Muthu released in the early November of 1995 , I was term pregnant and went for the night show few days after the release amidst a full house .By then the Rajni -Jaya feud was much in the open .Most dialogues were direct hits at the then CM .The Ramesh Khanna dialogue that "avaraa vara mattaru naama thaan aethi vidanum " had the crowds roaring .The flag in the Renganayagi song was mooted to be his party flag.His fans left the theatre upbeat and euphoric .Rajni's movies have been field testing political ambitions vigorously ever since.
Two Rajni movies spoke direct politics -One is Valli supposedly penned and directed by Rajni where a CM character outrageously honest ,efficient et al mimics Rajni in full .The movie did average business .Then came Baba ,after his ?longest hiatus -Rajni was a saint banished to earth and then when its time to go back Rajni asks the people directly if he needs to stay to serve them .People said no and the movie was a disaster .
So Rajni rested his political ambitions using them selectively and only to market his movies .The actual temptation must have happened after Jayalalitha's death .At the condolence meeting for her he gloated that he had defeated her in 1996 - a statement he never dared to make while she lived .For all those who can remember, the 1991-96 Jaya govt was destined to fall .It was easily one of the most corrupt flamboyant govts ever .Public anger was such that even senior leaders could not enter some places to campaign . He was let to run off with the credit too long.
I assume with the infighting in the ADMK and a lack of a cohesive head and the BJP sitting over their every move ,ADMK was Rajni's chance of a lifetime .He only needed the party and the two leaves and he would fill in the one popular face vacuum and be CM ,all at one go .
The actual end to his political ambitions must have come when after a rousing reception after the Thoothukudi massacre Rajni was jolted by a "who are you ?",a question he probably was never asked for more than three to four decades.An ego bruised irritated Rajni lashed out at the media and the people of TN .After playing hide and seek with the BJP and pretending to almost taking the plunge ,Rajni faced another situation he never faced .He was bombarded by documented allegations of financial irregularity (especially @angrybirdu)and his honest man image was beginning to fade .The losses were going to be too many and he was going to end up as an also ran .
A few pointers that showed maybe Rajni will not enter politics as he announced.His definite statement on he will not be saffron washed .His statements saying that he didnt want to be a minor vote splitter.Kamal's insistence on wait for 31st .His very public enquiry of the posts that were assigned to Tamilaruvi and the other BJP guy .He was just making it public that it was not his decision.
It is a lie to say that Rajni never wanted to be a politician .He wanted to be one but was too much of a coward to pursue it .
