Aka chiki laki chiki chiki laki chu
Aka chiki laki chiki chiki laki chiki chu...
Mai khwabo ki shehjadi
Mai hu har dil pe chhayi
(I am the princess of dreams,
I have a hold on every heart)
Badal hai meri julfe, bijali meri angdayi
Bijali girane mai hu aayi
Kehte hain mujhko Hawa Hawaii...
(The clouds are my tresses
Bolts of lightning strike when I stretch my limbs
I have come to shower lightning
They call me Hawa Hawaii...)
Sridevi, the Bollywood star, indeed showered lightning when she danced her way into our teen-aged hearts in the 80s and 90s.
At every celebration, my cousins and I danced to her popular Hindi film songs. She brought us so much joy with her animated performances in box office hits. With her large expressive eyes, the dark clouds of hair that framed her full face, and her chirpy voice, she was charm personified.
***
Today, 5 am
I put out bowls with milk, cereal, fruit, and nuts.
Then spread a yoga mat.
S checks his messages and takes his usual walk in the garden.
I'm grateful he doesn't tell me the sad news then.
Or else I wouldn't be able to focus on breathing and movement. Meditation would be out of question.
In a certain way, I admired this princess.
***
8 am
Social media and newspapers are screaming about Sridevi's untimely death last night in Dubai at the age of 54.
According to reports, Amitabh Bachchan had tweeted a little after midnight about feeling a sense of unease: "Na jaane kyun, ek ajeeb si ghabrahat ho rahi hain."
Pictures and videos of her last hours surface. She appears as dazzling as ever.
***
9 am
Vaishu and I are at a volunteer meeting of ladies who make eco-friendly sanitary pads for less-privileged girls.
On our table, while unpicking stitches in the fabric, the discussion moves to the sad news. Speculations are raised about how Sridevi died.
Botox...plastic surgery...extreme weight loss...hydroxyl drugs...demands of the profession... the cons of a glamorous life....
Seventy-one year old Maya, who looks not a day older than fifty, advises us on how to eat properly and take care of our bodies.
***
4 pm
Glorious tributes are offered online to the legendary star.
Good and not-so-good comments follow.
The show goes on.
