For a long time, Kamal Haasan’s fans lovingly called him Oscar Nayagan, the Oscar hero, because even though he’d never won an Oscar, he was considered the most deserving actor to potentially receive such a prestigious and popular award. But all this changed after AR Rahman’s double Oscar win for Slumdog Millionaire (2008). Even the most diehard Kamal fan found it awkward to call him by a title now claimed by a fellow Tamil from the same industry.
But this hasn’t stopped the Indian public from evoking the Oscar tag for the slightest of reasons. When Rajinikanth’s Darbar (2020) released, some of his fans streamed out of cinema halls and bewilderingly shouted, “Oscar kudra Trump-ey!” Yo Trump, give that Oscar to our superstar!
