Silk Smitha

Silk Smitha
Native name	సిల్క్ స్మిథ
Born	Vijayalakshmi (1960-12-02)2 December 1960 Eluru, Andhra Pradesh, India
Died	23 September 1996(1996-09-23) (aged 35) Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India
Cause of death	Suicide
Nationality	Indian
Occupation	Film actress
Years active	1979–1996
Parent(s)	Ramallu, Sarasamma

Vijayalakshmi Vadlapati (2 December 1960 – 23 September 1996), better known by her stage name Silk Smitha, was an Indian film actress who worked predominantly in South Indian films.^[1] She entered the industry as an extra^[2] actress and first got noticed for her role as "Silk" in the 1979 Tamil film Vandichakkaram. She became a major sex symbol and the most sought-after erotic actress in the 1980s. In a career spanning 17 years, she appeared in over 450 films in Telugu, Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi languages. On 23 September 1996, she was found dead in her apartment in Chennai, apparently having committed suicide.

Early life

Smitha was born in a family to Ramallu and Sarasamma in Eluru. She left school after her fourth standard (in India, at about 8 years of age) due to the family's financial constraints. Her striking looks burdened her with uninvited attention, and her family married her off at a very young age. When she was ill-treated by her husband and in-laws, she ran away to Madras (now known as Chennai) and started living with an aunt.^[3][4]

Career

Smitha started as a touch-up artist for an actress and soon got a break in small character roles.^[3] Later she was discovered by Vinu Chakravarthy, director at a flour mill. He changed her name to Smitha and took her under his wing: his wife taught her English and arranged for her to learn dancing.^[5][6] though soon, due to her marked sex appeal, she switched to roles of cabaret dancers and vamps and inevitably found herself typecast.^[3] After garnering much notice and acclaim with her first major role in the Tamil film Vandichakkaram,^[7] in 1979, Smitha assumed the screen name "Silk", after her character's name in the movie.^[8][9] After it became a big hit, she could not escape typecasting, severely limiting her range throughout her career.^[3]

Smitha went on to star in Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, Kannada and a few Hindi films. Her dance numbers, semi-nude scenes and bold performances in films like Moondru Mugam made her the ultimate symbol of sensuality in South Indian cinema. Her item numbers in films like Amaran, Hallimeshtru Kannada were also celebrated at the box office. Some film critics, historians and journalists have referred to her as a "soft porn" actress.^[10] A vast majority of her movies are considered 'softcore' by Indian standards and a common theme is her playing a freakishly strong agent in skimpy bikinis beating up huge thugs. Her acting prowess did not go completely unnoticed and in her rare non-sexual roles, she impressed critics and audiences, such as her portrayal of a wife hurt by her role in her husband's rape of their maid (which she passively allowed by not preventing him from entering the maid's bathroom and standing "guard" during the shameful act, to prevent embarrassment to their family) and when she poignantly admitted her mistake in her confrontation of her husband in Alaigal Oivathillai (1981).^[3] One of her films, Layanam (1989), has earned a cult status in the Indian adult film industry and was dubbed in numerous languages including, Hindi as Reshma Ki Jawani (2002), which, too, acquired cult status.^[3][11] Her most respected film is Moondram Pirai by Balu Mahendra, remade in Hindi as Sadma, with much of the top-drawer cast, including Sridevi, Kamal Hassan, and Silk Smitha reprising their roles.^[12]

Such was her audience-drawing power that, at the peak of her career, according to Tamil film historian, Randor Guy, "Films that had lain in cans for years were sold by the simple addition of a Silk Smitha song."^[3]

Death

On 23 September 1996, Smitha was found dead in her Chennai apartment. In the prior year she had been trying to move her career to become a film producer.^[13][14] Financial problems, a disillusionment in love and an alcohol dependency apparently led to depression.

Selected filmography

Legacy

In 2011, a biographical film on Silk Smitha's life, titled The Dirty Picture, was produced in Hindi by Ekta Kapoor. The movie was directed by Milan Luthria^[16] and starred Vidya Balan (who later won National Film Award for Best Actress). The movie was released on Smitha's birthday (2 December 2011) and received favourable reviews. Reports suggest that the family of Silk Smitha, on whom the film is based, is not happy with the movie. Smitha's brother V Naga Vara Prasad claimed the film was made without the family's consent.^[17] After the claim, Ekta Kapoor immediately changed her statement by quoting The Dirty Picture is not based on Silk Smitha's life.^[18]

However, in 2013, a Kannada film titled Dirty Picture: Silk Sakkath Hot starring Pakistani actress Veena Malik was released. The film was based on Silk Smitha and Veena Malik was praised for her performance in the film. The film was a huge hit in Karnataka.

A Malayalam film titled Climax starring Sana Khan as Silk Smitha released on 24 May 2013.

References

Further reading

• Ashish Rajadhyaksha, Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema, Oxford University Press, 1994 (ISBN 0-85170-669-X)
• Roopa Swaminathan, Star Dust: Vignettes from the Fringes of the Film Industry, Penguin, 2004 (ISBN 0-14-303243-7)
• Suparna Bhaskaran, Made in India: Decolonizations, Queer Sexualities, Trans/National Projects, Palgrave Macmillan, 2004 (ISBN 1-4039-6726-1)

External links

• Silk Smitha at the Internet Movie Database