On the occasion of Sridevi's 56th birth anniversary, we look at the way she redefined stardom for female actors in India.
Sridevi was born as Shree Amma Yanger Ayyapan on 13 Aug 1963 in Sivakasi, Madras State, Tamil Nadu. Her father was a lawyer, while her mother was from Tirupati. She has a sister and two stepbrothers.
Sridevi started her career as a child actor at the age of four in Kandan Karunai in 1967. Subsequently, she played the role of young Muruga in Thunaivan.
A 13 year old Sridevi would then go on to play the role of stepmother to Rajinikanth in Moondru Mudichu, that also starred Kamal Haasan.
Sridevi had worked in all the four Southern industries before debuting in Hindi as a child artiste in Julie (1975). Her first adult role was at the age of 13 in Moondru Mudichu (Tamil -1976).
Sridevi's shot to fame came in 1977 in the form of BharathiRaja's Padhinaaru Vayadhinile 16Vayadhinile, where where she played Mayil, a young girl caught between her two lovers.
In 1981, Sridevi starred in the Tamil film Meendum Kokila which won her first Filmfare Award. In 1982, her role in Moondram Pirai, as a woman suffering from amnesia, bagged her the Tamil Nadu.
In her career, Sridevi acted in 26 #Malayalam films starting with Kumara Sambhavam in 1969, and Devaraagam was her last in 1996.
Sridevi's notable Telugu films include KondaVeetiSimham, KshanaKshanam, and BobbiliPuli. With NageswaraRao, she appeared in movies such as MudullaKoduku. She has also acted with Chiranjeevi.
Sridevi's performance in the 1992 Ram Gopal Varma directed Kshana Kshanam won her the Filmfare Award for Best Actress (Telugu) and Andhra's Nandi Award for Best Actress.
Sridevi made her debut as a heroine in Hindi films in Solva Sawan in 1979. Four years later she was signed to star opposite Jeetendra in Himmatwala. The film was a huge blockbuster.
Jeetendra and Sridevi did 16 Bollywood films together between 1983-88, and 13 of them were box-office hits. Soem of them were Himmatwala, Jaani Dost, JusticeChaudhry, Mawaali, Akalmand, & Tohfa.
Sadma, released in 1983, brought Sridevi critical acclaim. A remake of her Tamil film MoondramPirai, directed by Balu Mahendra, Sadma is included in iDiva's list of '10 Must Watch Movies'.
The Sridevi-Kamal Hasan pair from #Sadma appeared on the CNN-IBN 2012 list of 'Greatest Romantic Couples on Celluloid'. #Sadma also won Sridevi her first Filmfare nomination for Best Actress.
In 1986, the snake-fantasy Nagina saw Sridevi play a shape-shifting woman. The film turned out to be a big blockbuster. Her climax dance #MainTeriDushman remains one of Bollywood's most iconic dances
Sridevi played a goofy crime journalist in the 1987 film Mr India. Directed by Shekhar Kapur, it became one of her highest grossing hits. Her imitation of Charlie Chaplin in the film became popular.
The dance number #HawaHawai from Mr India, claimed by many as 'one of the unforgettable numbers of #Sridevi became a popular nickname for the actress. The rain song Kaate Nahi KatTe also became a hit.
In 1989, #Chaalbaaz had Sridevi in a double role, playing twin sisters, which won her first Filmfare Award for Best Actress. The song 'Na jaane kahan se' was praised for the choreography.
The last major film Sridevi starred in before she took a break from the industry was Judaai, released in 1997. Along with Anil Kapoor and Urmila Matondkar, she played a greedy housewife in the film.
#With the success of English Vinglish in 2012, Sridevi made a successful comeback. She then starred in her home production #Mom, in which she played a vigilante, who sets out to avenge her daughter.
The government of India awarded #Sridevi the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian honour, in 2013, for her contributions to cinema.
On Feb 24, 2018, Sridevi was found dead in her guest room in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The official coroner's report showed that she had accidentally drowned because of unconsciousness.
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