Senior actor pays ultimate tribute, calls Sridevi the ‘female Amitabh Bachchan’ of her time – Exclusive!
Amitabh Bachchan
Actor Kharaj Mukherjee says that Sridevi’s many talents and achievements have made her an icon in India. A veteran actor has spoken out on the anniversary of Sridevi’s death, saying that she was a master of all genres.
During the height of her career, Sridevi ji was often referred to as the “female Amitabh Bachchan” by the country’s most prominent newspapers because of her magnetic personality. What this did was make her Bollywood’s first female superstar. She was one of the few female actors of the era who could single-handedly drive a film’s box office run, and her string of successes proved it. The legendary Steven Spielberg reportedly offered her a part in his blockbuster film Jurassic Park, but she turned down the offer. She declined the offer, claiming that the part was beneath her celebrity status. To put things in context, Kharaj says, “You can imagine how things were back then.
Kharaj, who has spent years working in the film industry, agrees that Sridevi was able to transform herself into any role she was cast in. If you examine Sridevi’s filmography, you’ll see that she’s played a wide range of characters, from a snake woman to a woman who loses her memory and regresses to childhood (Sadma) (Nagina). According to a newspaper article I read, late director Yash Chopra, who had worked with Sridevi on the films Chandni and Lamhe, used to say that she had the ability to fully inhabit any character she played. Whatever movies I’ve seen with Sridevi in them, I’ve always noticed that the moment the camera starts rolling, the star inside of her disappears and is replaced by whichever character the studio has offered her. It’s been told over and over again how dedicated she was to her work. This unique quality quickly made her a fan favourite among the industry’s leading directors and producers. The acclaimed Bengali actor continues, “I wish we could have seen in more films now, especially when we are seeing a sea change in content.”
