While millions of Superstar Rajni sir fans celebrate on December 12 as a festival of sorts, Superstar Rajinikanth has notoriously avoided any lavish celebrations on his birthdays. Many believe that the Thalivar did not indulge in celebrations only for the last three years. In 2015, he requested his fans to do away with celebrations due to Chennai floods and in 2016 due to the death of the then Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa. This year, he has again said no to the celebration given that Tamil Nadu and the neighbouring states have been recovering from the damages caused by Cyclone Ochki.

But, as opposed to popular belief, not just the last three times, for nearly three decades now, he has made it a ritual of sorts to stay out of station or the country to avoid all the fan frenzy around his birthday. It is just not because of his trademark humility. There is a more intimate reason as to why Rajinikanth avoids celebrations with his fans.

Rajinikanth is currently shooting for his upcoming film Kaala, which is directed by Pa Ranjith. It is Ranjith’s second consecutive outing with Rajinikanth. It’s worth noting that only a few directors had the opportunity to direct Rajinikanth in back-to-back films and Ranjith is one of them.

The year 2018 will see the release of two of Rajinikanth films. The mega-budget sci-fi film 2.0, directed by Shankar, will release on April 27, while the producers of Kaala are yet to confirm its release date.