Rajinikanth skips Kochadaiyaan's screening at IFFI

Superstar Rajinikanth who was recently honoured with the Centenary Award for the Indian Film Personality of the Year at International Film Festival of India (IFFI) was not present during the screening of his much hyped movie Kochadaiyaan. The Tamil historical fiction-action film which hit the screens in May this year marked the directorial debut of Rajini’s 30-year-old daughter Soundarya Rajinikanth.

"Rajinikanth who was supposed to be personally present for the screening couldn't make it due to his preoccupation in Bengaluru," announced a senior ministry official. However, Soundarya and her mother Latha were present at the screening of the much-talked animated film.

Talking about her directorial venture, Soundarya said, "It's indeed an honour for me to be a part of IFFI this evening. Kochadaiyaan is my first film and I am a debutante director. The movie is India's first performance captured photo-realistic film. My dad is not here today but I want to thank him for bringing this technology to our country."

"Animation is very new in India and this is a humble first attempt to bring this technology into the arena of Indian entertainment. Unlike films including (James Cameron's) Avatar and (Steven Spielberg's) Tintin where there are fictitious characters, I took on myself to recreate the legend of my father. I hope you enjoy the film," she added.