Veteran Bollywood star remembered
ON SATURDAY night members of the Indian film industry and Bollywood fans worldwide were shocked to hear of the death of superstar Sridevi in Dubai.
Aged 54, the actress had in recent years staged a welcome and exciting comeback to acting after having retired 15 years ago.
The results of a post-mortem revealed the cause of death as “accidental drowning”.
Sridevi, her film producer husband Boney Kapoor and their daughter Khushi were in Dubai to attend a family member's wedding.
Just hours before her death, video footage showed her dancing and in high spirits, enjoying the revelry at the wedding.
Her husband had returned to Mumbai after the wedding but came back the evening of her death to surprise her. He spent the last few hours with her at the hotel.
She went to the bathroom in her hotel room and after about 15 minutes, Kapoor called for her. When she didn't reply, he forced open the door and found her in the bath.
Bobby Naqvi, the national editor of Gulf News, said the post-mortem report mentioned that there were traces of alcohol in her blood. She fell into the bathtub, lost consciousness and drowned.
The news of her death has had a devastating impact on her family, friends, fans and co-stars. Many took to Twitter to express their shock and condolences.
India's Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, said: “My thoughts are with her family and admirers.”
Actor Aamir Khan tweeted: “I am deeply disturbed and saddened by the untimely and tragic passing of Sridevi. I join all her millions of fans in mourning her demise.”
An eerie premonition of her death came by way of a tweet from her co-star, Amitabh Bachchan, a few hours before her body was discovered. Bachchan, who had co-starred with her in the films Inquilaab, Akhree Rasta and Khuda Gawah, tweeted: “I don't know why, but I feel a sense of unease”. Bachchan also made a special appearance in Sridevi's comeback film English Vinglish, released in 2012.
Sridevi was from the southern Indian state of Madras. The actress entered the film industry at the age of 4 and acted in films made in various languages, including Malayalam and Kannada.
Her Bollywood debut came in 1979 with the film Solva Sawan, but it was Himmatwala, opposite Jeetendra, released in 1983, that was her first blockbuster.
The duo made 16 films together, most of them box office hits.
Sridevi received critical acclaim for Sadma. She was nominated for the Filmfare Best actress award for the role. She won five Filmfare awards, was nominated for countless others and won many others.
In 2013 the Indian government awarded her with the Padma Shri, the country's fourth highest civilian accolade, for her contributions to the entertainment industry.
A veteran of more than 300 films, Sridevi had countless hits to her credit, but the films that are counted among her most popular before her retirement are Sadma; Chaalbaaz, in which she played a double role; Mr India; Chandni; Nagina; and Lamhe.
On her return, in 2012's English Vinglish, her performance was well received by critics and audiences. She produced and starred in Mom.
At the height of her career she was regarded as the only female actress who could carry a film without the presence of a major male star. She was the first true female superstar in Bollywood. In 2013 CNN IBN carried out a poll on the occasion of the centenary of Indian cinema. Sridevi was voted India's greatest actress in 100 years.
The actress, whose plethora of facial expressions was described as possibly giving Jim Carrey sleepless nights, had an amazing range and skill in her craft.
Her appearance on-screen kept audiences in stitches, mesmerised by her beauty and passionate performances, and an ability to overshadow her co-stars.
Sridevi was the quintessential Bollywood heroine.
She is survived by her husband Boney Kapoor and two daughters, Jhanvi and Khushi.