Sridevi on stage with Jeetendra: Rare pics with Prem Chopra

This pic has been online for years and always wondered if it was from the film Nagina or Chandni or... what.. 

Took a Russian fan to point out, its a look Sridevi had for a stage show in the late 1980s! .

Rare pic baskstage; Prem Chopra, Sridevi, Jeetendra and...? 

Prem, Prem Chopra with Sridevi

The fabulous character actor, be it villain or comedian, Prem Chopra turns 87 today. Here he is with Sridevi in one of the six films they did together; Mawaali.

 

Sridevi, Prem Chopra and Jeetendra in Mawaali (1983)

On the sets of Mawaali (1983), Sridevi, Prem Chopra and Jeetendra.

Sridevi and Jeetendra in Mawaali (1983): 20 year old Sridevi in pigtails

A nearly 20 year age gap between them, but the two sailed through the 1980s in Bollywood with a steady stream of box-office hits. Bollywood was - for that decade - mostly light-hearted, muscial escapism with Sridevi and Jeetendra. And globally recognised and loved for the fun and frivolity they brought on screen from the Madras madcap film industry as they churned out movies (often 4 to 5 a year!) for the pan-Indian audience.

However, the movies were so much more than that. The messages we get on Facebook from Russia, Japan, Afghanistan, Australia, from a generation of fans who got the zany and inane plots of the easy to translate (its not like the movies had an subtext!) films continue to amaze us. Bollywood is so much more than what's seen on screens in India (or the brown belt as it is).

The films were of variable quality, not a single one favoured by critics but they had more successes than flops, danced around those beaches and pots - and got a stellar career out of it. And lifelong fans.

They did so many films back-to-back together, we can't categorically state which movies which stills are from. They all blur into one frothy bubble!

Above: Prem Chopra with Sridevi on set 

Sridevi with Prem Chopra: 6 films together: The Listicle

Sridevi, Prem Chopra, Jeetendra - click to enlarge

Prem Chopra and Sridevi

Sridevi and Prem Chopra appeared in half a dozen films together over a eleven year span;

• Laadla (1994)
• Watan Ke Rakhwale (1987)
• Nagina (1986)
• Sarfarosh (1985)
• Maqsad (1984)
• Mawaali (1983)

So rare to see Prem Chopra in a comedic role as opposed to the villain he played in innumerable films with his signature, memorable dialogue delivery. 

Click on the images to see much larger pic!

All the pics here are from the film Mawaali - young, 20 year old Sridevi with screen veterans Prem Chopra and Jeetendra.