Sridevi, 13, as a leading lady in Telugu films

Sridevi, 13, as a leading lady in Telugu films. Tall, slender and pretty, already a decade in films as a prolific child artist, no one suspected or expected teenaged Sridevi to transition from baby on screen to leading lady so quickly. 

Funnily enough, this was nothing new back in the 60s, 70s or 80s down South. Be it Rekha, Shobhana or Sridevi, tall teens as the heroine in films was so common, no one raised an eyebrow. A teen or tween in fairly adult situations, the romances (albeit rather chase ones) with often much older co-stars... Er... different times. 

As mentioned earlier, Sridevi was one of the few who worked with co-stars who were, 20+, 30+ and even 40+ years older than her. We've gone down that rabbit hole earlier, so let me not repeat myself. Not much has changed; watch this space, if Sara Ali Khan can work with Akshay Kumar, its just a matter of time when one of the Khans will work with someone 30+ years younger than them. 

Andhra Girls: Rekha and Sridevi storm Bollywood

Andhra Girls: Rekha and Sridevi storm Bollywood 

Rekha drops by the sets of Masterji to visit her friend Sridevi. 

Sridevi: Filmfare Interview: "I'm battling with myself all the time."

Sridevi: Filmfare Interview: "I'm battling with myself all the time." 

Before social media, Sridevi (and all the top stars of their time) had to put up with a lot of rubbish written about them with little recourse. When rumours of a proposal with Ashok Amritraj spread like wildfire in the early 90s, Sridevi was baffled by the news and addressed it in a cover story with Filmfare. 

Excerpt:

Filmfare: Why this sudden desire to spend more time in Madras? Does it have anything to do with your marriage proposal? Is it true that you are considering marrying Ashok Amritraj?

Sridevi: She blows the jamun seed out of the window. "Good you raised the topic," she says with a hint of impatience in her voice. "The Amritraj story is a figment of somebody's imagination. I think somebody's trying to harm my career by deliberately spreading panic." She blows one more jamun seed out of the window. "I am not marrying Amritraj. There has been no proposal. You can check with them (we do, see page 73). If there had been a proposal, why would we hide it? What's wrong if a boy proposes to a girl?"

It's pack-up time. Sridevi hurriedly gets ready to leave. "You won't believe this," she says with a twinkle in her eyes. "Even today, when a director says 'Pack up!', it sounds like the school bell and I rush home like a little girl."

Home in Hyderabad is the Gateway Hotel..."

 

Sridevi, Priety Zinta, Govinda, Saif Ali Khan, Namrata Shirodkar, Meera: Tabloid days

 

Sridevi, Priety Zinta, Govinda, Saif Ali Khan, Namrata Shirodkar, Meera: Tabloid days

Sridevi in 1984

 

Sridevi at the launch of the Hindi film Govinda (1984). Produced by Boney Kapoor with co-star Anil Kapoor, it was the first time Sridevi worked with the Kapoor home banner. However, the film never went beyond the mahurat.

More images in the archive here, here and here.

Sridevi in Bollywood in the mid 1980s

Sridevi in Bollywood in the mid 1980s 

Sridevi in the Telugu film Ramarajyamlo Bheermaraju (1983)

 

Sridevi in the Telugu film Ramarajyamlo Bheermaraju (1983)