MUMBAI: Thousands of heartbroken fans lined the streets of Mumbai Wednesday as India said farewell to Bollywood legend Sridevi Kapoor following her shock death from accidental drowning in a Dubai hotel bathtub aged just 54.
Some carried roses while others held photos of the late screen icon as they queued patiently to pay their final respects at a condolence service in the western Indian city.
“It’s a shock to believe that she is no more. We want to pay her one last visit today and thank her for all her wonderful performances,” Nandini Rao, a 32-year-old teacher, told AFP.
Legends of Hindi cinema, including actresses Aishwarya Rai and Kajol, were among the mourners at the Celebration Sports Club in the Andheri West area of Mumbai — the home of the Bollywood film industry.
Heavy security lined the streets to control the crowds, which included people who had traveled hundreds of kilometers to be there.
Several fans chanted prayers as Sridevi’s body was brought the short distance from her home to the club at 9:00 am (0330 GMT).
“I’m an avid Sridevi fan. I loved her smiling personality. She had such a commanding presence in the Indian film industry. Her death was so sudden and I feel terrible,” 45-year-old Kuldeep Singh told AFP.
Sridevi’s body is due to leave the ground at 2:00pm to embark on its final journey. She will be cremated at a private Hindu ceremony later on Wednesday.
Sridevi was considered to be one of the most influential Bollywood actresses of all time and her sudden death at the weekend sparked an outpouring of grief in India.
Tributes poured in from fans and fellow actors as well as Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The star of hit films such as “Chandi” and “Mr India” drowned in her bathtub after losing consciousness late Saturday in a hotel in Dubai, where she was attending a wedding.
Police in the emirate said a post-mortem examination found that she had drowned after losing consciousness. On Tuesday they ruled out any foul play and released the body to Sridevi’s family.
It arrived back in Mumbai on a private jet on Tuesday evening, accompanied by her husband, the filmmaker Boney Kapoor, and her stepson, actor Arjun Kapoor.
Sridevi, born Shree Amma Yanger Ayappan in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, appeared in around 300 films and was awarded the Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest civilian award, for services to the movie industry.
She made her acting debut at the age of four and her career spanned more than four decades.
Sridevi worked in India’s regional Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam-language films before making her Bollywood debut in 1979.
She became a national icon with a string of blockbuster films including “Mawali” (“Scoundrel“) and “Tohfa” (“Gift“).
Sridevi took a 15-year break from the silver screen after marrying Kapoor but returned in the 2012 hit comedy-drama “English Vinglish.” Her most recent film was last year’s “Mom.”
Sridevi was set to see Jhanvi, the eldest of her two daughters, make her Bollywood debut in a movie scheduled for release later this year.
India says farewell to Bollywood icon Sridevi
India says farewell to Bollywood icon Sridevi
Berlinale responds to backlash over Gaza-related comments
The Berlin International Film Festival has issued a statement after what organisers described as a growing “media storm” linked to comments about the war in Gaza and the broader role of politics in cinema.
Festival director Tricia Tuttle released a lengthy note late Saturday following criticism directed at several high-profile guests. The controversy began during the opening day press conference when jury president Wim Wenders was asked about the conflict in Gaza. He responded: “We have to stay out of politics because if we make movies that are dedicatedly political, we enter the field of politics,” a remark that sparked swift backlash online.
Indian author Arundhati Roy later withdrew from the festival, reportedly angered by the remarks.
Other prominent figures, including Michelle Yeoh and Neil Patrick Harris, also faced online criticism after responding cautiously to questions about politics. Harris stated that he was interested in “doing things that were ‘apolitical,’” a comment that further fuelled debate.
In her statement, Tuttle defended the festival and its participants, stressing the importance of artistic freedom. “People have called for free speech at the Berlinale. Free speech is happening at the Berlinale. But increasingly, filmmakers are expected to answer any question put to them. They are criticised if they do not answer. They are criticised if they answer and we do not like what they say. They are criticised if they cannot compress complex thoughts into a brief sound bite when a microphone is placed in front of them when they thought they were speaking about something else,” she said.
She added: “It is hard to see the Berlinale and so many hundreds of filmmakers and people who work on this festival distilled into something we do not always recognise in the online and media discourse… It is a large, complex festival.”
“Artists are free to exercise their right of free speech in whatever way they choose… nor should they be expected to speak on every political issue raised to them unless they want to,” Tuttle said.
