An Obituary to Sridevi: ‘Khuda Gawah‘, no ‘Moondram Pirai‘ for ‘Poombatta‘ to flutter again. the ‘Chandni Chaplin’ who as Hawa Hawaii called ‘Mr India’, ‘ChaalBaaz‘ , chal bazi.
Sridevi was born in Tamil Nadu village into a Telugu family. She ruled the cine industries in Kollywood, Tollywood and Bollywood as the Numero Uno Heroine. Her sense of timing was well cultivated, especially in the comic scenes.
In ‘English Vinglish, she brought out the predicament of a typical home maker looked down upon by even her close family. Sadly, the ability or inability to communicate well/ assertively, that too in English is still a stigma. What Pink did for the working/ extroverted woman, ‘English Vinglish’ did for the house wife.
Along with her legions of fans we are saddened to realize that ‘Khuda Gawah‘, there will be no ‘Moondram Pirai‘ for the beautiful ‘Poombatta‘ to flutter again. The ‘Chandni Chaplin’ who as Hawa Hawaii called ‘Mr India’, ‘ChaalBaaz‘ , chal bazi (has left us)……. or did someone feel, “baz, ab chal” (enough, now leave). One wishes it were not so.
Like the butterfly (Poombatta, one of her early films), she underwent metamorphosis time and again. Maybe this caterpillar went through one transformation too many. We will never know for sure. But sadly her death also brings to mind, the demise, a year ago of her senior fellow-artist from the Tamil film industry. Can Success also be cruel to the women who rule their domains??? All her life, we understand Sridevi too struggled to find peace,(shanthi). It seems ironic to say on her death, ‘Om Shanti‘.
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[…] The Arts and Life mirror each other, they say. Sometimes the poet and the artist envisages things ahead of his or her time. Saroj Khan surely envisaged the Indian woman, absolutely comfortable with herself and her sexuality. She could also leverage it in a subtle manner without being vampish. As lightly and as effervescently as Hawa Hawaii. […]