Dhanush SLAMMED For Speech About Buying Home in Rajinikanth's Neighbourhood in Chennai; Here's Why

Tamil superstar Dhanush has come under fire for his speech at the music launch of his upcoming film, Raayan. The event was aired on TV over the weekend and many viewers took notice of his speech in which Dhanush tried to project that he is an ‘outsider’ and worked hard to buy a house in Poes Garden, the neighbourhood that houses Rajinikanth and late Tamil Nadu CM J Jayalalithaa’s homes. The actor, who is the son of an established filmmaker in the Tamil film industry, is being criticised for his speech.

At the event, Dhanush spoke in Tamil about the chatter that erupted after he bought a house in Poes Garden. He said, “If I knew buying a house in Poes Garden would have become such a big topic of conversation, I would have simply got a small apartment. Should I not buy a house in Poes Garden? If I live in a street, I remain to live in a street only?”

He then revealed that there is a story behind buying the house in the posh locality. “There is a small story about buying the house in Poes Garden. I was 16 when me and my friend were riding through Cathedral Road (in Chennai). You know whose fan I am (referring to Rajinikanth). So, during the ride, I wished to see Thalaivar’s house. I asked someone where is his house. We followed the directions given. We noticed a group of Police officers in the locality and asked them to guide us to Rajinikanth’s house. They directed us but told us to leave immediately after we saw the house,” he shared in Tamil.

“We saw the house and got excited. After we saw, we turned our bike, ready to leave when we saw a group of people gathered outside another house. When asked about the crowd, we were told, ‘This is Jayalalithaa’s house.’ I stopped the bike and looked — on one side, there is Rajini sir’s house, on the other is Jayalalithaa Amma’s house. I thought to myself that one day, somehow, I want to buy at least a small house in a posh locality like Poes Garden. The Poes Garden house today is a gift to the 16-year-old Venkatesh Prabhu (Dhanush’s birth name),” he said, leaving his sons and fans cheering.

Although an aspirational story, many social media users are slammed him for trying to portray himself as an outsider. Many pointed out that Dhanush belonged to film family. “Rajinikanth and Jayalalitha are self made actors. He is Nepo kid! How dare he compared himself with them,” an X user said. “Bro thinks he is Rajini. Dhanush summa overscene poduren (He’s simply overdoing it now),” added another.

“Great actor – on screen and unfortunately off the screen too. Immense respect for Dhanush, the actor but have lost considerable request for him as a person. Disappointed!” a third user wrote. “I like Danush. As an actor. That said, not sure why he is still going all out to impress Rajni. Not only that, when was this Poes Garden house thgy ever an issue? I don’t even see it anywhere. Seem like he wanted to speak highly of himself, that’s all,” a fourth user wrote.

A social media user also pointed out that Dhanush made his acting debut at the age of 18, became a renowned star by 19, and married Rajinikanth’s daughter Aishwaryaa Rajinikanth by the age of 20, adding more fame to his already growing career. “What is this new level of idiocy from Dhanush? The guy says that the incident happened when he was 16 y.o. Was he an outsider back then? No. His father was a well-known director who had lost his magic,” the social media user said.

For the unversed, Dhanush bought the Poes Garden house last year. The house allegedly costs Rs 150 crores. On the work front, Dhanush will be seen in Raayan. The film is slated to release on July 26.