The release of Rajinikanth’s Jailer may not have coincided with a festival—as is usually the norm with such releases—but it may as well have. The film is the talk of the town—and the hype has translated to early box-office numbers as well, with the film reported to have collected more than Rs. 100 crores, in under three days of its release. What’s particularly impressive about the success is how it seems to be faring well across regions—especially in the Telugu states, where reports suggest that Superstar Rajinikanth’s film is dominating the native release, Megastar Chiranjeevi’s Bhola Shankar. Jailer’s success beyond Tamil Nadu borders isn’t an accident; markings of it can be seen in the ‘Pan-Indian’ casting, with top actors across languages (including Mohan Lal and Shivarajkumar) stepping in for cameos during the second half. It is by design that Rajinikanth delivers punchlines in Hindi and Telugu, and speaks a bit of Kannada as well.

Naturally, at the heart of all this success is Rajinikanth, towering like a colossus, enthusiastic as ever to prove his box-office credentials. As sacrilegious as it may be to say this about a star who has remained at the top of his career for more than 50 years, there have been doubts, following the average reception to his last two films, Darbar and Annaatthe; there were raised eyebrows about the director, Nelson Dilipkumar, whose last film, Beast, didn’t quite work as expected. The jury has also been out on whether new-age filmmakers possess the know-how to handle the Superstar’s all-consuming legacy. Must they reinvent Rajinikanth, like Hindi cinema did Amitabh Bachchan? Or must they capitalise on nostalgia and cater to a loyal fan-base that demands recreation of old joys?

Jailer, fascinatingly, has sought to achieve a balance between both. There is enough fan service in here (including tropes and shots that hark back to the 90s), but there are also clever tweaks aimed at making the most of a 72-year-old Rajinikanth. He plays a retired cop; he remains a meek grandfather for a while. Even when the inevitable Baasha transformation occurs, there’s little fist-fighting; his allies often step up when he’s in a state of bother. He isn’t dancing in duets; he isn’t coveting a young woman. It's noteworthy that more than a year ago, another film—Vikram—did all of this with the other great star of Tamil cinema, Kamal Haasan, to great success.

Jailer, which loses quite a bit of ground in its second half, may not go on to shatter records as Vikram did, but its early success once again emphasises what we have always known about the enduring success of the likes of Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan. Form is temporary, but class… that’s permanent.