The Star-Actor material

The Star-Actor material

For screen icon Sridevi, a comeback to an acting career after a 15-year hiatus meant she needed to put aside her superstar status and return to her roots as a performer and a pure actor. With her 2012 blockbuster movie English Vinglish, the legendary late actor changed the attitudes of audiences towards Bollywood and what it stands for in the age of millennials.

In the book Sridevi: Queen of Hearts, journalist-author Lalita Iyer writes about how Sridevi as a mother to two young girls was familiar with the general condescension of today’s youth to Hindi cinema, “kids who were too ‘netflixed’ for their own good.”

In English Vinglish, Sridevi plays a Maharashtrian woman, Shashi Godbole, who does not speak English very well. The movie had a sweet, subtle flavour to it that lingered, a true feel-good movie that the Indian audience could relate to, says Iyer, noting that 15 years after her superstar days, Sridevi still had the chops to carry a movie on her shoulders.

The author, a self-confessed fan of the actor who passed away suddenly at the age of 54, provides a fangirl view and collates lesser-known or long forgotten nuggets of information mostly from print, online articles and books.

“I told myself I was writing a fan’s tribute and about what I thought mattered. Sridevi made me believe that things don’t always have to add up — that you could be badass, yet vulnerable; playful, yet responsible; sexy, yet klutzy; quiet, yet be able to summon the super strength of a goddess. That there is no one way to be a woman. And that laughing at yourself is a talent. She taught me that you don’t always have to fit in; if you truly believe in the things you do, you will still stand out,” writes Iyer.

After reigning over the south film industry with films in Tamil, Malayalam, Telugu and Kannada, Sridevi with her imperfect Hindi and her ‘thunder-thighs’ connected with the Hindi film audience with her expressive face and acting skills. However, fans of her South Indian films, like the author’s mother did not view favourably her ‘show-sha’ stint in Bollywood.

Starting at the age of four by playing little Lord Muruga in Thunaivan (Help) released in 1968, Shree Amma Yanger Ayyapan or Sridevi, who was one of the highest paid child artistes in the country went on to build up a long and illustrious career across almost 300 movies. She was one of the first crossover stars in a largely male-dominated Indian cinema and none of her leading men or contemporary heroines have had the breadth of her impact and range.

The book talks about the friendship that Sridevi had with Rekha, her hot and cold equation with choreographer Saroj Khan and also how she was claimed as a hero by members of the LGBT community, who were coming to terms with their own identities. For generations of queer people, says Iyer, her electric appearances on screen, coupled with her often outlandish costumes and dance steps, set them free and the actor, unconsciously helped them deal with their problems through her depiction of people in conflict.

Sridevi apparently was not entirely pleased that her first big hit in Hindi cinema was Himmatwala in 1983. Iyer reproduces a 1987 interview where the star spoke of her image as a sex siren in Hindi films and how differently the Tamil film industry perceived her. “In Tamil films they love to see me act naturally. But in Hindi films all they want is a lot of glamour, richness and masala. My bad luck was that my first big hit in Hindi films turned out to be a commercial one (Himmatwala). When I did a character role in Sadma, the picture flopped. So people started casting me only for glamour roles. But one day I’m going to prove to everyone that I can act also,” the actor had said. She did precisely that with the widely acclaimed classic film Mr India (1987).

“I have never learned acting,” the book quotes Sridevi in an interview. “I think it has to come from inside.” During her later years, writes Iyer, Sridevi began turning down roles, which went to other actors. Beta, Madhuri Dixit’s big blockbuster, was offered to Sridevi first and ended up as a major hit in 1992 consolidating Madhuri’s position at a time when Sridevi’s was slipping. Beta was written specifically for Sridevi; they’d even incorporated the song Dhak dhak karne laga for her. Even Dil To Pagal Hai, which Yash Chopra offered to Sridevi first in 1994, ended up resurrecting Madhuri’s career in 1997.

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