Why Rajnikanth handpicked Rockline to produce 'Lingaa'

BENGALURU: It was February this year and producer Rockline Venkatesh was busy overseeing the shooting of the Ravi Teja-starring Telugu film, Power, in Hyderabad. His mobile rang. It was superstar Rajnikanth seeking Venkatesh’s opinion about a storyline he had just heard. The very next day, the superstar sent scriptwriter Pon Kumaran to Hyderabad. Pon’s narrative impressed the 51-year-old Venkatesh. And he called Rajni that very instant and conveyed it.

The superstar then made an offer that came as a pleasant shocker to Venkatesh, known famously in the film industry as Rockline, the name of his erstwhile granite business. The superstar wanted Rockline to produce it. The movie, Lingaa, made simultaneously in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi, is set for release on about 5,000 screens worldwide on Dec 12, the day Rajni turns 64.

"Getting an opportunity to make the superstar’s movie is the biggest gift I could ever ask for. I grabbed the offer without thinking about the enormousness of the project because I know no fear. I left everything to God, and just went about the project," Rockline told ET over the phone from Chennai in his first detailed interaction with the media about the movie. Lingaa has been made with a budget in excess of Rs 100 crore, and Eros International has bagged the distribution and audio rights.

There is a brief background to why Rajni handpicked Rockline, a pharmacist by qualification who began his innings in the industry first as an actor in 1987 and, later as a producer in 1992. "I have been a big fan of the superstar whom I know for about 15 years now. Whenever we met, we would discuss scripts. I always urged him to act in movies that are rich in sentiments like Annamalai, Basha, Padayappa, etc. These movies, with their powerful emotion-filled scripts, deeply touched our hearts, and had a message to people," Rockline said.

So when a script pregnant with emotions came, Rajni remembered to bring Rockline in. The deal was, however, not unconditional. Rajni was clearly impatient: he wanted the movie to hit screens this year itself.

The ambitious project commenced on May 2 this year with pooja at Chamundi Hills in Mysuru, and the shooting went on for 130 days. It captures several scenic locales including Jog Falls in Karnataka. "Rajni sir did not take even a single day’s rest. There was just a week’s gap available in between when we had to shift the shooting location," Rockline said, and added: "He is sure to pleasantly shock his fans with Lingaa. On screen, the superstar looks the way he did 15 years ago. He pairs so well with heroines Anushka Shetty and Sonakshi Sinha."

Why is there so much hype around the movie? "Lingaa is purely script-driven, and not technology-oriented," Rockline explained and added, "The tech-driven movies tend to make a strong impact on the viewer’s mind, but movies rich in emotions would touch one’s soul. Lingaa will multiply the superstar’s fan-following." The film, Venkatesh says, might remind the viewer of Rajni’s movies of the 1990s, most of which were blockbusters. Linga is Rockline’s 37th movie. It is directed by KS Ravikumar and has music by AR Rahman.

Ask Rockline about an unforgettable experience during the Lingaa shoot, and he remembers how Rajni looked deeply pained to see his fans suffer in the hostile climates of the Western Ghats region. Apparently, the fans would hire buses during weekends and holidays, and land at the hotel in Sagar (Shivamogga district) to catch a glimpse of Rajni. While the film crew retired by midnight, Rajni would stay awake for an hour or two to speak to his fans. "He was very disturbed, and asked us if we could shift the location, but the director reasoned it was not possible because the sets had all been erected," Rockline said.

According to him, this was the first time a Rajni movie will be releasing in so many screens across South India. "The talk I hear from the market is that Lingaa is going to break even the box office collection records of Bollywood movies." Rockline is the third filmmaker from Karnataka to have got a chance to make a Rajni movie. Many years ago, Kannada veterans Dwarakeesh and N Veerasamy had produced his movies.