Bangalore:
Amidst sleepless nights and growing concern over ambiguous medical reports of his health condition, Rajinikanth's fans can sleep easy.
Sources from the super star's family confirmed that he was just admitted because of the extreme weight loss he underwent for his new film.
Satyanarayana Rao Gaikwad, Rajinikanth's elder brother, who lives in Bangalore, said the drastic reduction in body weight resulting from a harsh diet regime caused a minor illness and he has to remain in hospital for a few days more.
"He wanted to be slim for a role in his new film and was on a liquid diet for more than 20 days. The doctors said the sudden drop in body weight caused some minor complications, but there was nothing to worry," Gaikwad said.
15 kg in 20 days
Shooting for Rajinikanth's upcoming film was launched on April 29, and the style king is playing a triple role.
For one of the roles, he needed to slim down from 75 kg to 60 kg and he started the strict diet regime a month earlier. While he did manage to shed around 15 kg in a span of 20 days, it took a toll on his health.
He was taken to Isabel Hospital in Chennai on the very day the film went on sets, after complaining of exhaustion and vomiting.
Initially, it was reported as food poisoning, but the fans felt the seriousness, when he was kept in the ICU for more than ten days and started asking pertinent questions.
"He is recovering fast and it will be a couple of days before we take him home. When I met him on Monday, he was cheerful and said he was feeling alright," said Gaikwad.
He informed that the doctors have changed the star's diet and he was having idli, dosa and vegetable soup. "He is now looking energetic. He will resume shooting shortly," he added.
While Gaikwad's account sounds credible enough, another source in the family said the illness was a result of withdrawal symptoms as the actor had stopped drinking recently.
No more Whiskey
Rajinikanth normal intake was three to four pegs of Whiskey per day, and on occasion, he consumed more than eight pegs. He decided to stop drinking after family members prevailed upon him on his birthday, which was celebrated on December 12.
"Although he wanted to stop drinking from his birthday onwards, he was finally able to stop only recently. The change in diet and sudden stop of intake of alcohol all at once, and that took a toll on his health," said the source.
The doctors in the hospital however, remained non-committal on this, they said, "We are not authorised to talk about the details. But, we can say nothing is serious about his health condition."
They evaded queries about why he was kept in the ICU for such a long period, if his condition was not really serious.
Sources at the hospital said that Rajinikanth is showing signs of a quick recovery and he even spoke to some of the patients yesterday.
Sources from the super star's family confirmed that he was just admitted because of the extreme weight loss he underwent for his new film.
Satyanarayana Rao Gaikwad, Rajinikanth's elder brother, who lives in Bangalore, said the drastic reduction in body weight resulting from a harsh diet regime caused a minor illness and he has to remain in hospital for a few days more.
"He wanted to be slim for a role in his new film and was on a liquid diet for more than 20 days. The doctors said the sudden drop in body weight caused some minor complications, but there was nothing to worry," Gaikwad said.
15 kg in 20 days
Shooting for Rajinikanth's upcoming film was launched on April 29, and the style king is playing a triple role.
For one of the roles, he needed to slim down from 75 kg to 60 kg and he started the strict diet regime a month earlier. While he did manage to shed around 15 kg in a span of 20 days, it took a toll on his health.
He was taken to Isabel Hospital in Chennai on the very day the film went on sets, after complaining of exhaustion and vomiting.
Initially, it was reported as food poisoning, but the fans felt the seriousness, when he was kept in the ICU for more than ten days and started asking pertinent questions.
"He is recovering fast and it will be a couple of days before we take him home. When I met him on Monday, he was cheerful and said he was feeling alright," said Gaikwad.
He informed that the doctors have changed the star's diet and he was having idli, dosa and vegetable soup. "He is now looking energetic. He will resume shooting shortly," he added.
While Gaikwad's account sounds credible enough, another source in the family said the illness was a result of withdrawal symptoms as the actor had stopped drinking recently.
No more Whiskey
Rajinikanth normal intake was three to four pegs of Whiskey per day, and on occasion, he consumed more than eight pegs. He decided to stop drinking after family members prevailed upon him on his birthday, which was celebrated on December 12.
"Although he wanted to stop drinking from his birthday onwards, he was finally able to stop only recently. The change in diet and sudden stop of intake of alcohol all at once, and that took a toll on his health," said the source.
The doctors in the hospital however, remained non-committal on this, they said, "We are not authorised to talk about the details. But, we can say nothing is serious about his health condition."
They evaded queries about why he was kept in the ICU for such a long period, if his condition was not really serious.
Sources at the hospital said that Rajinikanth is showing signs of a quick recovery and he even spoke to some of the patients yesterday.
