Rivals on Reel... Friends in Real

Tamil Cinema has always been ruled by two superstars who have their own distinct styles with which they captivate their own masses. This has been the case from the time of M.K.Thiagaraja Bhagavathar and P.U.Chinnappa which continued with MGR-Sivaji and to this day with Vijay Sethupathi and Sivakarthikeyan. Though the fans of the rivals always eye each other as enemies, the stars themselves have been known to share a warm friendship. Here we look at the most important Rival Stars who are Life Long Friends in Real Life.

MGR and Sivaji

Perhaps the biggest onscreen rivalry in Indian Cinema was between MGR and Sivaji for they were at their peak at a time when movies were still evolving and the only source of entertainment for the Tamil masses. The content of their films was as different as the Northpole and the Sahara desert and their political ideologies too were like that and it is not far from the truth if we say that the population was evenly divided as fans of the Nadigar Thilagam and Makkal Thilagam. MGR and Sivaji were known to bond well with each other in spite of their differences. Sivaji used to call MGR as his elder brother and MGR never failed to praise Sivaji as one of the worlds best actors. The two giants, never missed family functions of each other and will always be pronounced together for a long time to come.

Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan

In recent times the rivalry between these two Mega stars has waned and todays generation is mostly aware of only their friendship, which has been well documented after the numerous public appearances that they have made together. But the fans of Superstar and Ulaganayagan fiercely opposed one another during the eighties and the nineties and many riots have happened in theatre complexes that screened both their films.

The true lovers of cinema have the long pending dream of seeing Rajini and Kamal in the same film together after so many decades, but it remains to be seen if the two friends turned rivals turned best friends will fulfill the wishes of the millions.

Vijay and Ajith

Without an iota of doubt the biggest rivalry in Indian cinema after the information revolution is between Ajith and Vijay. The two have shared screen space in a forgettable film titled Rajavin Parvaiyile'. It was in the late nineties and the early millennium that this rivalry started and is intact till today. Fans of both Vijay and Ajith go overboard by praising their idols and degrading the others and this happens on an hourly basis. Offscreen Vijay and Ajith share a warm relationship and Vijay even dropped in on the sets of Mankatha' where he presented a watch to Ajith who in turn served Vijay with specially cooked Biriyani. Vijay has said that he would have done Arjun's role in Mankatha' if he had been approached and Ajith is also open to working with Vijay. We might see these two fierce on screen rivals together in the same film sooner rather than later.

Dhanush and Simbu

Simbu is a former child artiste who commands a fan following for nearly thirty years while Dhanush burst onto the scene in the coming of age film Thulluvadho Illamai' tasted instant success then touched rock bottom and fought back and today is next in stature only to Ajith, Vijay and Surya.

Simbu and Dhanush were fierce rivals for reasons that is an open secret and in every film, both did there were dialogues that were specifically meant to have a dig at each other. One fine day to the surprise of everyone both these stars posed together on board a flight and ever since are bonding big time with Simbu even making a cameo appearance in the Dhanush production Kaaka Muttai'. These two former onscreen and personal rivals today stand as examples of how anyone can bury the hatchet and be good friends.

Trisha and Nayanthara

The rivalry between Nayanthara and Trisha spills over in Telugu too, where both the pretty actresses have a considerable fan following and are still the most preferred heroines of Superstars. In real life, Trisha and Nayanthara are such close friends that they are the envy of many. The two of them paint the town red driving at night time. Both Trisha and Nayanthara have more than a half a dozen films each lined up for the next few years, which will keep the rivalry burning and the friendship grow stronger.

G.V.Prakash Kumar and Anirudh

GV is the nephew of Oscar Nayagan A.R.Rahman and Anirudh is the nephew of Superstar Rajinikanth, but both the young men came up on their own without using their celebrity relatives help and the rivalry between these two is not explicit as the others but since both have so many similarities such as age and background fuel it. GV and Anirudh bond well with each other and now that G.V.Prakash has become an actor Anirudh may even compose music for him in the future.