STAGE CRAFT
KAMAL HAASAN 63 Actor, Politician
Because the actor revered as ulaganayagan (global star) is foraying into politics, having launched his Makkal Needhi Maiam (Centre for People’s Justice) party in February as an alternative to the Dravidian identity-based party politics that has held sway in Tamil Nadu for the past 50 years
Because his goal is “to challenge the status quo and mediocrity in the polity that is plaguing Tamil Nadu”
Because he believes ardent film fans are the loyalists he can count on to build and develop his party. He was the first Tamil actor to convert fan clubs into welfare organisations under the Kamal Narpani Iyakkam 37 years ago
Because he is the only Indian actor to have featured in films in six languages—Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu, Kannada, Hindi and Bengali
THE BILL BOOK Hollywood director Quentin Tarantino reportedly said that the animation sequence in Kill Bill was inspired by Kamal Haasan’s Abhay, the Hindi remake of the Tamil Aalavandhan
BEST BUDDY “Charuhaasan, elder brother by 18 years who is no more. I am looking for another”