Media365
5 min readKochiOct 14, 2026 06:49 PM IST
By the time Rajinikanth entered cinema, Kamal Haasan was already a star, having won thousands of hearts with his work in the Tamil and Malayalam film industries. Hence, when he was doing his debut film, director K Balachander’s Apoorva Raagangal (1975), not many paid any attention to Rajinikanth. Pretty much everyone, including the media, was running after Kamal Haasan.
But Rajinikanth had no complaints, as this was the norm. His only aim was to do a solid job, land more opportunities, and position himself in Tamil cinema. However, amid all the bustle, one person noticed him and his potential. She apparently predicted that he would become a superstar one day. She might have arguably been the first person to sense it. Needless to say, her prediction came true.
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Interestingly, that person was none other than legendary actor Srividya, who was dating Kamal Haasan at that time. Veteran actor-director Balachandra Menon once revealed this story, as it was to him that she made the prediction when he went to interview her. Back then, he worked as a journalist.
For the unversed, Apoorva Raagangal featured Kamal Haasan and Srividya in the lead roles, and Rajinikanth played an important character in it.
How Balachandra Menon met Shivaji Rao
However, that wasn’t when Menon met Rajinikanth for the first time. “I saw Rajinikanth (née Shivaji Rao Gaikwad) for the first time at a hotel in Chennai, where I was working as a journalist. I noticed that he was surrounded by some youngsters who did menial jobs at the hotel. He entertained his audience with antics like throwing up his cigarette and catching it in his mouth,” he reportedly recalled during an episode of his Filmy Fridays show.
Kamal Haasan and Rajinikanth interact with each other during a Nadigar Sangam meeting. (Express archive photo)
“I couldn’t help but notice the person who was the centre of attention. Later, I asked one of the workers who that person was. He replied that the man does some magic tricks, like throwing the cigarette and then catching it in his mouth. He then added that the man was an aspiring actor as well. But I thought he must be crazy to act like this if he was interested in acting,” he said.
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Rajinikanth’s request to Balachandra Menon
He apparently saw him a few more times at the same hotel in the days that followed. One day, that man approached Menon out of the blue. “Sir, my name is Shivaji Rao. I am studying cinema here; I wish to act in the movies. Can you publish an article about me in the newspaper where you work? I would become successful even if I land opportunities in Malayalam. I am alright with any language,” he told Menon and handed over a few photographs of himself.
Impressed by him, Menon prepared an article on the aspiring actor and forwarded it to his superiors for clearance. However, they killed the story, allegedly calling it pointless.
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Later, on the set of Apoorva Raagangal, Menon met Rajinikanth again. Menon informed him about what happened to the story, and Rajinikanth asked him to let it go. He told the journalist that he had landed a good role in the Balachander directorial.
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Rajinikanth was ignored on Apoorva Raagangal set
However, Menon noticed that no one was paying any attention to Rajinikanth. “Cameras were flashing all around Kamal Haasan there,” he recalled during a conversation with Mathrubhumi. “Then, Srividya said, ‘Balu ji, mark my words, he is going to be a superstar.’ She was the first one to say that to me,” he added.
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During this period, Srividya and Kamal Haasan were in a serious relationship and had even decided to get married. However, their love story did not have the happy ending they had hoped for, and the couple eventually parted ways.
Srividya passed away in 2006.
Rajinikanth is currently gearing up for the release of director Nelson’s Jailer 2. Also starring Ramya Krishnan, SJ Suryah, Suraj Venjaramoodu, Vidya Balan, and Mithun Chakraborty in key roles, Jailer 2 will hit the screens worldwide on Thursday, October 15.
