The sudden demise of Bollywood actor Sridevi following a cardiac arrest late Saturday in Dubai has left the entire industry and her fans in shock.
The Padmashree awardee, who began her career with Julie, charmed generations of film buffs with her energetic screen presence and infectious smile. She was arguably the first female superstar in the male-dominated Hindi film industry.
Born as Shree Amma Yanger Ayyapan, Sridevi is best known for her roles in Hindi movies like Sadma, Lamhe, Chandni, Mr India, Chaalbaaz, among several others. She also worked in Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Malayalam and Kannada films.
Here’s a look at the actor’s career over the decades and the various looks she donned onscreen over the year:
Julie (1975)
She was first seen onscreen as a child artist in Tamil film Thunaivan in 1969. Sridevi’s first Hindi film was KS Sethumadhavan’s Julie, where she featured as a child actor. Sridevi essayed the role of the younger sister of the lead, Lakshmi aka Julie in the film.
Gayathri (1977)
Starring opposite Rajinikanth, Sridevi played a humble wife who is the victim of domestic abuse at the hands of her husband, Rajini.
Sadma (1983)
One of the most critically acclaimed films of her career, Sridevi played a young girl in the film that also starred Kamal Haasan. Her character, Nehalata regresses to childhood after a head injury and Kamal decides to take care of her. Sridevi’s innocent portrayal of her character got her the Filmfare award for best actress.
Kalaakaar (1983)
Sridevi played the role of a rich girl who falls in love with a poor guy who is soon diagnosed with cancer. Kishore Kumar’s Neele Neele Ambar Par song from the film was a huge hit.
Nagina (1986)
Sridevi played an ‘icchadhaari nagin’ - a snake that can take any form it wishes - in the film that is a revenge saga. She was appreciated for her portrayal of the character and the film became the second highest grosser of the year (as per an IMDB list). Nagina is also the first Indian film to get a sequel, Nigahein, though the sequel did not work at the box office.
Aakhiree Rastaa (1986)
Sridevi played the love interest of the younger Amitabh Bachchan in the film that had Big B essaying double roles.
Mr India (1987)
Sridevi played a dynamic journalist in the Shekhar Kapur film where she had a number of hit songs, apart from her portrayal of the character. Hawa Hawai and Kaate Nahi Katate were two big hits numbers from the film.
Chandni (1989)
Sridevi played the titular character in the film that went on to become the highest grosser of the year. It also bagged the National Film Award for best film that year.
Lamhe (1991)
Sridevi played double role in the film - that of a mom and a daughter. Anil Kapoor, the film’s male lead, loved the mom but could not marry her. After the mom died, the daughter meets Anil and falls in love with him. The movie bagged five Filmfare awards, including one for Sridevi’s performance.
Khuda Gawah (1992)
Mukul S Anand’s film also had Sridevi in a double role - playing mom and daughter again. Starring Amitabh Bachchan, Shilpa Shirodkar and Nagarjuna, the film was a super hit at the box office and bagged three Filmfare awards.
Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja (1993)
Sridevi and Anil Kapoor were once again paired in this film that had Sridevi experimenting a lot with her looks. The film was widely panned by critics and also failed miserably at the box office.
Gumrah (1993)
Starring Sridevi opposite Sanjay Dutt, the crime thriller was directed by Mahesh Bhatt. The film did fairly well at the box office, becoming 7th highest grosser of the year
Army (1996)
Starring Shah Rukh Khan, Army had Sridevi essaying the role of a young woman who plans to avenge her husband’s death with the help of a group of young, convicted men..
English Vinglish (2012)
Sridevi made an impressive comeback with Gauri Shinde’s film where she played a housewife who decides to save herself from being ridiculed by her own family. The character and Sridevi’s performance was widely appreciated by both fans and critics.
Mom (2017)
Sridevi played a mother in the film where she avenges her daughter’s rape. The movie did not work wonders at the box office but her performance was appreciated.
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