The enigma continues

“It will never ever register that Sridevi is not there”. Anupam Kher puts the sentiment of fans, family members and fraternity friends in just the right words a year after the demise of the enigmatic actress, who lived the cinematic dream for 50 years.

A regular Sunday morning turned one full of disbelief as Sridevi’s fans the world over woke up to the news of her abrupt death in Dubai in a hotel’s bathtub on the night of February 24. Only a day or two earlier, social media enthusiasts were lapping up her impeccable fashion taste at a family wedding she was attending. At 54, she was gone in a jiffy.

Sridevi’s tryst with the arc lights began at a tender age of four with a devotional film Thunaivan. There was no stopping her from experimenting with genres, languages, looks and characters, leading her to become one of the most formidable actresses of the 1980s and 1990s in Bollywood.

The sea of fans during her last journey in Mumbai was proof of the love she garnered over the years.

Anil Kapoor, Sridevi’s brother-in-law and co-star of several films, including the iconic Mr. India, says there’s a certain emptiness that the family always feels whenever there is any occasion in the house or a get-together. “Her presence is irreplaceable,” Anil said, and added: “With time, we get over people and their presence... and then there are some personalities whose presence, enigma, beauty, and body of work, everything is memorable. She is that personality.” Satish Kaushik, who has acted with and even directed Sridevi, said: “It was not only a personal loss, but also a huge professional loss because it is hard to find an actor who is so dedicated and disciplined.”—IANS