Rajinikanth: 'Not A Single Person Looked at Me...'

Superstar Rajinikanth recently shared a deeply personal and humorous anecdote from his visit to The Art of Living International Centre in Bengaluru, revealing how the experience reshaped his understanding of fame, ego, and spirituality.

The actor was speaking during celebrations marking 45 years of The Art of Living Ashram and the 70th birthday of spiritual leader Sri Sri Ravi Shankar. Sharing the stage with the spiritual guru, Rajinikanth reflected on a visit that was originally meant to last only two days but eventually extended to 15.

Rajinikanth recalled being instantly captivated by the serene atmosphere of the Ashram.

“Full greenery, lake, and people, all of them smiling and happy. There was an elephant, horses, hundreds of cows... One of the horses’ names was Rajini,” he said in his trademark style, drawing laughter from the audience.

The veteran actor said he had initially planned a brief stay but found himself unable to leave the peaceful surroundings. “I planned to stay for two days, but ended up staying for 15 days,” he shared, adding that after the Himalayas, the Ashram remains one of his favourite places.

Rajinikanth then recounted an incident that left a lasting impact on him. According to the actor, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar had invited him to attend a darshan event with hundreds of devotees present. Given his massive popularity across India, Rajinikanth admitted he expected people to recognise him instantly and approach him for photos and autographs.

“I thought naturally people would recognise me. I also saw many people from Tamil Nadu. There were hundreds of people. I’m not lying, not even a single person looked at me,” he said.

The actor humorously added that despite waving at people, no one paid attention to him. “Forget photos and autographs, not even a single person spoke to me. I have met many politicians and industrialists, but this experience crushed my ego actually,” he admitted candidly.

Reflecting on the moment, Rajinikanth said it made him realise the true power of spirituality over celebrity fame.

“Stardom comes and goes, maybe it stays for a while. But this stardom is supreme stardom. Even after death, that kind of stardom stays forever,” he said.

On the work front, Rajinikanth was last seen in Coolie, directed by Lokesh Kanagaraj. The Superstar has also completed shooting for Jailer 2 with director Nelson Dilipkumar. Backed by Sun Pictures, the much-awaited sequel is expected to hit theatres in August.

He also has Thalaivar 173 in the pipeline, and is set to reunite with Kamal Haasan for KH x RK, marking their on-screen collaboration after nearly 47 years.