Today Sivaji Rao Gaekwad or Rajinikanth can lay his hands on whatever he wishes for.
He is the highest paid actor in India, respected alike by the old and young, probably the only actor in India who can do justice to the title demigod, NDTV's best Indian of the year award for 2007 and to top it all unparalleled love and adoration given by his fans.
Rajinikanth, the superstar has grown to such an extent that now it is sometimes hard to believe that this screen god was once just a common unknown man just like the innumerable persons having only dreams to fuel the aspirations.
Now for the first time in India's history a brief story about an actor's success has been included in a text book.
The voyage of Rajiikanth to superstardom has been included in the CBSE STD VI course material under the section Dignity of Work by the Oxford University Press
Now all over India Children can read and get inspired after reading this chapter titled 'From Bus Conductor to Film Star' as part of their academic studies.
The chapter starts with the name of Raja Bahadur who is the person solely responsible for giving Kollywood the actor who later on went to rule in Industry and still continues to do so.
The friendship between Rajinikanth and Raja Bahadur started in the 1970's when the superstar was the conductor and his friend the driver of a bus for the route number 10A between Majestic and Srinagar of the Bangalore Transport service.
At that time Rajinikanth was known as Sivaji Rao, a government employee whose passion for acting had not gone beyond the borders of the stage at the Gubbi Veeranna Ranga Mandira in the garden city.
Raja Bahadur seeing the tremendous potential that the actor inside Sivaji Rao had and the overwhelming response he got from the audience when he played Duryodhana and Yechhama Nayaka, the Kannada warrior decided to persuade the future superstar to consider acting more seriously.
The class VI chapter also gives a good example of a true and heartfelt friendship as it gives out how Rajinikanth's financial expenses were met by his dear friend for two years after Rajinikanth took a risk and gave up his government job to join the newly started Adyar Film Institute as suggested by Raja Bahadur himself.
After completing his course, it didn't take much time for Rajinikanth to start his acting trip as he was soon signed up by the veteran director K.Balachander for a new film.
Superstar Rajinikanth's friendship with Raja Bahadur still continues and the humble bus driver always sees his film star friend's movie on the first day first show itself.
