Sridevi as a bride - on the sets of Judaai.
The most comprehensive fan blog dedicated to India's most beautiful and greatest actress of all-time (in our humble opine!), Sridevi. Sridevi aka Sreedevi, ruled Indian cinema (with awesome performances in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Hindi films) in a career spanning 50 incredible years featuring 266 films. Born in Sivakasi on August 13 1963, her untimely and tragic death on February 24, 2018 left a nation in mourning. In our hearts, she'll forever be, the eternal Queen of Bollywood.
Sunday, 23 August 2026
Fan art: Sridevi in English Vinglish
Think Pink: Sridevi as a bride on the sets of Chand Ka Tukda
Saturday, 22 August 2026
Gopi Krishna with Mithun and Sridevi: Birth anniversary of the Nritya Samrat
Today, the birth anniversary of the Nritya Samrat. Born on 22 August 1935, he only taught Sridevi in one film. The prolific dancer was famed as the youngest choreographer in the history of Indian cinema.
Born on August 22, 1935, into the illustrious Banaras gharana as the grandson of Kathak legend Sukhdev Maharaj, Gopi Krishna was just 49 years old when he directed Sridevi’s classical dance movements in K. Viswanath’s Jaag Utha Insan (1984). She was 20 and in awe of the lgend.
By the time of his passing on February 18, 1994, he had secured an imperishable legacy as a virtuosic titan of Indian dance. His status as arguably the greatest classical dancer of mainstream Hindi cinema stemmed from an extraordinary, lightning-fast execution of Kathak, astonishing tatkar footwork, and a unmatched athletic fluidity - rendered all the more remarkable considering his lifelong battle with chronic asthma.
Honoured with the title of Nataraj at fifteen and later awarded the Padma Shri in 1975, his range transcended traditional Kathak, integrating elements of Bharatanatyam and folk traditions into dynamic cinematic compositions. Married to Kathak exponent Savitri, Gopi Krishna spent decades elevating movie choreography into fine art.
He achieved instant screen immortality starring in V. Shantaram’s classic Jhanak Jhanak Payal Baaje (1955), where his soaring performance set a benchmark for dance on celluloid. Beyond his starring debut, his landmark filmography and signature choreographed pieces include the rich Kathak numbers in Muzaffar Ali’s Umrao Jaan (1981), Saqi (1952 - where he became the industry’s youngest choreographer at seventeen - and grand scale productions like Mehbooba (1976), Dastaan (1972), and Gopi (1970).
His ultimate legacy lies in bridge-building. He demystified classical dance for popular audiences without sacrificing its rigorous technical purity. Through his Nateshwar dance academies and a historic world-record continuous Kathak performance lasting over nine hours, Gopi Krishna permanently redefined how classical artistry is staged, filmed, and preserved in the cultural consciousness.
 |
| Rekha in and as Umrao Jaan |
Work with Rekha
Gopi Krishna was initially brought in to train and choreograph Rekha for Muzaffar Ali’s magnum opus Umrao Jaan (1981).
Madhuri Dixit
Gopi Krishna never choreographed Madhuri Dixit. By the time Madhuri Dixit rose to superstardom in the late 1980s and early 1990s as Bollywood's premier dance icon, her signature film routines were primarily designed by Saroj Khan (and later, Birju Maharaj for classical compositions like Devdas).
Other Leading Screen Legends
Throughout his prolific career spanning hundreds of films, Gopi Krishna choreographed and trained many of Indian cinema’s legendary leading ladies, particularly in intricate classical and semi-classical routines:
Madhubala: In Saqi (1952), marking his debut as the youngest choreographer in Hindi cinema at age seventeen.
Vyjayanthimala: In major dance-centric productions like Amrapali (1966), Suraj (1966), and Prince (1969).
Sudha Chandran: In the classical dance biopic Nache Mayuri (1986).
Waheeda Rehman & Asha Parekh: Across various classical, period, and drama sequences in 1960s and 1970s mainstream cinema.
Sridevi: In K. Viswanath’s Jaag Utha Insan (1984)
Sridevi's inspired out as Ms Hawa Hawaii in Mr India: Publicity shots with Anil Kapoor
Sridevi and Anil Kapoor's pre release publicity shoot for Mr India, back in 1986. Don't reel back in horror at Sridevi's elaborate, multi-frill, multi-layered outfit with the real fruit studded straw hat!
It's from her Hawa Hawaii costume - inspired by Carmen Miranda no less. Fun fact, she requested the fruits be real so mid conversation, she could pluck grapes and eat them while she spoke to "Mr Bheja...".
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)