Emotional Rajinikanth at IFFI 2025: Credits Tamil People and Gods for His Journey

Rajinikanth Receives Lifetime Achievement Award at IFFI 2025, Credits Tamil People and Gods.

Rajinikanth was honoured with the lifetime achievement award at the closing ceremony of the 56th International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in Goa, celebrating his remarkable 50-year career in cinema. The 74-year-old superstar described his journey as feeling “far shorter than it sounds,” reflecting on decades that made him a global icon.

In an emotional speech, Rajinikanth thanked the Tamil people and the divine for his success. “Fifty years of acting in cinema felt like 10 or 15 years. If there are 100 more janams (lives), I would like to be born as an actor and as Rajinikanth. All this honour goes to the cinema industry and mainly to the Tamil people, the gods who keep me alive,” he said, earning a standing ovation.

Rajinikanth was warmly welcomed in Goa, with fans greeting him to the beat of energetic dhols as he arrived at the venue. His family later joined him on stage, sharing the celebration of this historic milestone.

About IFFI 2025

The festival, which concluded on 28 November, showcased filmmakers and artists from around the world. It also paid tribute to cinema legends like Guru Dutt, Raj Khosla, Ritwik Ghatak, P. Bhanumathi, Bhupen Hazarika, and Salil Chowdhury by screening restored versions of their classic films.