Superstar Rajinikanth took part in the function held yesterday at the premises of the new-look Kamala Cinemas in Vadapalani to release the digitized trailer of 16 Vayathinile, one of his earlier hits.
 In fact, Rajini had played the villain in the film directed by veteran Bharathiraja. Kamal Haasan and Sridevi were the other artistes in the film, which many consider as a ‘milestone’ film in the history of Tamil films.

Leading Kollywood celebrities including Rajini, Kamal Haasan, Bharathiraja and K. Bhagyaraj took part in the function. Rajini and Kamal jointly released the trailer of the film. Speaking at the event, Rajini said “When Rajkannu met me a few days back to invite me to attend the trailer-launch of the digitized version of 16 Vayithinile, I asked him as to who would be the ultimate beneficiary of the re-release of the film."

I’m sure fans would make the re-release a huge success - Rajini

“When Rajkannu replied that he would benefit, I assured him that I’d surely take part in the function. Rajkannu is a respected person in the industry who has plenty of self-esteem and behaves politely. He released the film on his own in 1977, neglecting criticism from certain quarters that the film might not do well. Kamal was already a star in those days and the film eventually did very well.

“When Kamal faced problems in releasing his Vishwaroopam early this year, Rajkannu said that he would re-release 16 Vayithinile and would donate the entire collections to Kamal to help him get out of the crisis. He’s a person who doesn’t want anyone to suffer and does everything possible to help others. I pray that 16 Vayithinile does very well in its re-release at least for Rajkannu’s huge heart

“Fortune is not permanent. It’s a welcome trend that old classics are re-released. I’m sure fans would make the re-release a huge success,” Rajini concluded.