30 yrs of Ajith: Man who leads fans by being socially responsible

CHENNAI: It was a fine morning on August 3, 1993 when producer Chozha Ponnurangam had a young and handsome boy at this office waiting to sign his debut movie Amaravathi. 61 films and 30 years later, he is arguably the box office ruler of Tamil cinema and has had the biggest movie openings till date.

Though we have seen his onscreen persona varying with the characters he chooses, his off screen aura, charm, humility and generosity have remained the same even before Amaravathi.

Ajith, though is a complete entertainer on screen, makes it a point to be a role model off screen. Here are the reasons behind what makes Ajith the person he is.

Does not publicise his philanthropic activities

It is long known that there have been several families, who have been benefited by Ajith's charitable nature. Be it surgeries or educational needs, the actor quietly ensures that the family gets what it needs. However, there are very few incidents that these charity work has been made public from families of those who have been benefited. We ask Ajith's closest friends on why the actor refrains from publicising it, they say, "Ajith is someone who doesn't know how to react when people thank him. His close friends and colleagues say that he is a person who seldom knows how to react when someone thanks him. Which is why he has never been vocal about his philanthropy work."

Spends time biking and rifle shooting:

Post pandemic, Ajith is seen traveling across India, Russia and Europe on his bike. He even traveled to Valimai shooting on bike and traveled till Sikkim and rode back to Chennai by covering a distance of over 2,500 kms. After his return from Europe, Ajith immediately resorted to the state rifle championship and swept four gold medals. These are things Ajith has been passionate about even before his entry into filmdom. People who have visited his house have seen him owning air pistols as early as 1990-91. "I am doing it now extensively and spending more time because I want youngsters to take up sports. I am doing my bit to inspire them," is what we get to know about him.

From 'Thala' to AK or Ajith Kumar:

The actor dismantled his fan clubs on his birthday in 2011. Last year, he also openly announced that he wouldn't want people to call him with the moniker of Thala. "It is not stardom that made him socially responsible. Discipline has been his stronghold even before venturing into the industry. He uses his stardom on and off screen by asking his fans to be disciplined. This is the reason behind dismantling fan clubs and asking him to be addressed by name or initials.