Did you know superstar Rajinikanth almost made his Bollywood debut in 1981?

Indian actor Rajinikanth's career spans over four decades in which the actor has appeared in over 160 films. While he primarily works in Tamil cinema, the Thailava has appeared in many Telugu, Kannada, Hindi and even Malayalam films. Rajinikanth starred in the Bollywood remake of Sattam Oru Iruttarai, which was titled Andha Kanoon, in 1983. The film marked the southern superstar's entry into Bollywood, as it was his first-ever Bollywood movie.

Andha Kanoon also starred Hema Malini and Reena Roy in lead roles along with him. The film also featured an ensemble cast of actors in villain roles including Pran, Danny Denzongpa, Amrish Puri, Madan Puri and Prem Chopra. Veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan played a special appearance while Madhavi and Dharmendra also appeared in guest roles. While many of Rajinikanth's fans are aware of this piece of trivia regarding his Bollywood debut, did you know that the actor almost made his debut in another Bollywood film 2 years before this movie? 

Did you know Rajinikanth almost made his Bollywood debut in 1981? 

According to IMDb, Indian director Nagi Reddy wanted to launch Rajinikanth in a Hindi film in 1981; however, the project seemingly "fizzled out". If the project had worked out, maybe the superstar would have ventured into Bollywood sooner. Over the course of his career, however, Rajinikanth has had quite a few 'almosts' with regards to his Bollywood ventures.

According to the same source, in 1982, Rajkumar Kohli signed legendary actor Rajnikanth along with veteran actor Jeetendra for a remake of a Kannada film in Hindi. However, this project apparently fizzled out as well. The same source also claimed that actor Ranjan also signed Amitabh Bachchan and Rajnikanth for a film in 1982 which was to be directed by Shyam Benegal. However, the film was reportedly shelved due to Amitabh Bachchan's most famous accident during his filming for Coolie that year. 

Rajinikanth's movies 

Rajinikanth enjoys a status parallel to almost no star in India as the superstar is practically worshipped by his fans. Rajinikanth's movies include Padikkadavan, Mr. Bharath, Bhagwaan Dada, Velaikaran, Guru Sishyan, Avargal, 16 Vayathinile, Aadu Puli Attam and Gaayathri. He also has two biographies which are based on his life and career namely, The Name is Rajinikanth by Gayathri Sreekanth and Rajinikanth: The Definitive Biography by Naman Ramachandran which came out in 2008 and 2012 respectively. The actor will next be seen in the upcoming action drama film Annaatthe along with Meena, Khushbu, Keerthy Suresh, Nayanthara, Jagapathi Babu, Prakash Raj and Vela Ramamoorthy. The film is slated to release on November 4, 2021, on the occasion of Diwali.