Superstar Rajinikanth made his acting debut in a small role in K. Balachander's 'Apoorva Raagangal' starring Kamal Haasan in 1975. Within a decade he raced to the top and has remained there for close to four decades and counting.

A rare photo of Rajini acting in a Kannada stage drama in his hometown Bengaluru in the 70s has gone viral on the internet. Ofcourse he was known as Sivaji Rao Gaekwad at the time and is seen dressed in a tribal outfit and holding a beacon in his hand. It is his intense passion for acting that drove him from being a small time stage actor to Madras in the early 70s and the rest as they say is history.

Rajini whose recent release 'Annaathe' directed by Siruthai Siva and produced by Sun Pictures turned out to be a blockbuster hit at the box office in spite of mixed to negative reviews. He will soon start shooting for 'Thalaivar 169' for the same producer directed by Nelson with Anirudh scoring the music.