Veteran director KS Ravikumar has opened up about the reasons behind the underwhelming performance of his 2014 film Lingaa, and in a recent interview, he directly pointed the finger at its lead actor, Rajinikanth. Despite Lingaa being made on a massive budget of 100 crore, the film failed to impress both critics and audiences. Speaking on Chat With Chitra, Ravikumar accused Rajinikanth of significant interference during the making and editing of the film.

Ravikumar detailed how the superstar's involvement disrupted the creative process, alleging that Rajinikanth made changes to the storyline, added and removed scenes at his discretion, and meddled with the post-production work. The director particularly highlighted Rajinikanth’s influence over the controversial scene where the actor leaps from a bridge onto a hot-air balloon during a fight sequence—an infamous moment that has been heavily mocked online. Ravikumar claimed that this scene, which was added at Rajinikanth’s insistence, severely impacted the film's reception. The scene even became a topic of ridicule on Reddit, where users labeled it as the moment that "destroyed" Ravikumar's career.

Scene that destroyed the career of K.S Ravikumar.. Linga(2014)
byu/queenelizabeth_dead inkollywood

In his interview, translated by Pinkvilla, Ravikumar explained, “Rajinikanth interfered in the editing and didn’t allow enough time for the CGI. He completely altered the second half of the film and removed a surprise twist in the climax. He also took out a song featuring Anushka and replaced it with the artificial balloon scene, which messed up Lingaa entirely.”

While Ravikumar is now candid about the film’s failure, he had previously defended Lingaa in 2016, claiming that it performed well at the box office. He stated that the film grossed 158 crore worldwide and insisted it was one of the highest-grossing Tamil films of the year, second only to Shankar’s Enthiran.

Lingaa starred Rajinikanth in dual roles, portraying both Lingaa and his grandson Raja Lingeswaran. The story revolves around the grandson’s journey of self-discovery after learning about his grandfather’s legacy. The film also featured Sonakshi Sinha and Anushka Shetty in pivotal roles.

As for Rajinikanth, he is gearing up for his next release, Vettaiyan, directed by TJ Gnanavel, which is set to hit screens on October 10 for the Dasara festival. The film boasts a star-studded cast, including Amitabh Bachchan, Fahadh Faasil, Rana Daggubati, and Manju Warrier. Rajinikanth is also set to appear in Lokesh Kanagaraj’s much-anticipated film Coolie, alongside Nagarjuna, Shruti Haasan, Sathyaraj, and Upendra.

Recently, the actor was hospitalized in Chennai for an elective procedure on a swollen blood vessel but has since been discharged and is recuperating. Fans are eagerly awaiting his return to the big screen as Vettaiyan promises to be a blockbuster.