How did a ‘gentle’ film star like Rajkumar — best known for playing saints and social reformers — spawn a legion of raving fans in a state and city known for being laid back, accommodating and cosmopolitan? And how have Bangalore’s two faces — the 21st century world city IT hub and the atavistic throwback — coexisted?

Those questions have been asked many times in the past few days even as Bangalore returns to normalcy from a suddenly exposed underbelly of violence following the death of Rajkumar (76) after a cardiac arrest.

It’s not the first time that so-called Rajkumar fans have been at the heart of violence in the state. In 1991, when anti-Tamil riots broke out over the sharing of the waters of the river Cauvery, it was the militantly pro-Kannada Rajkumar fans who were involved in pitched battles.

In 2000, when Rajkumar was kidnapped by forest brigand Veerappan, it was again the film star’s fans who brought Bangalore to a grinding halt on more than one occasion during the 108-day hostage crisis.

The violence following the actor’s death has now left eight people dead —seven fans and a trainee policeman — in clashes around the funeral procession of the actor.

Over 60,000 fans ran the IT capital of the country for over 24 hours. The fans largely comprised less educated youth from the old Bangalore city area, a mix of migrant workers from across Karnataka, rickshaw, taxi and bus drivers, students, unemployed and rowdies. And they revealed a face of Bangalore City that mostly remains camouflaged by its new age reputation.

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