Shivaji Rao Gaekwad (born 12 December 1950), known by his mononymous stage name Rajinikanth, is an Indian film actor and politician who works primarily in Tamil cinema. He began acting in plays while working in the Bangalore Transport Service as a bus conductor. In 1973, he joined the Madras Film Institute to pursue a diploma in acting. Following his debut in K.Balachander's Tamil drama Apoorva Raagangal (1975), his acting career commenced with a brief phase of portraying antagonistic characters in Tamil films.
After earning ?26 crore (equivalent to ?56 crore or US$8.6 million in 2017) for his role in Sivaji(2007), he was the highest paid actor in Asia after Jackie Chain at the time. While working in other regional film industries of India, Rajinikanth has also appeared in the cinemas of other nations, including the American film Bloodstone(1988). As of 2014, Rajinikanth has won six Tamil Nadu State Film Awards, four Best Actor Award and two Special Awards for Best Actors— and a Filmfare Best Tamil Actor Award.