A hiatus of 16 years, motherhood or the many responsibilities that go with marriage haven’t had any effect on the chirpiness of Sridevi. Sans any makeup and armed with her smile, she says, “I am so glad to be back in the South. Chennai is like my home. I was born and raised in this city. I’ve always felt so proud to be from this part of India. Even work ethic is remarkably different, not that North is bad, it is just that I am so used to early timings here.”

But that aside, how has the South shaped her personality? “In so many ways. I love the traditional art forms. From the kanjeevarams to the spicy food or even the pujas that we do here are so etched in me. I do practice a lot of these at my home in Mumbai. I do inculcate some of these values such as prayer, festivals and a sense of dressing into my children too.”
The mother of two young girls who is always seen with them at awards ceremonies or public events gets reflective at the mention of her kids. “While growing up I always had my mother and sister to watchout for me. I started really young. I never used to go anywhere without them. There was that security blanket of family around me always. I am like that with my kids. It’s so important for family to be there for each other and at every step of the way. My girls look after each other well too and I feel nice when I see it. Boneyji is an amazing dad and is very protective of them.”
Despite her svelte figure and a gamut of designers to choose from, she’s always been seen in very safe clothes. Put that to her and pat comes the reply, “Not at all. I love different kinds of clothes. I do wear a lot of Chanel. In fact I shop a lot from the label for my kids too. Yes, it is true that I love my Indian wear. And, what everyone doesn’t know is that before every event I let my husband and kids raid my wardrobe and layout options for me. They have to approve my entire look. I don’t make fashion choices without their inputs.”
On her upcoming flick, she says, “It came to me at the right time and I was just so excited when Gauri Shinde narrated the story. Also, working with another woman was exciting. I hadn’t worked with a female director before. It was pure magic on the sets and even the day we met we just hit it off so well. I couldn’t have asked for a better director for my comeback.”
Ask her about the word ‘comeback’ and how she feels, considering she hadn’t really fallen off the radar. She was at events, awards and very often seated in front rows. “Well, I don’t know how to answer this. I don’t blame people for using the word since it is my comeback into films. I chose to stay away from films for 16 years. And honestly, I never really missed it. I was so involved with my home.”
An actor of her stature would have made sound investments and clearly their comebacks are never motivated by money. “For me it’s purely passion for cinema. Investments and money are not my forte and today’s crop of actresses are very empowered. I do buy a lot of jewellery and I like buying homes. I have two homes in Chennai, one is a beach house. In Mumbai too we have a comfortable and well-done-up home.”
Does she like decorating? “Yes. I am a shopaholic. I shop a lot for my family and our homes. Whenever I travel I pick up clothes for the whole family, although sometimes size is a problem for Boneyji,” she laughs and continues, “Shopping makes me happy, and I love to go on shopping holidays.”
So, what’s the most endearing thing about her and her flock? “I love my children to bits. I still tell them bedtime stories that my father used to tell me.”