Sridevi on the cover of Stardust, July 1988

Sridevi in the early 80s in Bollywood. 

An image that was originally published on the cover of Stardust, July 1988. 

The cover image and a scan of the spread is featured below. 

There's nothing worth reading in the article that is spurious at best, libelous at worst. 

Also note the risible discrepency between the cover tag line and the feature heading;

The cover: Sridevi's Swiss Connection.

Headline (inside the magazine): Sridevi's Hidden Swedish

Um.. you do know Sweden and Switzerland are not the same yeah? Just checking... 

Sridevi and Cine Blitz: Her first to last cover with the iconic Bollywood film magazine

Sridevi and Cine Blitz magazine go waaaaaaaaaaaaay back!

As a newcomer to Bollywood, Sridevi shared the cover with her first (and frequent) co-star Jeetendra in December 1983 - after the pair become the most successful duo at the box-office. Back in 1983 Bollywood, it was a steady stream of box-office smashes from the "Madras film factory" as the two stars  churned out film after film. Truth be told, the movies were roasted by the critics, loved by the masses. As Jeetendra said on Kapil Sharma's show, his only intention was to make money - for himself, his co-stars and his producers. The critics be damned!  

Sridevi's last cover with the glossy magazine was in October 2012 - on the eve of English Vinglish's release across India. Considering the long, long association the superstar had with the magazine, they should have gone through the archives for a special edition, considering how many exclusive shoots she did for the publication in its storied history. But then, her untimely death was such a shock - it was a mad dash to hit print deadlines I'm sure with whatever resources available to them. 

This might be the definitive list of Sridevi's Cine Blitz covers from beginning to (tragic) end. Note, she was on the cover annually*  (*except in 1995), when she was working in Bollywood. Sometimes more than once in the same year - such was her star power and aura. 

The famed editor-in-chief, Rita Mehta ensured extremely glamorous covers - as she wanted to present stars as enigmatic beings, not the girl/guy next door. During the hey-day of the 1980s in particular, the glossy shone in newsstands - star wattage, high-fashion, pure glamour, the glitz of the Blitz.... 

Loved buying - and collecting the magazine. Nostalgic for the era-gone by...  As we are when we reflect on Sridevi herself. 

Dec 1983

Dec 1984

March 1985

August 1985

Feb 1986

June 1986

August 1986

July 1987

Oct 1988

April 1989

March 1990

August 1991

Jan 1992

August 1992

Feb 1993

March 1993

October 1993

Nov 1994

August 1996

16 years later.... 

October 2012

Archive of Sridevi on Cine Blitz cover from the early 80s to 2017.

Sridevi was frequently featured on the cover of Cine Blitz from the early years till her last.  Here are some - not all of Sri's covers for CB.

Since Rita Mehta left Cine Blitz, the quality of the magazine, the cheekiness, the fun, the boldness, the ambition... all has come tumbling down we are sorry to state, in our humble opinion. No more exclusives, no more tongue-in-cheek editorials, no original ideas, it's a sliver of what it used to be. Now the trouble the magazine is the economics of it - yes we understand, but it's also no longer a quality product. Too many pontifications, not enough interviews, no variety, sloppy writing, quality in print, bad art direction, amateur layout, the same handful of 'stars' (many randoms), the same handful of people repeatedly featured. oyve. There used to be a moment where you'd see the magazine glittering on the newsstand - it really stood out with strong covers, now its so humdrum. Its especially sad when they are either old pictures, or deja-vu ones that other magazines have carried or are simultaneously carrying...

The best writing and reviews are now online. The best images are on social media by the photographers themselves, so why bother paying a good ruppee for something that's free online already?!

It's a shame really as CB was a part of the holy trinity of film magazines - Stardust, Filmfare being the others - who've survived till date (its sad many Indian / Bollywood film magazines/tabloids have closed shop...!) -

Digital killed  newsstand sales, there's no denying it. The numbers have been on a steady decline. Sad.

We have incredibly fondness for print - and we have a huge collection from the late 80s till date. But even we've stopped buying magazines. Takes up too much space, maintenance, its heavy...

Obviously as a desk-jockey, we have several ideas on how to rescue the mag from its inevitable doom but then... I feel there are others with such lofty quixotic ideas too so shall refrain from further comment.

In the meantime, a look at some of our fav Sridevi portraits that made cover. Every image is either by Rakesh Shreshta or Gautam Rajadhyaksha. One from Ashok Salian and the last by Dabboo Ratnani.

Sridevi on the cover of Telugu magazine Vijaya Chitra

Sridevi on the cover of a Telugu magazine Vijaya Chitra, Nov1990 issue.

Memories of Sridevi as a child actor.

The still is from Sridevi on the sets of the mega-hit Jagadeka Veerudu Athiloka Sundari.