Birth anniversary of Divya Bharti: Sridevi lite

Today marks the birth anniversary of Divya Bharti - had she lived, had her life not been curtailed by cruel kismet, she would have turned 50 today. And unquestionably, she would have been the Number One star of her time - the list of films she had signed, almost all went on to become blockbusters. A capable artiste, a fine dancer and pretty as a picture, she had all the ingredients to swan into the top slot with ease. 

With many looks, outfits, colours, styling done deliberately (or coincidentally) to emulate Sridevi, the comparisons began early on -- from the moment she signed her first film, the Telugu, Venkatesh starrer-Bobbili Raja (1990). The south industry embraced her first (she was a Bombay girl--spoke little to no Telugu or Tamil), seeing the similarity between her and her predecessor, the elusive Queen of Indian cinema, Sridevi. 

Blissfully, Divya had her own performing style that was nothing like 11-year senior Sri, which helped establish her quickly as more than a clone of an unreachable superstar. Divya's success story was still in the making when she fell to her death in an accident that was reported widely, as the rising star's fatal fall was unprecedented and jaw-dropping news, sending shockwaves around the globe. Many are still haunted by that tragedy that went on to engender such bat-shit conspiracy theories. 

Then, 25 years later, Sridevi's accidental death took its toll on fans of Indian cinema too, a similar pattern emerged; disbelief, conspiracies, wild false reporting, sensationalism, cheap reenactment, the whole nine yards. 

I'm reminded of the quote, "Why have all the pieces joined together... to create such a cruel fate." 

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