# Rajinikanth filmography

Rajinikanth is an Indian actor, film producer, screenwriter and also a playback singer who has appeared predominantly in Tamil cinema. He began his film career by playing antagonistic and supporting roles before graduating to a lead actor. After starring in numerous commercially successful films throughout the 1980s and 1990s, he has continued to hold a matinée idol status in the popular culture of Tamil Nadu. Writing for Slate, Grady Hendrix called him the "biggest movie star you've probably never heard of." Rajinikanth has also worked in other Indian film industries such as Hindi, Telugu, Kannada and Malayalam.
He made his cinematic debut with K. Balachander's 1975 Tamil drama Apoorva Raagangal, in which he played a minor role of an abusive husband. He had his first major role in Balachander's Telugu drama film Anthuleni Katha (1976), and got his breakthrough in Tamil with Moondru Mudichu (1976)—also directed by Balachander. His style and mannerisms in the latter earned recognition from the audience. In 1977, he acted in 15 films, playing negative characters in most of them, including Avargal, 16 Vayathinile, Aadu Puli Attam and Gaayathri. He had positive roles in Kavikkuyil, the Kannada film Sahodarara Savaal, and the Telugu film Chilakamma Cheppindi, in which he played the protagonist for the first time in his career. His role as a failed lover in S. P. Muthuraman's Bhuvana Oru Kelvi Kuri (1977) won him critical acclaim. In 1978, he was cast as the main lead in the Tamil film Bairavi. The same year, he received critical acclaim for his roles in Mullum Malarum and Aval Appadithan; the former earned him a Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize for Best Actor. He made his Malayalam cinema debut with I. V. Sasi's fantasy Allauddinum Albhutha Vilakkum (1979), an adaptation of a story from One Thousand and One Nights. By the end of the decade, he had worked in all South Indian languages and established a career in Tamil cinema.
He played dual roles in the action thriller Billa (1980), which was a remake of the Bollywood film Don (1978). It was his biggest commercial success to that point and gave him the action hero image. Murattu Kaalai released in 1980 was instrumental in establishing Rajinikanth as both an action hero and superstar. Balachander's Thillu Mullu (1981), the Tamil remake of the Bollywood film Gol Maal (1979), was Rajinikanth's first full-length comedy film. He played triple roles in the 1982 Tamil film Moondru Mugam, which earned him a special prize at the Tamil Nadu State Film Awards ceremony. The following year, he made his Bollywood debut with T. Rama Rao's Andhaa Kaanoon; it was among the top-grossing Bollywood films in 1983. Muthuraman's Nallavanukku Nallavan (1984) won him that year's Filmfare Award for Best Tamil Actor. In 1985, he portrayed the Hindu saint Raghavendra Swami in his 100th film Sri Raghavendrar, a box-office failure. In the latter half of the 1980s, he starred in several films in Tamil and Hindi, including Geraftaar (1985), Padikkadavan (1985), Mr. Bharath (1986), Dosti Dushmani (1986), Velaikaran (1987), Manithan (1987), Guru Sishyan (1988), Dharmathin Thalaivan (1988) and ChaalBaaz (1989). During this time, he made his debut in American cinema with a supporting role in the mystery adventure film Bloodstone (1988), a box-office failure.
Rajinikanth continued to act in Bollywood, often playing supporting roles in films such as Hum, and Phool Bane Angaray (both in 1991). Mani Ratnam's Tamil film Thalapathi (1991), based on the Indian epic Mahabharata, earned him critical acclaim. Suresh Krissna's Annaamalai (1992), P. Vasu's Mannan (1992) and Uzhaippali (1993) are among his box-office successes in Tamil. He made his debut as a screenwriter with Valli (1993), a commercial failure. The Suresh Krissna-directed Baashha, in which he played a crime boss, was a major commercial success in his career and earned him a "demigod" status in Tamil Nadu. Later that year he acted in K. S. Ravikumar's Muthu, which was dubbed into Japanese. In Japan, the film grossed a record US$1.6 million in 1998 and was largely instrumental in creating a fan-base for Rajinikanth in the country. Padayappa (1999), his second collaboration with Ravikumar, went on to become the highest-grossing Tamil film to that point. In 2002 Rajinikanth produced, wrote and starred in the fantasy thriller Baba, which fell short of market expectations and incurred heavy losses for its distributors. After a three-year sabbatical, he returned to acting with the comedy horror film Chandramukhi (2005); it went on to become the highest-grossing Tamil film to that point, and its theatrical run lasted 126 weeks at Shanti Theatre in Chennai. Rajinikanth was paid ₹26 crore for his role in S. Shankar's Sivaji (2007), which made him the second-highest paid actor in Asia after Jackie Chan. He played dual roles, as a scientist and an andro-humanoid robot, in the science fiction film Enthiran (2010). It was India's most expensive production at the time of its release, and is among the highest-grossing Indian films of all time. He played triple roles in the 2014 animated film Kochadaiiyaan, the first in India to be shot with motion capture technology; it was a commercial failure.
Two years later, Rajinikanth played a Malaysian Tamil crime boss in Pa. Ranjith's Kabali, which had the biggest weekend opening for an Indian film. In 2018, he had worked in two films, 2.0 and Kaala. 2.0 was the sequel to the earlier Enthiran (2010) and was produced at a budget of ₹400–600 crore, making it one of the most expensive Indian film made at the time of its release. It had grossed over ₹699 crore, securing the position of highest-grossing Indian film of 2018 and had ranked among the highest-grossing Indian films of all time. Alongside the commercial success of 2.0, Kaala, had grossed around ₹160 crore against the budget of ₹140 crore, making it commercially unsuccessful. After these films, he acted in Petta (2019), Darbar (2020), and Annaatthe (2021), which grossed around ₹219–250 crores, ₹202—250 crores, and ₹175–240 crores, respectively.
His recent blockbuster, Jailer (2023), directed by Nelson Dilipkumar, grossed over ₹600 crores, making it his second film to gross over the ₹500 and 600 crores mark, securing the position among highest grossing Tamil film of 2023 and the highest grossing Indian films of all time.

## Filmography

Key :
| † | Denotes films that have not yet been released |
List of Rajinikanth film acting credits :
| Year | Title | Role | Language | Notes |
| 1975 | Apoorva Raagangal | Pandiyan | Tamil | |
| 1976 | Katha Sangama | Kondaji | Kannada | |
| 1976 | Anthuleni Katha | Murthy | Telugu | |
| 1976 | Moondru Mudichu | Prasad | Tamil | |
| 1976 | Baalu Jenu | Vasu | Kannada | |
| 1977 | Avargal | Ramanathan | Tamil | |
| 1977 | Kavikkuyil | Murugan | Tamil | |
| 1977 | Raghupathi Raghavan Rajaram | Veeraiyan | Tamil | |
| 1977 | Chilakamma Cheppindi | Ravi | Telugu | |
| 1977 | Bhuvana Oru Kelvi Kuri | Sampath | Tamil | |
| 1977 | Ondu Premada Kathe | Chairman of village panchayat | Kannada | |
| 1977 | 16 Vayathinile | Parattai | Tamil | |
| 1977 | Sahodarara Savaal | Somashekhar | Kannada | |
| 1977 | Aadu Puli Attam | Rajini | Tamil | |
| 1977 | Gayathri | Rajarathnam | Tamil | |
| 1977 | Kumkuma Rakshe | Murali | Kannada | |
| 1977 | Aaru Pushpangal | Ravi | Tamil | |
| 1977 | Tholireyi Gadichindi | Chitti Babu | Telugu | |
| 1977 | Aame Katha | – | Telugu | Guest appearance |
| 1977 | Galate Samsara | Sundar | Kannada | |
| 1978 | Shankar Salim Simon | Simon | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Kiladi Kittu | Srikanth | Kannada | |
| 1978 | Annadammula Savaal | Rangababu | Telugu | |
| 1978 | Aayiram Jenmangal | Ramesh | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Maathu Tappada Maga | Chandru | Kannada | |
| 1978 | Mangudi Minor | Kumar | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Bairavi | Mookaiah | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Ilamai Oonjal Aadukirathu | Murali | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Sadhurangam | Sundaresan | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Vanakkatukuriya Kathaliye | Joe | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Vayasu Pilichindi | Murali | Telugu | |
| 1978 | Mullum Malarum | Kaali | Tamil | Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize |
| 1978 | Iraivan Kodutha Varam | Rajnikanth | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Thappida Thala | Devu | Kannada | |
| 1978 | Thappu Thalangal | Devu | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Aval Appadithan | Thyagu | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Thai Meethu Sathiyam | Babu | Tamil | |
| 1978 | En Kelvikku Enna Bathil | Saravana | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Paavathin Sambalam | Himself | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1978 | Justice Gopinath | Ravi | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Priya | Ganesh | Tamil | |
| 1978 | Priya | Ganesh | Kannada | |
| 1979 | Kuppathu Raja | Raja | Tamil | |
| 1979 | Iddaru Asadhyule | Bhaskar | Telugu | |
| 1979 | Allauddinum Albhutha Vilakkum | Kamruddin | Malayalam | |
| 1979 | Allaudinaum Arputha Vilakkum | Kamruddin | Tamil | |
| 1979 | Ninaithale Inikkum | Deepak | Tamil | |
| 1979 | Andamaina Anubhavam | Dilip | Telugu | |
| 1979 | Thaayillamal Naan Illai | Bichwa Bakri | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1979 | Dharma Yuddham | Vijay | Tamil | |
| 1979 | Naan Vazhavaippen | Michael D'Souza | Tamil | |
| 1979 | Tiger | Rashid | Telugu | |
| 1979 | Aarilirunthu Arubathu Varai | Santhanam | Tamil | |
| 1979 | Annai Oru Aalayam | Vijay | Tamil | |
| 1979 | Amma Evarikkaina Amma | Vijay | Telugu | |
| 1980 | Billa | David Billa, Rajappa | Tamil | |
| 1980 | Natchathiram | Himself | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1980 | Ram Robert Rahim | Inspector Ram | Telugu | |
| 1980 | Anbukku Naan Adimai | Gopinath | Tamil | |
| 1980 | Kaali | Kaali | Tamil | |
| 1980 | Kaali | Kaali | Telugu | |
| 1980 | Mayadari Krishnudu | Krishnudu | Telugu | |
| 1980 | Naan Potta Savaal | Ramu (Shiva) | Tamil | |
| 1980 | Johnny | Johnny, Vidyasagar | Tamil | |
| 1980 | Ellam Un Kairasi | Raja | Tamil | |
| 1980 | Polladhavan | Manohar | Tamil | |
| 1980 | Murattu Kaalai | Kaalaiyan | Tamil | |
| 1981 | Thee | Rajashekar | Tamil | |
| 1981 | Kazhugu | Raja | Tamil | |
| 1981 | Thillu Mullu | Chandran (Indiran) | Tamil | |
| 1981 | Garjanai | Vijay | Tamil | Trilingual film |
| 1981 | Garjanam | Vijay | Malayalam | Trilingual film |
| 1981 | Garjane | Vijay | Kannada | Trilingual film |
| 1981 | Netrikkan | Chakravarthi, Santhosh | Tamil | |
| 1981 | Ranuva Veeran | Raghu | Tamil | |
| 1982 | Pokkiri Raja | Ramesh, Raja | Tamil | |
| 1982 | Thanikattu Raja | Suryaprakash | Tamil | |
| 1982 | Ranga | Ranganathan | Tamil | |
| 1982 | Puthukavithai | Anand | Tamil | |
| 1982 | Nandri, Meendum Varuga | Himself | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1982 | Enkeyo Ketta Kural | Kumaran | Tamil | |
| 1982 | Moondru Mugam | SP Alex Pandian IPS, Arun, John | Tamil | Tamil Nadu State Film Award Special Prize |
| 1982 | Agni Sakshi | Himself | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1983 | Paayum Puli | Bharani | Tamil | |
| 1983 | Uruvangal Maralam | Himself (Raghavendrar) | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1983 | Thudikkum Karangal | Gopi | Tamil | |
| 1983 | Andhaa Kaanoon | Vijay Kumar Singh | Hindi | |
| 1983 | Thai Veedu | Raju | Tamil | |
| 1983 | Sivappu Sooriyan | Vijay | Tamil | |
| 1983 | Jeet Hamaari | Raju | Hindi | |
| 1983 | Adutha Varisu | Kannan | Tamil | |
| 1983 | Thanga Magan | Arun | Tamil | |
| 1984 | Meri Adalat | Inspector Ashok | Hindi | |
| 1984 | Naan Mahan Alla | Vishwanath | Tamil | |
| 1984 | Thambikku Entha Ooru | Balu | Tamil | |
| 1984 | Kai Kodukkum Kai | Kaalimuthu | Tamil | |
| 1984 | Idhe Naa Savaal | Ramu (Shiva) | Telugu | |
| 1984 | Anbulla Rajinikanth | Himself | Tamil | |
| 1984 | Gangvaa | Gangvaa | Hindi | |
| 1984 | Nallavanukku Nallavan | Manikkam | Tamil | Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil |
| 1984 | John Jani Janardhan | John Mendez / Janardhan Gupta / Jani | Hindi | |
| 1985 | Nyayam Meere Cheppali | Aathmaram | Telugu | Guest appearance |
| 1985 | Naan Sigappu Manithan | Vijay | Tamil | |
| 1985 | Mahaguru | Vijay "Mahaguru" | Hindi | |
| 1985 | Un Kannil Neer Vazhinthal... | Ravi | Tamil | |
| 1985 | Wafadaar | Ranga | Hindi | |
| 1985 | Sri Raghavendrar | Sri Raghavendrar | Tamil | 100th Film |
| 1985 | Geraftaar | Inspector Hussain | Hindi | Cameo |
| 1985 | Yaar? | Himself | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1985 | Bewafai | Ranveer | Hindi | |
| 1985 | Padikkadavan | Rajendran | Tamil | |
| 1986 | Mr. Bharath | Bharath | Tamil | |
| 1986 | Naan Adimai Illai | Vijay | Tamil | |
| 1986 | Jeevana Poratam | Ravi | Telugu | |
| 1986 | Viduthalai | Raja | Tamil | |
| 1986 | Bhagwaan Dada | Bhagwan Dada | Hindi | |
| 1986 | Kodai Mazhai | Himself | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1986 | Asli Naqli | Birju Ustad | Hindi | |
| 1986 | Dosti Dushmani | Ranjeet | Hindi | |
| 1986 | Maaveeran | Raja (Maaveeran) | Tamil | Also co-producer |
| 1987 | Daku Hasina | Mangal Singh | Hindi | Cameo |
| 1987 | Velaikaran | Raghupathi | Tamil | |
| 1987 | Insaaf Kaun Karega | Vikram Singh | Hindi | |
| 1987 | Oorkavalan | Kangeyan | Tamil | |
| 1987 | Manithan | Raja | Tamil | |
| 1987 | Manathil Urudhi Vendum | Himself | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1987 | Uttar Dakshin | Shankaran | Hindi | |
| 1988 | Tamacha | Vikram Pratap Singh | Hindi | |
| 1988 | Guru Sishyan | Raja (Guru) | Tamil | |
| 1988 | Dharmathin Thalaivan | Balasubramanian, Shankar | Tamil | |
| 1988 | Bloodstone | Shyam Sabu | English | |
| 1988 | Kodi Parakkuthu | DCP Erode Shivagiri (Dhadha) | Tamil | |
| 1989 | Rajadhi Raja | Rajashekar, Chinnarasu | Tamil | |
| 1989 | Gair Kanooni | Adam Khan, Azam Khan | Hindi | Cameo |
| 1989 | Siva | Siva (Tiger) | Tamil | 125th Film |
| 1989 | Raja Chinna Roja | Raja (Kumar) | Tamil | |
| 1989 | Mappillai | Aarumugam | Tamil | |
| 1989 | Bhrashtachar | Abdul Sattar | Hindi | Cameo |
| 1989 | ChaalBaaz | Jackie Pandyekar (Jaggu) | Hindi | |
| 1990 | Panakkaran | Muthu | Tamil | |
| 1990 | Periya Idathu Pillai | Himself | Tamil | Guest appearance |
| 1990 | Athisaya Piravi | Kaalai, Balu | Tamil | |
| 1991 | Dharma Durai | Dharma Durai | Tamil | |
| 1991 | Hum | Inspector Kumar Malhotra | Hindi | |
| 1991 | Farishtay | Arjun Thange | Hindi | |
| 1991 | Khoon Ka Karz | Kishan | Hindi | |
| 1991 | Phool Bane Angaray | Inspector Ranjeet Singh | Hindi | |
| 1991 | Nattukku Oru Nallavan | Inspector Subhash | Tamil | |
| 1991 | Shanti Kranti | Inspector Subhash | Hindi | |
| 1991 | Thalapathi | Surya | Tamil | |
| 1992 | Mannan | Krishnan | Tamil | Also playback singer |
| 1992 | Tyagi | Shankar G. "Dadhu" Dayal | Hindi | |
| 1992 | Annaamalai | Annaamalai | Tamil | |
| 1992 | Pandian | Pandian IPS | Tamil | |
| 1993 | Insaniyat Ke Devta | Anwar | Hindi | |
| 1993 | Yajaman | Kanthavelu Vaanavarayan | Tamil | |
| 1993 | Uzhaippali | Thamizharasan (Tamilazhagan) | Tamil | |
| 1993 | Valli | Veeraiyan | Tamil | Extended Cameo; also producer and screenwriter |
| 1994 | Veera | Muthuveerappan | Tamil | |
| 1995 | Baashha | Manikam (Manik Baashha) | Tamil | |
| 1995 | Pedarayudu | Paparayudu | Telugu | |
| 1995 | Aatank Hi Aatank | Munna | Hindi | 150th Film |
| 1995 | Muthu | Muthu, Zamindar | Tamil | Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor |
| 1995 | Bhagya Debata | Singer | Bengali | Guest appearance |
| 1997 | Arunachalam | Arunachalam, Vedachalam | Tamil | |
| 1999 | Padayappa | Aarupadayappan | Tamil | Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor |
| 2000 | Bulandi | Ghajraj Thakur | Hindi | |
| 2002 | Baba | Baba, Mahavatar Babaji (Voice-Over) | Tamil | Also producer and screenwriter |
| 2005 | Chandramukhi | Dr Saravanan, Vettaiyan Raja | Tamil | Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor |
| 2007 | Sivaji: The Boss | Sivaji Arumugam (M. G. Ravichandran) | Tamil | Tamil Nadu State Film Award for Best Actor Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil |
| 2008 | Kuselan | Ashok Kumar | Tamil | Extended cameo |
| 2008 | Kathanayakudu | Ashok Kumar | Telugu | Extended cameo |
| 2010 | Enthiran | Vaseegaran, Chitti | Tamil | Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil |
| 2011 | Ra.One | Chitti (Himself) | Hindi | Cameo, computer generated |
| 2014 | Kochadaiiyaan | Kochadaiiyaan, Ranadheeran, Senadheeran | Tamil | Also playback singer |
| 2014 | Lingaa | K. Lingeswaran, Raja Lingeswaran | Tamil | |
| 2016 | Kabali | Kabaliswaran | Tamil | Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor – Tamil |
| 2017 | Cinema Veeran | Narrator | Tamil | Documentary |
| 2018 | Kaala | Karikaalan | Tamil | |
| 2018 | 2.0 | Vaseegaran, Chitti, Kutty | Tamil | |
| 2019 | Petta | Petta Velan (Kaali) | Tamil | |
| 2020 | Darbar | Aaditya Arunachalam IPS | Tamil | |
| 2021 | Annaatthe | Kaalaiyan (Annaatthe) | Tamil | |
| 2023 | Jailer | "Tiger" Muthuvel Pandian | Tamil | |
| 2024 | Lal Salaam | D. G. Mohideen | Tamil | Extended Cameo |
| 2024 | Vettaiyan | SP V. Athiyan IPS (Vettaiyan) | Tamil | |
| 2025 | Coolie † | Deva | Tamil | |
| TBA | Jailer 2 † | "Tiger" Muthuvel Pandian | Tamil | |