Rajinikanth, a secret Chennai park, and a Gandhi impersonator
A journalist reflects on the serendipitous nature of reporting, sharing personal anecdotes about discovering a hidden park in Chennai and encountering a Gandhi impersonator. The piece highlights how unplanned experiences often lead to the most compelling human-interest stories.
Why it matters
It offers a perspective on the craft of journalism, emphasizing the value of curiosity and local exploration over rigid reporting structures.
The best stories in journalism are not necessarily the ones that begin with a strong pitch, or take hours of research and painstaking reporting; sometimes, they are the ones that a reporter simply discovers along the way.
Recently, I challenged myself to find the place where actor Rajinikanth had shot his first film, Apoorva Raagangal , in 1975. Tamil cinema fans will remember the iconic shot of the newcomer pushing open a gate and striding into a house — almost as if announcing his arrival in filmdom.
I was determined to find this gate and the house.
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