Sridevi: 50 years of living the cinematic dream

"I feel like a newcomer. I feel that my career is going to start now. It's not finished, It's going to start now," she asserted, dismissing any desire to treat her fans to an autobiography replete with stories from her glorious life – starting as a child actor at four to superstardom in India.

Born in Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu on August 13, 1963, Sridevi began her career at the age of four in the devotional film Thunaivan.

That marked the beginning of a journey in filmdom that saw her work across Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam and Hindi productions, leading her to become one of the most formidable actresses of the 1980s and 1990s in Bollywood – in fact, the only female "superstar" the industry has seen.

As filmmaker Ram Gopal Varma put it, "She was like a creation of God which he does whenever he is in a very special mood as a very, very special gift to mankind."

Sridevi grew up to be known for not just her ability for slip into myriad roles – whether the double role in ChaalBaaz, as a woman with retrograde amnesia in Sadma, a shape-shifting woman in Nagina, a goofy crime journalist in Mr. India, the warm mother act in English Vinglish or the fierce and revengeful mom in Mom – but also for her expressive eyes, sheer comic timing and her fluid dancing skills, all of which made her a director's delight.

'Hawaa hawai', 'Main teri dushman', 'Morni', 'Na jaane kahan se aayi ha'", 'Mere haathon mein' are some of the iconic and classic dance numbers which gave cinema fans a chance to see the dancing talent of Sridevi.

As filmmaker Subhash Ghai, who directed her in Karma, said: "Introvert by nature, she was electricity with thunder in front of the camera. She would shock directors with each shot – be it dance, drama or romance. She was uncrowned queen of acting in all languages in her time."

In 2013, the government feted her with the Padma Shri, the country's fourth-highest civilian award. Her work was widely lauded with a slew of other richly-deserved honours.

Sridevi, who over the years became quite a fashion icon – sometimes giving tough competition to her daughters –commanded popularity like few others.

Co-producer K. Ramji of Tina Films International, said: "In 1986, while shooting for Sindoor, the heroine Neelam Kothari was staying in the same hotel as Sridevi.

Neelam was a great fan and wanted to meet her, but was apprehensive about approaching an established star like Sridevi.

"Finally, when she took courage and entered her room, Sridevi got up to receive and welcome her, commented on Neelam's lustrous hair and they became instant friends." In real life, she was indeed a "purely traditional housewife – a great mother and perfect host for guests at home", says Ghai.

A mother of two daughters, Janhvi and Khushi, whom she had with husband Boney Kapoor, Sridevi was as doting as a mom could get.

She was excited for Janhvi's upcoming debut Dhadak, just months away from its release. And to cite the unpredictability of life, who knew Sridevi wouldn't be there to see her daughter take baby steps into a world where she was the uncrowned queen for so many years.