‘Ultimate Star’ Ajith Kumar’s Vivegam has hit theatres today, and fans were out in large numbers early in the morning to celebrate the release of the film. The film comes a couple of years after the actor’s previous release – Vedhalam – also directed by Siva. While a few prudent fans had ditched the usual paal abhishekam ritual for Ajith and donated the milk instead, some others created a record of sorts by making a 57 kg idli carving with the actor’s likeness. Fans of the actor from North Chennai, in association with Samayal Kalai Thozhilalar Munnetra Sangam, created the made-to-measure idly to celebrate Ajith’s 57th film.
The rest of them, meanwhile, continued to observe what has now become a tradition on the release day of a star vehicle: Rising early, bursting fireworks, and generally creating mayhem. Theatres Kasi, Albert and Rohini – the prime spots where the celebration is always grand – were flooded with Ajith fans of all ages, and primarily one gender, sporting ‘Vivegam’ T-shirts, and dancing their hearts out.
As always, the fan frenzy needs to be seen to be believed:
Up at 4 am, these fans flock to the old but popular single-screen theatres in Chennai
Vivegam‘s music director, Anirudh Ravichander, is always up with the fans for an early morning show at Albert Theatre
Perhaps taking the day off from school, kids too are a part of the early morning celebrations
A celebration with firecrackers is a must. Here we see fans light a ‘10,000 waala’
The 57-kg idly with Ajith’s face carved out by his ardent fans in North Chennai
Irrespective of whether they have the tickets or not, many fans look forward to the early morning celebrations more
(And no, we have no idea what happened to the 57 kg idli afterward. Hopefully, a thoughtful fan would have commissioned vats of Sambar, or 57 varieties of chutney to wash it down.)
Photos by Dani Charles and Sriram Narasimhan.
