Enthiran grossed $1 million in the first weekend from 80 screens and $2.9 million in two weeks thus ended up as all-time top five highest grossing Indian film in Malaysia.

* In Singapore, the film grossed S$2.5 million from 22 screens.

* In the United Arab Emirates, Enthiran grossed $301,000 in the first weekend while Robot grossed $86,000.

* In the United Kingdom, Enthiran was released by Ayngaran International while Robot was released by B4U Network. In the first weekend, Enthiran opened at 11th position in the United Kingdom collecting £295,148 from 30 screens while Robot opened at 21st position collecting £62,134 from 41 screens. Enthiran had accumulated $785,837 by the second weekend from 34 screens in the United Kingdom.

* Enthiran opened at 12th position in the United States in its opening weekend collecting $1,520,108 from 64 screens, while Robo debuted at 17th position in its opening weekend collecting $481,680 from 36 screens and Robot at 34th position in its opening weekend collecting $164,390 from 39 screens.

* In Sri Lanka, the film lost its sheen at the box office as the audience found it "outlandish".

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
 
Awards :
   
** Filmfare Awards South    
Nominations :

Best Film ------------------------------Kalanithi Maran    
Best Director -------------------------S. Shankar    
Best Actor -----------------------------Rajinikanth    
Best Music Director -----------------A. R. Rahman    
Best Lyricist ---------------------------Vairamuthu for "Kadhal Anukkal"    
Best Female Playback Singer ----Chinmayi for "Kilimanjaro"    

Won :

Best Cinematographer -------------R. Rathnavelu    
Best Art Director ---------------------Sabu Cyril    
Best Costume Designer -----------Manish Malhotra    


 
** International Indian Film Academy Awards    
Won :

Best Special Effects ----------------V. Srinivas Mohan    
Best Art Direction -------------------Sabu Cyril    
Best Make-up Artist ----------------Banu    

 
** National Film Awards    
Won :
   
Best Special Effects ---------------V. Srinivas Mohan    
Best Art Direction ------------------Sabu Cyril
   
 
** Screen Awards

 Won       
Best Special Effects     V. Srinivas Mohan    
Spectacular Cutting Edge Technology  
      

 
** Tokyo International Film Festival

Won 
  
Winds of Asia-Middle East(Special Mention) -------------S. Shankar   
 

 
** Vijay Awards    

Won :

Best Villain ---------------------------Rajinikanth    
Best Cinematographer ------------R. Rathnavelu    
Best Make Up Artistes ------------Banu    
Best Find of the Year --------------Remo Fernandez, Madhan Karky    
Favourite Film -----------------------Kalanithi Maran    
Favourite Hero ----------------------Rajinikanth    
Favourite Director ------------------S. Shankar    

Nominated :
Best Art Director ---------------------Sabu Cyril    
Best Female Playback Singer ------Chinmayi
Best Choreographer ----------------Remo D'souza   
Best Choreographer ----------------Raju Sundaram    
Best Stunt Director -----------------Peter Hein    
Best Costume Designer -----------Manish Malhotra    
Favourite Heroine -------------------Aishwarya Rai    

Favourite Song ----------------------"Kilimanjaro"
    

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Sequel :

In March 2011, the producers revealed that the crew was discussing the possibility of a sequel to Enthiran.Cinematographer Rathnavelu confirmed it and said that they were planning to start the sequel by retaining some of the crew, including A. R. Rahman, Shankar and Sun Pictures. It is expected to start once Rajinikanth finishes his work on his present commitments. V. Srinivas Mohan, the special effects supervisor of the film, ratified the idea a couple months later.

****************************************************