When Rajinikanth wanted Anand Raj to beat him up

The re-release of

Baashha

has made thalaivar fans rejoice and how! While there are so many memorable scenes, no one can forget the iconic — Rajinikanth is tied and beaten up by Anand Raj. Recalling the experience shooting for the film, Anand Raj says, “I had worked with Rajini sir in Rajadhi Raja. But we didn’t get an opportunity to work together after that. Several years later, one of Rajini sir’s assistants called me saying that sir wanted to meet me. I was shooting somewhere else at that time and later met him during the break. Rajini sir talked about the script of Baashha. I had heard that the film’s talkie portions were almost over and asked him about the same. But he said there is this one role that he wanted me to essay. I didn’t understand initially as the film already had Raghuvaran and Charanraj. It was then that he told me about this scene. He said it would be apt if I beat him up. I was taken aback at first, but agreed to be a part of the film.”

So, did he have any apprehensions about doing that scene? “I had those apprehensions when I worked with him in Rajadhi Raja, in which we had some fight scenes. But since he gave me that confidence that it can only be me who can perform the scene, I gained some confidence. We shot most of our portions in a location in Vadapalani, (there is a huge hotel on that spot now),” says Anand. The actor also says that he’s overwhelmed about the film’s reception even today. “I saw the film recently and it was an experience watching it with the thalaivar fans of today,” says Anand Raj.