While Jayalalitha was known as Tamil cinema’s first female superstar, it was actress Sridevi who redefined success as an actress and became not just a Tamil or southern megastar, but the first female megastar of Indian cinema. After firmly cementing her place as the number 1 South Indian actress, Sri Devi made her modest debut to Hindi films as a child star at the age of 9 and first played the lead in a Hindi film in 1979. In a period of four years, she became the number 1 actress in Hindi cinema, a position she held for more than a decade.
Sri Devi made her debut as a child actress at the age of 4 in the religious film, Kandhan Karunai, following this with a similar role in Thunaivan. She bagged a state award at the age of 8 for a Malayalam film. Her screen credits as a child star included MGR’s Nam Naadu and Sivaji Ganesan’s Babu and Vassantha Maaligai.
At the tender age of 12½, Sri Devi made her debut as a lead actress in the film Moondru Mudichu where her co-stars were Kamalhassan and Rajinikanth. Directed by the legendary K.Balachander, the film had popular appeal and praised by the critics, which led to her being cast in Bharathiraja’s debut film, Padhinaaru Vayadhiniley.
From that point onward, Sri Devi’s career graph soared, not just with an increased number of films but also with the depth and variety of her acting performances in films like Bharathiraja’s Sigappu Rojakkal, Mahendran’s Johnny, K. Balachander’s Varumaiyin Niram Sivappu and the role many regard as the best role of her career, Balu Mahendra’s Moondraam Pirrai. When the film was remade into Hindi as Sadma, the lead pair – Kamalhassan and Sri Devi – remained the same. It is a sad indictment on the National awards committee that Sri Devi did not win the National award for best actress in this role.
Sri Devi was loved and adored by her fans for her child-like face, an attractive smile and a staggering acting depth that enabled her to play virtually any role with ease. Sri Devi’s last Tamil role was in Vijay’s fantasy film, Puli and she shared the screen with Ajithkumar in the Tamil remake of her film English Vinglish.
Sri Devi passed away on 24 February 2018 under bizarre circumstances, with the cause of death stating cardiac arrest as a result of accidental drowning. There are many theories about her death but her loss to the film industry was felt across India.
Although she was the undisputed number 1 actress in Hindi cinema for a long time, her Tamil fans still remember her baby-faced Sri Devi with twinkling eyes and brimming talent.
Sri Devi’s husband, Boney Kapoor, is a prolific producer whose Tamil credits include Valimai, Veetla Visesham and Thunivu.
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