Vijay's Meteoric Rise: Comparing Thalapathy's stardom with Rajnikanth, SRK

Mass following led to Vijay's rise as India's highest paid actor, so why is he not seen much in ads?

Between 2000 and 2003, when an up and coming actor named Joseph Vijay first became the brand ambassador for Coca-Cola in Tamil Nadu, for the “Coke Kudi da” (roughly meaning “drink Coke”) campaign, he earned in lakhs for each movie. By 2009, when Coca-Cola wanted Vijay again, he was earning about Rs 8 crore a movie. This time, naturally, Coke had to shell out much more for him.

Fifteen years on, in 2024, Vijay is a bonafide superstar. More specifically, he is the highest paid actor in India and possibly in all of Asia, going by his reported fee of Rs 275 crore for Thalapathy 69, his upcoming movie. And he is popularly known as Thalapathy, meaning commander, or leader — a term of respect and affection in the south of the country.

Intriguingly, while still at the top of his game, Vijay has announced that he will retire as actor after Thalapathy 69. After that, the 50-year-old will focus on a career in politics, which he has embarked on by launching his party, Thamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK).

That makes it a good time to examine the rise of Vijay, why his remuneration increased 33-fold in 15 years, and what makes him worth all the money he make.

SRK, Rajini Sir

Some of the answers, say industry experts, lie in Vijay’s following among the masses in all four South Indian states, especially in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Despite receiving bad reviews from critics and even his own fans, his latest movie, The Greatest of All Time (GOAT), has collected Rs 413 crore in 13 days since it was released on September 5.

If box office is taken to be the benchmark, few would come close to Vijay, especially in recent years. Each of his eight movies since 2017 has collected more than Rs 200 crore. This includes (starting with the most recent before GOAT) Leo (Rs 605 crore), Varisu (Rs 300 crore), Beast (Rs 216.58 crore), Master (Rs 223 crore), Bigil (Rs 295.85 crore), Sarkar (Rs 252 crore), and Mersal (Rs 244.8 crore). 

Meanwhile, GOAT continues to graze in green pastures.

“Such numbers indicate the mass support Vijay enjoys, making him a very, very bankable star. It is crucial for any actor to deliver those numbers consistently, especially if they are charging a significant amount,” film trade analyst Taran Adarsh told Business Standard.

The other two highest-paid actors in the top three — Shah Rukh Khan and Rajinikanth, who are widely perceived as India’s biggest stars — have not had an unblemished run. Out of Khan’s last eight movies, five were damp at the box office: Jab Harry Met Sejal (Rs 64.33 crore), Dear Zindagi (Rs 68.16 crore), Fan (Rs 84.1 crore), Zero (Rs 90.28 crore), and Raees (Rs 137.51crore). This is based on industry reports.

Khan however came back with a bang in 2024 with Pathaan (Rs 543 crore) and Jawan (Rs 643 crore), although Dunki (Rs 212 crore) fell short of the other two.

Rajinikanth, who played an extended cameo in his last outing, Lal Salaam, saw one of the biggest flops of his career, with the movie collecting only Rs 17 crore. Among his last eight movies, Annaatthe collected Rs 160 crore, Darbar brought in Rs 250 crore, and Kaala Rs 155 crore — not up to his usual high standards.

Larger than life

Vijay’s sustained success, say experts, may have a lot to do with his larger-than-life persona. Some of his recent movies did not earn much praise for their storylines.

“As far as recent Vijay movies are concerned, they have mostly opened to mixed or negative reviews... Due to the hype created by the cast, trailer, and director, the movies get a considerable opening. For all his movies, opening day numbers account for 30 per cent of their lifetime collection,” said trade analyst Manobala Vijayabalan. “If a movie opens with Rs 75 crore on the first day and ends up with Rs 200 crore, it is purely because of negative word of mouth.”

Vijayabalan backs his argument with GOAT’s numbers. “As far as GOAT is concerned, the producers announced a first-day collection of Rs 126 crore gross. After four days, they announced Rs 288 crore, despite having a festival weekend. The movie managed to earn only twice the opening day figure in the next three days of its run,” he said.

He pointed out that all the Rs 1,000 crore movies like Salaar, KGF Chapter 2, Kalki 2898 AD, and Baahubali 2 attracted more viewers after the initial collections.

“If we subtract Rs 288 crore from the lifetime collection, the remaining figure will expose the film’s poor run,” Vijayabalan added.

Not much to ad

Vijay is not seen much in endorsements in recent times. After 2011, when his stature as a star rose sharply, he started staying away from advertisements, much like his idol Rajinikanth. Other than Coca-Cola, the brands Vijay has endorsed include Sunfeast (2005) and Tata Docomo (2011). In 2008, he also became the brand ambassador for Chennai Super Kings, the Indian Premier League franchise.

In 2014, Vijay’s movie Kaththi became a super hit. But the actor faced criticism and online trolling. Vijay’s character in the movie, Jeevanandham, was an activist fighting against cola firms for depleting groundwater. The real life Vijay had earlier endorsed the “Coke Kudi Da” campaign.

“Yes, I did an ad earlier. I don’t endorse the brand anymore. When I heard the script of Kaththi, it made sense to me, and I voiced it through Jeevanandham’s character. And I feel happy for having done it now,” he reportedly said. He stated that he was an “ordinary man who attempted to correct the mistake”.

Many believe Vijay is the biggest brand ambassador advertisers have failed to fully utilise.

Interestingly, when Nitin Datar, President of the Cinema Owners and Exhibitors Association of India, was asked whether Vijay was the most bankable star, he cryptically answered, “Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan.”  Some would add Rajinikanth to the list.

But the box office tells a different story, one in which Vijay is the Thala among equals.