In the Era of Rajnikanth: The Past, Present and Future

As a kid, Rajnikanth’s movies fascinated me. The plotlines had a social message in them and the songs were not only musically inspiring, but like the plotline itself, had a few social messages of their own. 

And the dialogues spoken with his inimitable flair astounded me like no other. Relatives who were better aware of the South Indian film industry spoke of the ilk of Kamal Hasan, comparing it to Rajnikanth – implying and hinting about the former’s superiority over the latter. Given, I had never watched much of Mr. Hasan’s movies; I had no reason to get into the whole rivalry spanning between these two giants and join the cluster of either set of fans thriving in fanning it with much vigour. 

I continued to watch Rajnikanth’s movies well into my college days, though the attraction for his movies started to lessen. I can equate it to the Law of Diminishing Marginal Returns as put forth by neo-classical economist, Lord Alfred Marshall but it wouldn’t justify my dwindling wonderment at what Thalaiva could do, with apparent ease. 

The diminishing marvelling is thus inexplicable and, at the same time, explicable too. As a child, each of his signature style statements – unique to each movie – appealed. However as a grown-up, they came out as exaggerated and overhyped. I don’t mean to say, I don’t admire or appreciate his acting skills anymore. Or have started to question his acting skills, like many of my relatives pointedly did all those years ago. I continue to love his acting and I honestly believe his panache is irreplaceable, irrespective of how hard one tries. 

But yes, I am tired of the same pattern being repeated in his movies throughout these many years. I am surprised at why his movies have to have him essay a dual role, with him as the father and the son. There are several other actors who have played double roles – as father and son, or as siblings long separated by circumstances – but with Rajnikanth’s movies, the frequency of this particular theme almost never varies. 

The heroines in Rajnikanth’s movies have changed – from Nagma to Soundarya to Deepika Padukone and now to Sonakshi Sinha. The widening age-gap between Rajnikanth’s leading ladies and him doesn’t however affect me much, as does the commonality running through the core of most of his movies. I am looking forward to a change in this constancy as I have been since my college days. I am also hopeful this change will indeed come about. To take me back to those childhood days where his dialogues formed the punch lines of my childhood gags.

The Happiness Open: An event to be most thankful for

The Coca-Cola IPTL has brought together the Indian tennis fans like no other competition. In that, the Happiness Open has truly set a singular precedent. This aspect, however, forms just the tip of the iceberg as far as advantages the event has brought forth are concerned. 

There are a lot of reasons to be thankful for the Coca-Cola IPTL, and the five most prominent ones can be highlighted as under:

The platform of unique team compositions

Tennis, by and large, is an individual sport. Except for the Davis Cup and Fed Cup events, the game is played solo by the players, who travel across the globe in a tightly scheduled 11 month time-frame.

But the Happiness Open brings forth a totally different platter of team tennis, and a confluence of seriousness and light-hearted moments which enriches the sport. In the process, it has invigorated the players, bringing out the competitive best in them while also helping them have fun. 

Foes turned into friends

Players who are usually fierce rivals have turned into team-mates, cheering and egging each other on. Moments like these are rarely seen on the professional tennis circuit. How often will you see Andy Murray and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga high-fiving each other and shouting words of encouragement from the bench? 

The hitherto unseen camaraderie between the players has added to the allure of the Coca-Cola IPTL, making it an event which transcends the otherwise obvious boundaries of competitiveness. 

The world’s best competing in previously untapped locations

The only tennis tournament conducted by the ATP in India is the Chennai Open, which takes place right at the start of the season, in the capital city of Tamil Nadu. The ATP Chennai Open does – and has, in the past – attracted some of the world’s best tennis players on tour like Carlos Moya, Rafael Nadal, Stan Wawrinka, Marin Cilic and Tomas Berdych to name a few. 

But Djokovic and Federer have been largely missing due to their commitments in other parallel ATP events, leading to disappointment amongst the country’s widespread legion of tennis fans. The Happiness Open has thus given the fans a brilliant opportunity to see and experience the magic of these two players, first-hand, at home. 

Development of tennis

As a sport, tennis, despite its prevalence through the years, still continues to be shrouded in the shadows. The ostensible shortcomings of Indian tennis have, of course, been well-documented. But identifying the problem hasn’t made way for the solutions in the past.

The Coca-Cola IPTL can help resolve this problem rather efficiently. By using the thrust of the Happiness Open, a much stronger and concrete pathway can be paved for the future of Indian tennis, starting with improved infrastructure and increased awareness among the masses. 

The recurring theme

The most important reason to be thankful for the Coca-Cola IPTL is its recurring theme, which makes the event all the more interesting. In its maiden year itself, the event has garnered success, accolades and appreciative comments from all over the world and this can be seen as a pre-cursor for many more beautiful moments to come in the next few years.

Move over, ladies; the men of the Coca-Cola IPTL are bringing in plenty of glamour!

The Coca-Cola IPTL has brought the world’s best and leading tennis professionals, from both the ATP and WTA tours, together on one special stage. Those who pay keen attention to the proceedings at the professional circuit know their tennis stars well. But for those who pay only occasional glances at the sport, there are a lot of variables lying hidden in this motley mix of adventurous tennis.

On the lighter side though, it’s always fun to determine which player competing in the tournament is the best-looking of them all. Of course, the ladies of the ilk of Maria Sharapova and Ana Ivanovic bring in plenty of glamour, but let’s just focus on the men this time, who are pretty fine physical specimens themselves.

There’s the unconventional appeal of the rugged-looking Goran Ivanisevic, who is an intrinsic part of the UAE Royals outfit. The Coca-Cola IPTL has presented the fun side of the Croat, who has been seen joking around with his teammates and sharing in the merriment of the crowd. He’s become a huge hit with the masses who, have thronged to watch him come up with a stellar show of powerful tennis and quintessential humour. 

Giving company to Ivanisevic as crowd pullers are Daniel Nestor, Mark Philippoussis and Carlos Moya, who form a part of the Manila Mavericks, and Pat Rafter and Bruno Soares for the Singapore Slammers. All these guys have always possessed a certain universal appeal; the Aussies Philippoussis and Rafter, in particular, were heartthrobs in their heyday. And in the Coca-Cola IPTL, they have pulled and rallied the crowd behind them with ease.

Equally forceful has been the presence of names like Lleyton Hewitt and Nick Kyrgios who, representing the Singapore Slammers, bring to the fore the famous Aussie spirit. Kyrgios in particular has become an instant hit with his rapper style of on-court fashion. The younger generation of the tennis fans gathered at the Happiness Open at New Delhi are finding the 19-year-old quite interesting – with his game and beyond. 

Then there’s Tomas Berdych, yet another star inclusion in the Slammers’ team. Berdych is yet to find his best rhythm in India, but that hasn’t prevented the fans from going moony-eyed over the tall, blue-eyed Czech. A similar example can be made of Marin Cilic, the reigning US Open champion, whose quiet personality has accentuated his appeal, intriguing the Indian tennis fans considerably. 

The tidal wave of love, adoration and respect pouring in for all the players gathered to the play the Indian leg of the Happiness Open has been tangible. But the response for all the other players pales when compared to the awe generated by the presence of Novak Djokovic and Roger Federer, for the Royals and Aces respectively. 

Both these superstars are polar opposites in their personality. The Serb is one who can crack a joke at himself, without any self-consciousness, while the Swiss is known for his gentlemanly style, sticking to convention and tradition. Most of the Indian fans had only heard or read these descriptive facets of the players. At the Coca-Cola IPTL however, they have had the chance to see these attributes first-hand. 

An entire nation has waited with bated breath to watch these players come and play in a completely new playing field and they weren’t disappointed, with the Swiss grooving to Bollywood beats and the Serb subbing himself in to play in the doubles match. 

Federer and Djokovic have completely mesmerised everyone with their game and their style, and as such it’s only fitting to term these two players as the most captivating ones of the Coca-Cola IPTL.

The Indian Tennis Culture: The Past, Present and the Coca-Cola IPTL-inspired Future

Tennis, the foundation stone of the currently on-going Coca-Cola IPTL, is deeply woven into the fabric of Indian sports. But where the sport’s history is rich with chronicles of numerous successes in all these years, certain elements have continued to elude the Indian tennis playing contingent. 

Success in singles has long since been a problem for Indian tennis athletes who invariably, at some point in their career, make the switch to playing doubles. Yes, they do reap rich dividends by doing so, and this continuing trend has certainly made the country’s tennis fans happy and given them opportunities to watch their idols on the winners’ podium. Undeniably however, it has also raised a couple of questions about the culture and health of the sport in the country, and where the Indian tennis fraternity is headed for in the future. After all, singles is where the sport’s elite are most engaged.

Amongst various reasons cited for Indians’ inability to do well in singles, the most commonly cited one is that of infrastructural inadequacies. Being an expensive sport, the investment factor makes tennis a costly affair with little – or even nothing – to show for the amount invested. Conversely, one cannot have success handed to one on a platter without any initial investment. 

This catch-22 situation frequently threatened to turn into a vicious, unending cycle in the past. The Coca-Cola IPTL, however, is a development that stands to provide a bridge between these two conflicting facets. The uniquely formulated ‘Happiness Open’ is, in many ways, a proactive structure, with no discernible loopholes that seem likely to derail its objectives. 

Most of the younger generation of tennis players in India haven’t seen the likes of Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic, Pete Sampras, Pat Rafter, Ana Ivanovic, Caroline Wozniacki and Goran Ivanisevic in such a unique playing field. Watching these legends play in India would provide a singular kind of motivation to these youngsters; nothing can ever match the experience of witnessing these players from close quarters. 

The athleticism and supreme fitness levels that the top tier players bring to the table have to be seen to be believed. These Grand Slam champions will provide quite a few lessons on health and conditioning to the youngsters watching the action. There is a lot to be gained by living a fit and healthy life, and India’s youth will certainly be inspired by the super-fit Djokovic or Murray in that regard.

Sania Mirza and Rohan Bopanna are already eliciting huge roars from the crowd and from everyone across the country following the Coca-Cola IPTL proceedings. These players are a representation of the Indian tennis potential, and watching them play is reason enough for people to contemplate about investing in tennis. If not for them personally, then certainly for their young ones. 

Indians are known to face challenges head-on and come out stronger. Tennis is one challenge Indian players learnt to tackle early on, forging a path where not many international stars tread with conviction. It’s time for us to steer the course of our way of addressing the issue differently, using the inspirational thrust of the Coca-Cola IPTL, and come out of it all smiling and triumphant.