Rajini was not hero material says Rajinikanth's friend and Kannada actor Ashok

Rajinikanth's friend and Kannada actor Ashok has written a book on the friendship he shares with Rajinikanth titled 'Gelaya Shivaji' which was released on Rajini's birthday last month. The book was released amidst a grand affair with Rajini fans and actors from the Kannada industry attending the function where Ashok shared all his beautiful memories with Rajini and the reason behind writing this book on Rajini.
Going back in flashback, Ashok and Rajini met in 1973 when both joined the Adyar Film Institute in Madras to do a formal acting course and try their luck in cinema for acting opportunities.Adyar Film Institute was the center for all acting aspirants from South India to try their luck in movies as all the South industries were functioning in Chennai as commonplace. Rajini and Ashok were interviewed by the legendary director Puttanna Kanagal and got selected for an acting course in the Kannada batch.
Ashok and Rajinikanth's friendship blossomed from the days of their acting school days and has come a long way where Ashok went on to become a supporting actor in Kannada and Rajinikanth went on to become an iconic superstar of Indian cinema but their friendship remains intact keeping aside their professional achievements.
Recalling the early days spent with Rajini, Ashok says Rajini was not the material to be a hero as he didn't have any attributes required to be a hero which was the norm in the industry those days when having a fair skin tone and being glamour were the order to be a hero but Rajini went onto break all the stereotypes and grew very big beyond anyone's imagination. Whenever Ashok meets Rajini, he calls him a 'miracle' who went on to scale unimaginable heights in cinema.
The idea behind the book was Rajini's says Ashok as Rajini wanted Ashok to write a book on their friendship days but Ashok who is not a professional writer decided to write not just about friendship with Rajini but also write all the memorable things he saw on how Rajini grew up as a star and earning all the fame and name.
Ashok still can't believe that the once Rajini who was a very ruffian kind of person with a full short temper would go on to become the very soft, calm, peace-loving and lovable person he is today adored by millions of fans.