There’s nothing that Rajinikanth can’t do on screen. From beating up 30 men with one punch to surviving after jumping off a cliff, he does it all. He even romances actresses who are half his age or lesser. Several Bollywood actresses have played his love interest in his films. Of course, there is no denying that each of his romantic scenes is tastefully done.
In his latest film Kaala, which releases today, the 67-year-old actor is shown to be courting Huma Qureshi (31), though Easwari Rao plays his wife in the film. In an interview, Huma said that she felt “intimidated” about sharing screen space with such a “massive star”. She added, “What I found out about Rajini sir is that he is such a spiritual person, he is so simple. Sometimes, you think the person’s image is what he is but he is far from it. It’s nice to know that a person, who has seen massive stardom, is still humble and knows where he comes from.”
It’s not just today’s heroines but Rajini has in the past romanced some of the top Bollywood actresses like Rekha (Bulandi), Sridevi (Chalbaaz), Madhuri Dixit (Uttar Dakshin) and many others.
Here’s looking at some of the Bollywood leading ladies who have courted him on screen.
SONAKSHI SINHA IN LINGA
Early in her career, Sonakshi was paired opposite Rajinikanth in Linga, directed by Ravikumar. She played a character of the 1940’s era with a rural touch. During the promotion of the film it was revealed by the superstar that he was nervous working with the Dabbang actress because of the huge age difference. When Sonakshi shot for the film, she was just 26, while Rajinikanth was 63. The actress was quoted as saying, “On the first day of the shoot, I confessed to Rajini sir that I was nervous. He retorted that he was the one who was nervous. That broke the ice!” Unfortunately, the film could be do great business at the box-office.
DEEPIKA PADUKONE IN KOCHADAIIYAAN
Deepika Padukone, one of Bollywood’s top actresses made her debut in Tamil industry as Rajinikanth’s leading lady in Kochadaiiyaan. With more than 30 years of age difference, Deepika romanced the younger version of Rajini in the film. It was the directorial debut of Rajinikanth’s daughter, Soundarya. Although, the movie was animated, the characters were designed as per the looks of Rajinikanth and Deepika. The two also did the voice-overs for their animated avatars.
MANISHA KOIRALA IN BABA
The 2002 supernatural political thriller Baba was Rajinikanth’s comeback Tamil film after three years. The beautiful Manisha Koirala played his heroine but the film couldn’t do great business. In spite of the 20-year difference between the two, their chemistry was quite liked by the audience.
AISHWARYA RAI BACHCHAN IN ROBOT
S Shankar’s Robot was one of the highly anticipated and highest grossing films of 2010. It was the first time that we saw Rajinikanth play a robot. Ash, the former Miss World, who was at the peak of her career in Bollywood then, played the love interest of the scientist played by Rajini in the film. The robot created by him — Chitti too falls in love with her. The film was Aishwarya’s comeback in Tamil industry after a long gap. The movie went on to break box office records and also earned several accolades including National Awards.
RADHIKA APTE IN KABALI
In his last film Kabali, the talented Radhika Apte played Rajinikanth’s wife. The actress was appreciated for her work in the film and so was their chemistry. Radhika mostly appeared in the flashback of the story, yet she played a pivotal role. She played both the younger and older version of her character. She even played a mother to an older Dhansika in the movie.
