Shivaji mania in Srilanka!

By: Settu Shankar
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
The superstar Rajinikanth mania has gripped Sri Lanka too. The leading English daily, The Island, reported that Rajini's blockbuster Shivaji -The boss is screened 41 times a day in seven theatres across the island, with all shows running to full houses.

The capital City Colombo witnessed a historical turn up. According to Ramthilak, a resident Journalist of the city, he has never seen such a big queue even before the passport office at the US embassy. Since half of the population of the city is Tamil-speaking, the film is being screened at four main cinema halls simultaneously. The Cine City multiplex in downtown Maradana has 20 shows per day. The Multiplex management has raised the tickets from Rs.250 to Rs.300 for Shivaji.

The film takes the viewer to a world of fantasy, far from the grim reality of Jaffna and northern war world. It seems the people have forgotten war, as they queued up for tickets at the Monohara theatre in the peninsular of Jaffna. The exhibitor said that the shows for the second week is also booked!

The film is running to full houses in Trincomalee in the East and also in the plantation areas in Central Sri Lanka, which is home to lakhs of Tamil labourers of Indian origin.

"It can't get bigger than this - Rajinikanth, the superstar and style king, and Shankar the showman of Tamil cinema, have come together for the first time in Shivaji. The good news is that this awesome combo has come out with an entertainment extravaganza that is deliciously good to savour," says Daily Mirror in its review.

However, Rajini has detractors too. The Sri Lankan Tamil website Tamilnatham has posted an appeal to Sri Lankan and Indian Tamils to boycott Shivaji on the grounds that Rajinikanth is a pro Kannada activist!