Indian cinema has lost of one its brightest stars in Sridevi. Personalities such as Lata Mangeshkar, Kajol, Hrithik Roshan and Karan Johar offered their condolences on the death of the legendary actor.
The actor, who passed away on Saturday night in Dubai at the age of 55 reportedly due to cardiac arrest, had worked in cinema across languages such as Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, Malayalam and Kannada in her career spanning almost five decades.
Inarguably, Sridevi was the first pan-India woman superstar to rule the 1980s.
Melody queen Mangeshkar, who lent her voice to Sridevi in memorable songs such as ‘Mere haathon mein’, ‘Morni baaga maa’, ‘Kabhi main kahoon’ and ‘Nainon mein sapna’ tweeted her condolences. “I can’t believe Sridevi has left the world at such a young age. I’m at a loss of words. My condolences to Boney Kapoor and their two daughters,” she wrote.
Legendary singer Asha Bhosle also paid homage to the actor. “Very sad to hear about Srideviji. We’ve had a long association. My deepest condolences to her family,” Bhosle wrote, who playbacked for Sridevi in Chandni song ‘Parbat se kaali ghata takraee’.
‘An inspiration’
Actor Vidya Balan, for whose recent release Tumhari Sulu Sridevi’s hit number ‘Hawa Hawaaii’ was recreated, wrote on social media: “My inspiration is no more...”
Hrithik wrote Sridevi was an admiration for him as a child actor, who gave his first acting shot in film Bhagwaan Dada (1986). “I loved her, admired her so much. My first ever acting shot was with Sridevi, I was nervous in front of her and I remember her shaking her hands pretending to be nervous cause of me just to boost my confidence. We had to laugh, and she kept laughing until I got it right. Will miss you ma’m,” he posted a still from the film with the actor.
Sridevi’s Chaalbaaz co-star Sunny Deol wrote a heartfelt dedication to the actor on social media.
“The moment the camera rolled SHREE would light up the floor... We did a few films together and I enjoyed working with her though we rarely spoke. I am going to miss her,” Sunny tweeted alongside a photograph of the legend.
Kajol, like many, is inconsolable and called Sridevi’s death a major loss to the Indian cinema. “Shocked stunned. Still see her laughing talking. Unbelievable. Actor par excellence. A school in herself... learnt so much from her. Still can’t believe it. A huge loss. #Sridevi,” she wrote on Twitter.
Director Karan Johar recalled the moment when he first met the superstar on the sets of his father’s film Gumrah . “Every time I met her I had a star struck moment and a fan boy vibe... I don’t think I can believe it... Perhaps I don’t think I want to believe that she is no more... She is a huge reason I love the movies... I feel like Indian cinema just lost its smile... The heavens are fortunate they just inherited a gift of life... Heartbroken...” he wrote on Instagram.
