‘Kaala’: Five reasons to watch superstar Rajinikanth’s much-awaited film

After two years, superstar Rajinikanth is back on the silver screen once again with a gangster drama titled, ‘Kaala’, which is one of the biggest Tamil releases this year. Even before its release, the film has created a huge buzz among the audience as it marks Rajini-Ranjith’s second film after their blockbuster ‘Kabali’. Produced by Dhanush’s Wunderbar Films, ‘Kaala’ is all set to hit the screens on June 7. With just a day left for the release, we give you five reasons to watch the Rajinikanth-starrer.

Of course, the most important reason to catch ‘Kaala’ is superstar Rajinikanth, the name that resonates with millions of fans in Tamil Nadu. Ever since the commencement of ‘Kaala’, fans have been patiently waiting for the release, as Rajinikanth’s ‘Kabali’ was a disappointment. Despite humongous expectations, ‘Kabali’ met with mixed responses from critics and audience. Many felt disappointed to watch Rajinikanth play such a weak protagonist in ‘Kabali’. However, Rajinikanth was quick to correct his mistake. At ‘Kaala’ audio launch, Rajinikanth stated that ‘Kaala’ is a sure shot commercial film with a strong message for the people. Rajinikanth is someone who doesn’t necessarily have to promote his films. Each time his film releases in Tamil Nadu, it’s a festival for fans and ‘Kaala’ is no different. Amid all controversies, the film is finally hitting the screens worldwide and the expectation it has among fans is palpable. People are also closely watching Rajinikanth as ‘Kaala’ marks his first release after his political entry.

More than a filmmaker, Pa Ranjith has established himself as a political commentator and his films largely talks about several socio-political issues, be it ‘Madras’ or ‘Kabali’. In fact, Ranjith revealed that Rajinikanth initially wanted to do a sequel to ‘Kabali’. However, Ranjith came up with a completely different script, which reportedly impressed Rajinikanth. When Pa Ranjith teamed up Rajinikanth once again for ‘Kaala’, it raised several eyebrows. However, ‘Kaala’ made the right noises when its teaser was released on the internet. Apart from the obvious things, the dialogue ‘’Kye re? Setting ah!” became a pop-culture phenomenon. So far, Ranjith’s films have questioned several issues like caste and class. Going by the trailer, it looks Ranjith has now talked about the importance of land and identity. Ranjith had reportedly stated that he wanted someone as big as superstar Rajinikanth to take convey his beliefs and principles.

‘Kaala’ tells the tale of a young Tamilian named Kaala Karikalan from Tirunelveli, who becomes a big-shot don in Mumbai. Ranjith, in an interview, revealed that it was Rajinikanth’s idea to choose Dharavi as the setting. In the film, Rajinikanth is tipped to be a playing a slumlord of sorts, who will be seen fighting for the rights of Tamil people in Dharavi. From the teasers and posters, Ranjith has played quite well with colour. Rajinikanth is clad in absolute black, while Nana Patekar is given a white-shade. Black, as we know, mostly symbolises evil. But Ranjith is trying to address a more important issue in ‘Kaala’. At least, that’s what the teaser/trailer suggests. Even if the film manages to deliver half of what’s shown in the terrific trailer, ‘Kaala’ is very likely to emerge as one of the biggest hits this year.

One of the main highlights of ‘Kaala’, apart from the ‘Thalaivar’, is its ensemble cast that boasts of some big names in the industry. At the audio launch of ‘Kaala’, Rajinikanth admitted his mistake of romancing young heroines, which has received lukewarm response from the audience. In ‘Kaala’, Rajinikanth plays his age and has been paired opposite Eswari Rao, who reportedly plays his wife named Selvi. On the other hand, the Bollywood actress Huma Qureshi is reported to be playing Rajinikanth’s ex-lover named Zareena. Interestingly, a picture of Rajinikanth with Zareena’s name as a tattoo went viral on the internet. Huma Qureshi, in an interview, has stated that the romance between Zareena and Kaala Karikalan is handled very beautifully. In fact, Pa Ranjith was widely appreciated for the matured romance between Kabali and Kumudhavalli in ‘Kabali’. But the interesting choice is to cast veteran actor Nana Patekar as the prime antagonist. Going by the trailer, Nana Patekar seems to play a cunning politician, who’s pitted against Rajini in this one. Rajinikanth himself said that Nana Patekar’s character in ‘Kaala’ is one of his favourites. The film also stars Pankaj Tripathi, Samuthirakani, Anjali Patil, Arul Doss and Sakshi Agarwal in prominent roles.

Among the younger lot, Santhosh Narayanan is currently the happening music composer, who somehow manages to never disappoint music lovers. Following the chartbusting album of ‘Kabali’, director Pa Ranjith has retained Santhosh Narayanan for ‘Kaala’ as well. Apart from the songs, one of the things to look forward to in ‘Kaala’ is its background score. Be it ‘Jigarthanda’ or ‘Kabali’, Santhosh Narayanan has churned out some of the pulsating score for the film. In fact, the guitar riffs for ‘Neruppu Da’ created waves when ‘Kabali’ hit the screens in 2016. Despite huge expectations, ‘Kaala’ album has mostly received mixed responses from the audience. However, the songs ‘Thanga Sela’, ‘Katravai Patravai’ and ‘Poraduvom’ are easily the best of the lot.