Latha Rajinikanth (born Latha Rangachari; 2 March 1958) is an Indian film producer and playback singer. She is the wife of actor

Rajinikanth Shivaji Rao Gaikwad (born 12 December 1950), known professionally as Rajinikanth, is an Indian actor who predominantly works in Tamil cinema. In a career spanning over five decades, he has done 170 films that includes films in Tamil, Hindi, ...

Early life

Latha was born in

Chennai Chennai, also known as Madras (List of renamed places in India#Tamil Nadu, its official name until 1996), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Tamil Nadu by population, largest city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost states and ...

, India in a

Tamil Brahmin Tamil Brahmins are an ethnoreligious community of Tamil-speaking Hindu Brahmins, predominantly living in Tamil Nadu, though they number significantly in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Telangana in addition to other regions of India. The ...

Iyengar Iyengars (also spelt Ayyangar or Aiyengar, pronounced ) are an ethnoreligious community of Tamil-speaking Hindu Brahmins, whose members follow Sri Vaishnavism and the Visishtadvaita philosophy propounded by Ramanuja. Iyengars are divided i ...

family. She graduated with degree in English literature from Ethiraj College for Women, Chennai.

Career

During the 1980s, Latha worked as a

playback singer A playback singer, as they are usually known in South Asian cinema, or ghost singer in Western cinema, is a singer whose performance is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and the performers lip-sync the ...

Tamil cinema Tamil cinema is the segment of Indian cinema dedicated to the production of motion pictures in the Tamil language, the main spoken language in the state of Tamil Nadu. It is nicknamed Kollywood, a portmanteau of the names Kodambakkam, a Ch ...

. She sang a few songs in films such as '' Tik Tik Tik'' (1981) '' Anbulla Rajinikanth'' (1984). She also contributed to ''Rajini 25'' (1999), a musical album that commemorated

's 25 years of his career. In 1991, Latha founded The Ashram, a school in

Velachery Velachery is a neighborhood of Chennai. It is located in the southern part of the Chennai city sharing borders with Guindy in the north, Taramani in the east, Perungudi in the south-east, Pallikaranai wetland, Pallikaranai in the south, Madipa ...

, which she currently heads.

Personal life

Latha is the sister-in-law of Tamil playwright and film actor Y Gee Mahendran. She is also related to former film actress Vyjayanthimala.First Experience of RajiniKanth. Rajini's First Language Movies, Producer's First Movies, Director's First Movies, Highest Remake Movies
www.rajinikanth.com. Retrieved on 24 July 2012. Latha's brother Ravi Raghavendra is also an actor who is the father of music director Anirudh Ravichander. She married

, whom she met during an exclusive interview, on 26 February 1981 at

Tirupati Tirupati () is a city in the Indian States and territories of India, state of Andhra Pradesh and serves as the administrative headquarters of Tirupati district. It is known for its significant religious and cultural heritage, being home to th ...

. The couple has two daughters, Aishwarya and

Soundarya Sowmya Sathyanarayana (18 July 1972 – 17 April 2004), better known by her stage name Soundarya, was an Indian actress known for her works primarily in Telugu cinema. She was regarded as one of the greatest actresses in the history of Telugu ...

. She has four grandchildren.

Controversy

Document forgery case

An FIR had been filed in

Bangalore Bengaluru, also known as Bangalore (List of renamed places in India#Karnataka, its official name until 1 November 2014), is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the southern States and union territories of India, Indian state of Kar ...

against Latha for allegedly forging documents to obtain a court order, restraining media from publishing news about her dispute with a commissioned producer over selling of rights of ''

Kochadaiiyaan ''Kochadaiiyaan: The Legend'' () is a 2014 Indian Tamil-language animated period action film written by K. S. Ravikumar and directed by Soundarya Rajinikanth. It is India's first photorealistic motion capture film, featuring characters wh ...

'' on 15 June 2015.

Rent issues

Latha operates a shop on CP Ramaswamy Road. Operating from a building owned by Chennai Corporation, Latha has for the past 25 years run a travel agency called "Travel Exchange India". The city Corporation recently increased the rent from to per month. Latha filed a petition in the Madras High Court challenging the decision of the Greater Chennai Corporation. The Madras HC dismissed the petition filed on Latha Rajinikanth's behalf and ordered the corporation to take ownership of the property in a month if the due rental was not received. A school run by Latha Rajinikanth in Chennai was locked up by the landlord of the building in August 2017, who claimed he had not received two rent payments of . The owner said in 2002 he leased out the school ground to be used. He said that over a year ago he had filed a case against the management of the school because they had not paid the rent amounting to . In December 2020, the

Madras High Court The High Court of Judicature at Madras is a High Courts of India, High Court located in Chennai, India. It has appellate jurisdiction over the state of Tamil Nadu and the union territory of Puducherry (union territory), Puducherry. It is one of ...

has ordered Latha to vacate the school by 30 April.

Filmography

As producer

As singer

* "Netru Indha Neram" - '' Tik Tik Tik'' * "Kadavul Ullame" - '' Anbulla Rajinikanth'' * "Ding Dong" - ''

Valli Valli () is a devi, Hindu goddess, and the second consort of the deity Murugan. An incarnation of the goddess Sundaravalli, daughter of Vishnu, Valli is born on earth as the daughter of a chieftain, leading a life of a huntress. Murugan, the god ...

'' * "Kukkukoo Koovum" - ''

'' * "Manappenin Sathiyam" - ''

''Rajinikanth: Rajinikanth's wife, Latha, sings for Kochadaiiyaan , Tamil Movie News - Times of India
/ref>

As costume designer

* ''Valli'' (1993)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rajinikanth, Lathaa Indian women film producers Film producers from Chennai Living people Singers from Chennai Tamil film producers Tamil playback singers Indian women playback singers 20th-century Indian singers Founders of Indian schools and colleges Indian women philanthropists Indian philanthropists 20th-century Indian women singers 21st-century Indian women singers 21st-century Indian singers Women musicians from Tamil Nadu Businesswomen from Tamil Nadu 20th-century Indian businesswomen 20th-century Indian businesspeople 1958 births Rajinikanth