Dhanush: Lesser known facts

All’s not well between Aanand L Rai and Dhanush?

Nothing seems to be going right between Anand L Rai and Dhanush, who once shared a great rapport with each other. According to a report on Mid-Day.com, director, Aanand L Rai has struck off his Raanjhanaa star, Dhanush, from his friends' list. Sources close to the duo suggest that they are no longer on talking terms following professional differences. Reportedly, Aanand L Rai used to share a great equation with Dhanush, but some differences cropped up after the actor’s cameo in Tanu Weds Manu Returns (TWMR) was snipped during the editing stage without his knowledge. Quoting a source the report further stated that Dhanush was hurt that they chopped off his role.


While we have to wait for the Ranjhanaa sequel, click to the next slide to know why Dhanush kissed Akshara's a**.

The second trailer of Dhanush's second Bollywood film Shamitabh is out. In the film which marks the debut of Kamal Haasan's daughter Akshara, Dhanush is seen kissing Akshara's derriere. While the first trailer of the film revealed nothing much, the second trailer impresses with the chemistry between the lead pair. In the trailer, Akshara is seen mouthing a dialogue after getting irked by Dhanush in which she asks him to kiss her a***, and he literally follows her instructions!

Dhanush's act of kissing Akshara's butt is quite unconventional for Indian cinema. We take a look at some lesser known facts about the actor.

One of the most promising actors from South, Dhanush made a blockbuster entry in Bollywood with the superhit film, Raanjhanaa. He bowled everyone over with his natural acting in Raanjhanaa and now with Shamitabh in his kitty, Dhanush is set to charm everyone again. Despite being the son of famous director, Kasthuri Raja, the son-in-law of megastar, Rajinikant, and achieving success in the South film industry, Dhanush is humble and down-to-earth.

Meet Venkatesh Prabhu Kasthuri Raja:
Dhanush was not always called by the same name. His real name is Venkatesh Prabhu Kasthuri Raja. Dhanush is only the stage name that he opted for, when he entered the film industry. According to reports, when Dhanush entered the South film industry at the age of 16, he had to change his name because he shared it with famous Tamil actors, Ilaya Thilagam Prabhu and Prabhu Deva. To create an unique identity for himself, Venkatesh Prabhu Kasthuri Raja became Dhanush. In an interview to Behindwoods.com, recalling the manner in which he rechristened himself, Dhanush was quoted as saying that he was watching Kurudipunal which featured a covert mission - operation Dhanush. He liked the name and decided to call himself 'Dhanush.'

Dhanush wanted to be a chef:
Like many in the industry, even Dhanush was headed elsewhere before landing in the industry. He wanted to pursue a course in Hotel Management and planned on becoming a chef. But his elder brother Selvaraghavan, who is now a director, pressurised him to get into acting and then there was no looking back for Dhanush. According to an interview in the Indian Express, Dhanush seemed to be quite reluctant before his foray into the film industry. According to the interview, Dhanush was quoted as saying that he cried and threw tantrums as he did not want to become an actor but nothing worked in his favour and he landed up in films. He made his debut in the film titled, Thulluvadho Ilamai, directed by his father, Kasthuri Raja.

'Kolaveri di' in six minutes:
Dhanush is synonymous with the viral number, ‘Kolaveri di.’ The song quickly became everyone’s favorite and also won the YouTube Gold Award. But did you know that the song was written in flat six minutes! According to reports, Dhanush wrote the lyrics of this famous song in just six minutes and its rough version was recorded in 35 minutes.

Aishwarya is elder to Dhanush:
Dhanush is the son-in-law of South’s megastar Rajnikanth. Dhanush reportedly met Rajnikanth’s daughter, Aishwarya at the screening of his film, Kadhal Kondaen and fell in love with her. Aishwarya is elder to Dhanush by two years. In an interview, Dhanush has confessed that after the screening Aishwarya had sent a bouquet with a message that read, ‘Good work, keep in touch.’ Dhanush took it seriously and now they are happily married. The couple has two sons and Dhanush has named both of them after Lord Shiva. Being a staunch devotee of lord Shiva, Dhanush has named his eldest son, Yatra, which means pilgrimage and he has named his second son, Linga, after the Shiva Linga. Though Dhanush does not believe in idol worship, he reportedly believes in energy. For him, Shiva is a form of energy.

India’s hottest 'vegetarian' celebrity:
In 2011, Dhanush bagged the title of being India’s 'Hottest Vegetarian Celebrity' and also became the Brand Ambassador of PETA. Dhanush is one of the few stars who have managed to bag the title of being the hottest vegetarian celebrities. The others being Vidya Balan, Amitabh Bachchan, Sonu Sood and Kareena Kapoor Khan. Dhanush has also worked with WWF to support the ‘Earth Hour’ initiative in 2012.


by Nikita Thakkar