A condescending and poisonously smiling Neelambari gives her air of superiority to Padayappa when she descends the stairs. The frame shows her high heels in slow motion as she walks down the steps one by one after seeing the greyed Rajinikanth in an akimbo gesture. The haunting BGM by ARR builds up the tension and makes you to think that something extraordinary is on the horizon. Neelambari gives Rajinikanth a quick derisive look when she swiftly scans him from head to foot and humiliates him further by having a chair exclusively for her with the loud snap of a finger.
The vibrant 'o' chorus antes up the climax of the scene additionally when Ramyakrishnan returns Padayappa the taste of his own medicine after a gap of 18 years. What follows next is not just any scene but something which is truly remarkable and indescribable that only our Thalaivar can do it dovetailed effortlessly with an electrifying, pulsating and goosebumps producing back score by the musical maven:
I am sure you would have watched not only this breath-taking and legendary scene but also the entire movie umpteen number of times. Still, when you see it even now, you wouldn't be tired of it. Rather, you would think that it's time want to watch it one more time than to read this stupid blog! Yeah. I can see a small smile on your face that extends from your sides. Getting back to business, we will try to deconstruct this man's mystique (What is it with my alliterations these days!) using hi-fi Branding and Marketing jargons. Just kidding!
So, why did I bring in this swashbuckling scene as an introduction to this blog? Simple. Every Rajini movie has a dashing introduction na.
What is a Brand? A name,term,sign, symbol etc. which uniquely identifies a product or service that sets it apart from their competitors.
This is a perfect text book definition and the person (Read: Me!!) should be awarded an A++ (Sorry, no reference to C++ here!). Please bury my pathetic joke in the grave with a wreath!
Just like how James Cameron reached the abyss of Mariana Trench, when we dive deep into a brand's knows and hows, a brand is simply ,in my IMHO, a simple idea. I am sure many would not agree with my view. Each to his own, right? So, let's us work together in harmony now and plunge further.
I am not going to touch upon the history of Rajinikanth where he lost his mother as a kid, worked as a coolie, bus conductor blah blah. You know it already. We will cover the other essential aspects as to what makes him such a tremendous universal phenomenon in this time and age as well.
Everyone knows that it was K.Balachander who identified Shivaji Rao Gaekwad's raw talent at the Madras Film Institute and pushed him onto the silver screen. So, Rajinikanth is the brainchild, literally and figuratively, of the late ace director.
What does it mean in real branding terms? Rajinikanth is AN IDEA from the brain factory who had single-handedly transformed the virtually unknown Shivaji Rao Gaekwad as the formidable and famed Rajinikanth. Little did KB Sir knew when he rechristened him as Rajinikanth then that he would unleash a powerful brand who will change the complete ecosystem of Kollywood and propel Rajinikanth to an invincible, indomitable and impassioned stardom beyond the realms of reason, reality and sanity.
In fact, his shades in Baasha was copied in The Matrix. Do not believe me? Check out Morpheus's coolers.
Rajinikanth broke the conventional stereotype that a hero must be light-skinned. It may not be of great consequence today. But, in those days, though it was not a FAIR deal, being fair was a big deal ..! He looked like our typical next door neighbour - tall and dark - and his appearance had an immediate connect with the masses.
Even a newborn child will say that the USP (Unique Selling Proposition) of Superstar is his style - be it in his gait, speech, actions, emotions and his uncanny ability to flick his hair with so much oomph.
Rajinikanth would be the object of envy of every Olympic Gymnast for the way his cigarette somersaults and lands in his mouth with such artistic grace and poise - the man simply oozes with such unheard panache even now that he still gives his young peers a run for their money.
Rajinikanth would be the object of envy of every Olympic Gymnast for the way his cigarette somersaults and lands in his mouth with such artistic grace and poise - the man simply oozes with such unheard panache even now that he still gives his young peers a run for their money.
Not to mention his lusty staccato laughter. He should really patent it! There is no one in the industry who could do it better than him even though the likes of Vijay has tried it in movies like Kaththi, Thuppaki etc, it still doesn't come close to the quick and sharp laughter which Thalaivar reserves when absolutely required like the Brahmastra! It's like the style factor is deeply entrenched in his DNA that his mannerisms appear naturally (Good Oxymoron, na!) on the screen.
Going together with his humble origins and his extraordinary flair, Rajinikanth sparkles with enough pizzazz that he ensured that we were not only able to relate to him but also resonate well with him to the extent that he salubriously attracts even the current generation into his fold through his colossal magnetic appeal. His Brand Identity was expansively enlarged further when he was given the tag "Superstar" after his film 'Bairavi' in the late 1970s - a tagline which has become mononymous with the man himself and repeatedly confuse reputed astrophysicists when they hear 'SUPERSTAR'!
Turning a blind eye to my wicked poke of a joke, it's no mean task for any actor to be in an industry for close to 4 decades and deliver hit after hit with a once-in-a blue moon slip. Rajini has been able to do it continuously and consistently thus sustaining himself when it comes to his movie openings and box office records. Ticking all the right boxes of brand attributes - uniqueness, relevance, appeal, consistency, sustainability and positioning - Rajinikanth has created a redoutable Brand identity for himself with his uncommon elan, supreme superstar tag, memorable and catchy punch dialogues like:
 |
| The image says it all..! :) |
But, identity is just not enough. He has an indelible and adamantine Brand Image in the minds of audiences (Read: Us) thanks to his supreme Brand Personality. Everyone knows who Rajinikanth is when he stylishly enacts his given role to perfection.
I have not personally met or spoken with the great man. But, from whatever I have heard, written and seen for the past 29 years, Rajinikanth is an extremely humble, down-to-earth, simple, warm, easy-going and friendly person who treats even the light boy on the sets with equal respect. A person of such stature and success - Rajinikanth is truly the epitome of humility courtesy his strong spiritual compass.
 |
| En route to The Himalayas |
Also, he doesn't hide his true self in those out-of-the blue opportunities when he is before camera in reality unlike other actors. He is assertive enough to flaunt his baldness, wrinkled skin, white beard and veshti thus giving a bold statement that he is also a human to all the classes and the masses alike Being one of the highest paid actors in Asia, he could have easily gone under the knife and given himself a new identity. But, Thalaivar is thalaivar. That's why he is Thalaivar.
Our country always loves the dark horses, pun intended. The recurring trope of every Rajini movie is that he either fights his masters and becomes a master through hard work, dedication and commitment (In a 5 minute song!) or the evergreen good vs evil battle. As a natural consequence coupled with his own hardships in real life, Rajini's films are quite inspirational to the ordinary people who aspire to be like their God - at least physically - whenever Rajini brings in a new trend like the 'Motta Boss' which created a frenzied mania amongst many people:
Though his on-screen and off-screen personality are identically opposite (It's Oxymoron time again!) to each other, his mighty Brand Personality is such that it has resulted in an endearing and enduring relationship with his fans all over the world.
Ultimately, the Brand Experience that Rajinikanth generates is such that you can feel a massive surge of positive emotion in your body like a bolt of lightning that it literally sends you in delirious raptures and makes you want for more of such hyper energy power from the Superstar. You feel as if you are on cloud nine and ecstatically escalate towards cloud ten, cloud eleven till cloud infinity!
What more does a brand need when it already has and constantly creates (Alliterations again!) a solid and substantial loyal fan base crowding all over you like ants to sugar.
Rajini's energetic aura, his distinct mannerisms, effervescent charisma and larger than life persona has ensured that his Brand Image is utterly infrangible, untouchable and perdurable for all generations to love, cherish and admire his innocent smiles, timing comedies, THAT mesmerizing WALK and the improbable stunts that would make even Newton to scratch his head and come up with a special equation explaining the gravity-defying phenomenon from heavens!
It's impossible to sneeze with your eyes open. Yeah, You can try it if you wish to.
However, there is nothing Rajnikanth can't can't.
No. It is definitely not a cant.
X--to be concluded--X
Acknowledgements:
I would like to thank my Brand Management Professor, Satheesh Krishnamurthy. He is a Brand Consultant and worked in corporates like Cavinkare, McCann Erickson, Cricinfo, Reliance etc.
Apart from possessing a scintillating and rapier wit, he has also penned down his extensive experience, immense knowledge, profound and penetrating insights into numerous books in Tamil for the benefit of SMBs to build their own brands and flourish in the cut-throat marketplace.
He is also a regular contributor in The Hindu (Tamil Edition) and all his articles are fun, funny yet deeply thought-provoking.
Apart from possessing a scintillating and rapier wit, he has also penned down his extensive experience, immense knowledge, profound and penetrating insights into numerous books in Tamil for the benefit of SMBs to build their own brands and flourish in the cut-throat marketplace.
He is also a regular contributor in The Hindu (Tamil Edition) and all his articles are fun, funny yet deeply thought-provoking.
For further details. you can check out for yourself his Linkedin profile at your own leisure:
Disclaimer:
All the above opinions are solely mine with the exceptions of the facts and application of the various branding concepts. Any error or discrepancy is due to my mistake and lack of proper understanding on the subject at hand. I request you to point out any such fallacies in the event of such blunders. TIA!
No comments:
Post a Comment