Two weeks ago, it was Tamil superstar Rajnikant's fans who had a great time awaiting the release of his new magnum opus 'Sivaji' hitting theatres.

And now it's celebration time for the charismatic matinee idol himself.

At a glittering function, to be presided over by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi, a celebrity in the Tamil film industry as a writer, Rajni will be celebrating a new milestone in his career with the record of 804 days run of his previous release 'Chandramukhi' two years ago.

The film broke the record run of a 1944 film 'Haridoss' made by the famous single actor Thyagaraja Bhagavathar. In a single theatre then, 'Haridoss' had an uninterrupted run of 112 weeks, spanning over three Diwali festivals, 784 days in all.

'Chandramukhi', a Tamil remake of a Kannada film, which itself was a remake of a Malayalam hit 'Manichitrathazhu', was released in Tamil Nadu in April 2005, after the superstar reigned from Kollywood. The speculation was in the wake of the miserable flop of his 'Baba' released in 2003.

'Chandramukhi', which had the leading lady of the plot as the protagonist and Rajni playing a leading role, rejoiced his fans with his typical performance, also made the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of its production house 'Sivaji Films' owned by the late thespian Sivaji Ganesan. It was after much contemplation after 'Baba' that Rajni signed up this film, coming out of 'seclusion' and taking to spiritual path.

The film unlike 'Haridoss' created the record running in noon shows in a theatre owned by the producers of the film and late Sivaji Ganesan's elder son Ramkumar and the younger actor son Prabhu essayed a key role along with Rajni, in this film.

The celebrations at the sprawling Kamaraj Hall tomorrow evening would be presided over by the Chief Minister, Rajni's contemporary in Kollywood actor Kamal Hassan and well known Director K Balachander who had introduced both Kamal and Rajni as heroes in Tamil films. All the technicians associated with the making of 'Chandramukhi' and its Director P Vasu, who had made a couple of big hits with Rajni earlier will be recalling their experiences of working in the film which was also known for a melodious score by one among the new breed of music Directors Vidyasagar.

However, there would be a note of irony to the celebrations as actress Jyothika, who won all round acclaim for her performance in the role of 'Chandramukhi' would be unable to attend the celebration.

According to Producer Mr Ramkumar, 'Chandramukhi' had been having 40 per cent collection during its record run after celebrating the customary 100 day run.

The audience found the film peppy and entertaining. Critics say 'Chandramukhi' was Rajni's 99th film in Tamil, the number which turned out to be lucky for Rajni if going by numerology.