We've slowed down: Kamal on competition with Rajinikanth

Actor-filmmaker Kamal Haasan Friday said that he and superstar Rajinikanth used to compete aggressively earlier but not any more.

"Rajini and I used to release our films almost every Friday in the 1980s but not anymore. Today, we have slowed down, not because of our age, but because of budget constraints. We can't afford to have the release of our big budget films on the same day," Kamal told reporters here.

He was speaking at the trailer launch of the digitally restored version of his 1977 Tamil film "16 Vayathinile", which also featured Rajinikanth in a negative role.

Directed by Bharathiraja, the commercially successful "16 Vayathinile", which was made on a meagre budget of Rs.4.5 lakh, saw Sridevi playing an important role.

Speaking at the event, Bharathiraja said: "Kamal was paid Rs.27,000 for the film. Rajini wanted Rs.5,000, but I convinced him for Rs.3,000 and eventually paid only Rs.2,500. Budget was a big constraint for all of us back then."

Industry members such as filmmaker Bhagyaraj and actor-filmmaker Parthepan were also present at the event.

The film was remade in Telugu as "Padaharella Vayasu" with Chandra Mohan, Mohan Babu and Sridevi in the lead.