Oct 13, 2026 9:28pm IST
Vidya Balan on Rajinikanth’s Superstar Aura in ‘Jailer 2’: ‘He Doesn’t Make You Feel Like He’s Judging You’ (EXCLUSIVE)
Vidya Balan expected a grand entrance when she first encountered Rajinikanth on the sets of “Jailer 2”. Instead, the superstar walked in without any fanfare, an experience that left the actor with a lesson about the difference between the spectacle surrounding a star and the person behind it.
Recalling the moment, Balan said she was already on set, chatting with the director, cinematographer and assistants, when she noticed someone approaching the group. Given Rajinikanth’s stature, she had imagined his arrival would be considerably more dramatic.
“I was already on set, chatting with the director and the DOP and some of the assistants and all that. We were all standing in a circle and just chatting and laughing. Someone began to walk towards us from a distance. I expected that his entry, you know, there would be trumpets at his entry. But he just walked in silently,” Vidya Balan tells Variety India.
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For Balan, that understated introduction was consistent with everything she came to appreciate about the superstar while working with him. Rather than making his co-stars conscious of his stature, she said, Rajinikanth’s manner put people at ease. His lack of pretension, she believes, is part of what makes him so singular.
“There is so much to learn and appreciate and imbibe. There is no shosha. And look at how he just presents himself as he is. I think that’s why audiences love him so much, because he’s so authentic,” she said.
Vidya Balan also reflected on whether working alongside an actor of Rajinikanth’s stature brought its own pressure. While she acknowledged the significance of the opportunity, she said his presence made it difficult to feel intimidated for long. For her, the experience was less about the weight of sharing the screen with a legend and more about the gratitude of being able to work with him.
“Honestly, I don’t know if I take on that pressure. It’s always, I think, very grateful that I got this opportunity to work with the legend himself. But I don’t know if there was any pressure. And if there is any pressure, I think he just, with his presence, he just eases it. He lets you be. You know, he doesn’t make you feel like he’s watching you or he’s judging you or anything of the sort. So if at all there was any pressure, I don’t think I even sensed it,” she said.
The actor was quick to distinguish that feeling from the nerves that naturally accompany the beginning of a new role. She said Rajinikanth’s demeanour helped dissolve whatever subliminal pressure she might have felt, describing him as someone who makes a conscious effort to acknowledge the people around him.
“There is always pressure when you’re starting work on a new role. But I don’t think I was nervous in that sense. If there was any subliminal pressure, that was eased by his presence. He’s such a calming presence. He’s so wonderful, he’s so giving, you know, just even as a person, always has a word of appreciation for everyone. He puts you at ease immediately, always smiling at everyone,” Balan said.
One such moment came early in their interactions, when Rajinikanth spoke to her about her social media reels. Balan recalled that the superstar told her he watched her videos and found them funny, a small but unexpected gesture that immediately made the interaction less daunting. “I remember he told me about my reels on, I think, on the first or second day that I met him. He said, ‘I keep watching your videos and they’re so funny.’ And I immediately got put at ease, right?” she recalled.
Vidya Balan was careful not to suggest that she knew every aspect of the superstar’s private life. What struck her, instead, was the consistency of the person he appeared to be around those working with him. She described him as secure and rooted, qualities that, in her view, allow him to move beyond the usual trappings of stardom.
“It’s priceless. And when you watch people like him, there’s no… at least you don’t get… I’m sure there’s a private self that’s not known, that’s not shown to other people. But everyone has a right to that, right? He almost makes you feel like this is who he is at all times. You know, he has a smile for every team,” she said. She added: “I think because he’s so secure, so rooted. I think that you get a sense of him being an evolved person. I don’t want to judge that, but you get a sense that he’s above all this. Which is why he’s above everyone else.”
Directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, “Jailer 2” stars Rajinikanth and features Balan alongside an ensemble that includes Mithun Chakraborty and S. J. Suryah. The sequel to the 2023 film “Jailer” is scheduled to release in theatres on October 15, 2026.
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