(This article is authored by Alar)

Superstar Rajinikanth, who is gearing up for the release of his action-packed film Jailer, opened up about his experience of working with director Nelson Dilipkumar, the negative response to Beast and the online abuse that Nelson faced from some fans. He spoke at the audio launch of Jailer, which was held at Nehru Indoor Stadium in Chennai on July 28. The event was a huge success with thousands of fans cheering for their Thalaivar as he made a stylish entry with the producer Kalanithi Maran.

Rajinikanth, who spoke at the end of the event, revealed why he chose Nelson Dilipkumar for Jailer, despite his previous film Beast getting negative reviews. He said that he was impressed by Nelson’s vision and creativity and that he had a lot of fun working with him. 

Rajinikanth said that he liked Nelson’s sense of humour and his direction style. He said that Nelson would make him do comedy even in serious scenes and that he would not compromise on what he wanted. He said that Jailer had a lot of black comedy and that it was very difficult to perform and he was happy with the outcome and that Jailer was a complete entertainer that would satisfy all sections of the audience.

Rajinikanth also opened up about the online backlash that Nelson Dilipkumar faced after Beast. He said that as soon as it was revealed that his next film would be helmed by Nelson, social media was flooded with requests from fans urging the production house to replace the director. He added that he felt sorry for Nelson and that he was keen to collaborate with him for Jailer and he was firm on his choice and showed his support by changing his Twitter banner image with Jailer poster.

Rajinikanth also thanked his co-stars Tamannaah, Ramya Krishnan, Jackie Shroff and Vinayakan for their cooperation and dedication. He said that he was happy to share screen space with Mohanlal and Shiva Rajkumar, who are his good friends in the industry. He also expressed his gratitude to Kalanithi Maran and Sun Pictures for producing Jailer on a massive scale.

Adding to this,  the iconic star addressed the ongoing controversy on the Superstar title. He said, "The problem for the title of superstar started in 1977 itself. At that time, I told them not to put Superstar in the title of a film. Because, Kamal was very big at that time. Sivaji was also acting as a hero. So I said I don’t want the title of Superstar. But they said Rajini is scared. I am afraid of only two things. One is God, the supreme power. The other is good people. I am not afraid of anything else."

The prowess star also advised his dearie fans to not indulge in drinking habit, which gaining huge positive cheers from the fans. He said, "I would have been somewhere higher than I am now if I didn't have the bad habit. 'Drinking' was a witchcraft I kept on myself. Please stop drinking. Because of your drinking, the lives of everyone in your family will be affected."

Jailer is an action entertainer that features Rajinikanth as Muthuvel Pandian, a jailer who has to deal with a bunch of notorious criminals. The film also has a star-studded cast, including Tamannaah, Ramya Krishnan, Jackie Shroff, Vinayakan, Shiva Rajkumar and Mohanlal in cameo roles. The film has music composed by Anirudh Ravichander, who has delivered some rocking songs for Jailer. The audio launch event witnessed some energetic performances by the singers and dancers who grooved to the songs of Jailer. The highlight of the event was the song Kaavaalaa, featuring Tamannaah Bhatia, which has already become a viral hit on social media.