Satyarth Nayak - Sridevi: The Eternal Screen Goddess

Its sort of fitting that I am today writing a foreword for a book on Sridevi given that I grew up idolizing her. Sometimes, it is hard to believe that she is gone.

I met Sridevi for the first time around 1989 during the shooting of Pathar Ke Insan (1990). I was around thirteen then. My father (Shomu Mukerji) was the producer and director of the film, which starred Sridevi, Vinod Khanna, Jackie Shroff and Poonam Dhillon. I vividly recall that at the very first meeting she told my dad, You must put your daughter in the movies. And I was like, No way am I going to be in the movies. It is sheer coincidence that the same evening Yash Chopra came to meet my dad at the studio and he got him to hear a recording of Sridevi singing the song Chandni O Meri Chandni. My first reaction was slightly childish. I wasnt really impressed by the song and I even remember saying this to my father.

However, when the movie came out, it was a completely different story. In fact, Chandni (1989) released around five months before my fathers film, and I remember that I was crazy about this film. I bought the videotape and played it so many times that the recording almost wore out.

In December, that same year, Chaalbaaz (1989) released; Chandni and Chaalbaaz were my two ultimate favourites. Sadma (1983) is also an eternal favourite.

All of this happened before I made my debut with Bekhudi (1992). So you can say that she was the only film star I was actually crazy about before I joined the movies.

When I was around eighteen, I was shooting for one of my films in Film City, Mumbai, and I heard that Sridevi was also shooting in the same studio. I quickly called my dad and asked him to drive to the studio. I wanted him to take me across to meet her so that I could tell her in person how crazy I was about her. And also tell her how awesome she is. It was my first star-struck meeting. Selfies were still quite distant in the future. Otherwise, I would have clicked one with her back then. It is odd but my selfie with her came just a few months before she passed away. Both of us were at designer Manish Malhotras home in Bandra and thats where that photo-op happened.

Besides that memorable selfie moment, I remember that in the course of the years I met her quite a few times. And every time, I noticed there was such a disparity; she was so different in person and on-screen. In her real life she was soft-spoken, unassuming and gentle. She possessed a canny intelligence but it was always hidden under the politest of manners; her face exuded warmth.

Coming to what she meant to me as an actor, I must say that I truly and deeply respected Sridevi. As I mentioned earlier, as a person, she had that native intelligence as far as the film industry was concerned. I do not think you can ever teach that to anyone. And as an actor, she was even more shrewd. She knew which script would work, which wouldnt. She had the pulse of the audience at all times. She knew the camera so wellhow it would shoot her, which was her best angle. She actually did her own make-up and transformed herself every single time on-screen, which I find amazing. All of us need a make-up artist to make us look our best, but not Sridevi. She paid attention to the minutest of details. If you watch her movies, in any random order, you will feel like you are studying a textbook. At least thats how I always feel. From the way she used her dupatta to the way she tied her saris, everything was so perfect. Her eyes spoke volumes.

She also considered everything, right down to the last detail like when to run barefoot and when to run with her shoes on. Likewise, there are films in which she has her nail varnish on, others where she is without any. Her jewellery, her accessories, she had it all down pat. It was all so thorough. So well-planned. The beauty was she never let Sridevi the persona take over her character.

In my view, she is the first woman superstar of this country. I dont think any other leading lady could have given Amitabh Bachchan a takkar in Khuda Gawah (1992). Besides her, I dont think anyone else could have matched him. She was formidable in her movies.

In my head, she continues to remain a formidable force. Even at the risk of sounding like a fangirl, I must add that the memory of Sridevi will always dominate Indian cinema.

Finally, Sridevi was and will always remain special to me.

Main sirf ek aurat hoon jo mardon ki banayi is duniya mein apnishart se jeena chahti hoon. (I am only a woman who wants to live on her own terms in this manmade world)Chaalbaaz (1989)