Q: Why... this site?
A: In the early days of the net there were the same five low-res quality pics of Sridevi floating online. Sridevi had left movies in 1997 and had no interest in doing shoots or interviews for web sites and the vast explosion of internet based e-magazines.
As a young fan (back then!) I used to cut out pics of Sridevi and collect them - I just started digitising - not monetising - those pics. This fan site/blog is an extension of that teen hobby. Its every snippet of Sridevi archived for posterity, accuracy and now, legacy.
I originally did the page just for me - but my stats climbed up through the roof - from 2,000 to 4,000 views originally to a staggering 8 million+.
What was the first post?
Above is the first picture I re-posted. This was back in 1999 - Sridevi must have been around 36 years old then and she looked like a fresh-grad - not an actress who had (seemingly) retired after spending 30 years of her life slogging away in film studios around the country. The first pan-Indian superstar actress.
I knew back then, I'd need to start collecting every photo I could find. Which then extended to interviews, quotations, accurate information about the often misunderstood shy introverted and utterly gifted Indian actress.
Q: Do you own copyright to the images?
NO! That's why we don't post our name or label any of the pics. The pictures belong to the photographers, the actress herself - and in some cases the publications they were originally published in. Unless you took the picture yourself you have NO rights to any image of Sridevi - and claiming that its your edit, your scan, your effort (ha!), your work on a picture doesn't make it yours! None of your arguments will hold up in court, let alone with anyone here with an iota of reflective sensibility.
Unlike other self-serving fans who tarnish images of Sridevi with their name and logo, site address and corrupt edits slapped on the image, we have no intention of doing that.
Q: Are photographers of Sridevi aware of this page?
YES! We have spoken to several photographers - Gautam da, Rakesh Shreshta, Pavitr Saith, Palash Bose etc - who are aware of this page and the vast archive of their work. All those who we approached were OK with it - those were not ok with - their photographs of Sridevi have removed upon request.
However, just about everyone said OK though! The only image we've ever removed was a picture of Sridevi on the sets of English Vinglish during the shoot in New York. Years after the film's release and success, its back up - with the permission of the film's writer/director.
Q: Have you met Sridevi?
YES! Because there is a benevolent God, YES I HAVE!!!!!!!!!!!! Have seen her several times, and been blessed enough to watch her perform live twice. First, in her heyday in the '90s and then years later, after her comeback at IIFA. Sridevi was magical.
Sridevi's performance of Morni is one of the greatest dances I've seen LIVE in Hong Kong.
I spoke to her for a cover story of the magazine I used to work at. And then met her again in Macau, Mumbai. A meeting in Pune got postponed and then.. that ill-fated trip to Dubai...
Q: What is Sridevi like?
Sridevi is regal, tall, fit and statuesque. There was something extraordinary about her - what made her a superstar. Its the physicality, presence and aura. If you saw her walking down a hotel lobby, your head would turn - she did not look like an average person. It was her gait, the long strut of her walk, her head-turning good looks, her extraordinary features - those eyes...
She spoke softly and seemed genuinely surprised at the reaction she evokes - diehard fandom.
In person, was super impressed by how gorgeous her skin was. I met Sridevi when she had just turned 49, yet her unblemished skin was... enviable! She looked like she was in her early 30s. She preferred not to wear makeup in the day or at home.
As you're all aware, Sridevi didn't speak much. Shy, monosyllabic - yet her face was super expressive. She had the cutest reactions to my queries (I was a stuttering bumbling buffoon in her presence). She patted my head at the end of our chat - she's a lot taller than me.
I took a few pictures with her but they are in my collection and not online as - well, I looked GOD-AWFUl in them. Like all fans, could not take my eyes off her. Told her but for the 1000s of kilometres separating us, I'd
Q: Does Sridevi know about this page https://asridevi.blogspot.com/?
Yes, when I met her in 2012, I showed her the page and she asked me to follow her on Twitter. She said she was only on Twitter then - and joined Instagram soon after. She was not on Facebook though her children were (in private accounts at the time). Both the kids and Boney Kapoor are aware of this fan site.
When I showed her this comprehensive site, she asked me.. Um... do you have a job? We were a room full of people and I burst out laughing - and she smiled too. Yes, I do, but this is a passion project.
Q: Were you close to Sridevi?
Only in my dreams. No. Sridevi was not close to any journalist or media person. She famously didn't enjoy doing interviews, being questioned or cornered by often poorly-educated and rude scribes. Any journalist or writer who presumes they were close to her are simply projecting. Its wish-fulfillment and a level of self-delusion I've found in many writers and bloggers online.
Sridevi did not enjoy doing press rounds, she didn't like most nosey journalists - especially film journalists who prodded her with personal questions. She famously implied as much in several TV interviews which you can find online. The way she made a joke of it was, "Picture se dar nahin lagta, promotion se dar lagta hai!"
Q: How long has the site been around?
We have been around since August 14, 2000. Started working on the Sridevi fan page on the day of Sridevi's birthday when she was on hiatus. Today is the 21st anniversary of the site.
Q: Can you help me reach Boney Kapoor (previously it was Sridevi herself!).
No! We are just a fan site run by fans - we have no connection to, link to anyone in the Kapoor or Ayappan family. There have been several fake sites claiming to be.
Q: I need help, pls send me money. Please read my script. Please cast me in a film. I have a great story idea for Boneyji.
A: Um. Pass on all the above. To be frank, you probably don't! Some of the scripts that were sent to the Sridevi fan page were so risibly awful, they'd make for a parody of a film, let alone an actual movie.
Q: How do I know more about Sridevi?
A: Well, mostly through her televised interviews. Have turned deeply suspicious of print media - especially film media - as several stars have stated that there's a healthy dose of concoction floating around. The most illuminating interviews I've seen of hers are in Tamil and Telugu shows - the two languages she was most comfortable in. Notable mentions
- The Suhasini Ratnam interview - which has sadly gone off YouTube, but snippets are here.
- Her chat on the Tamil version of Who Wants to be a Millionaire here.
- Sridevi's interview with Vir Sanghvi here.
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