Shree Amma Yanger Ayyapan, best known as Sridevi, and after her marriage as Sridevi Kapoor, is a prominent Indian film personality who has acted in many South Indian films as well as Hindi cinema. Born on 13 August 1963 in Sivakasi, Tamil Nadu, the veteran actress started her career as a child artist. She exuded an excellent on-screen persona since youth, and is now one of the most celebrated figures in Indian film history.

Sridevi made her debut with Thunaivan (1969), a devotional film where she played the role of little lord Muruga. The film, and in particular its soundtrack, was highly successful. Apart from this she acted in a number of successful films as a child artist in Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam. She made her Hindi film debut as a 12 year old in Julie (1975), playing the role of Irene.

Her first leading role was in the highly successful Tamil film Moondru Mudichu (1976), alongside Kamal Haasan and Rajnikanth, two co-stars that would see Sridevi through some of her most successful Tamil films. Her other successes in Tamil included 16 Vayathinile (1977), Taxi Driver (1978), Vanakkatukuriya Kathaliye (1978), Sigappu Rojakkal (1978), Neela Malargal (1979), Thaayillamal Naan Illai (1979), Vishwaroopam (1980), Moondram Pirai (1982), Thanikattu Raja (1982), Pokkiri Raja (1982), and Naan Adimai Illai (1986).

She also found plenty of success in the Hindi film industry, where her skilled performances were praised. The beautiful actress was very versatile, with her ability to flawlessly adapt to roles that ranged from the comic to the poignant. She made her debut as a lead actress with Solva Sawan (1978) which was a remake of her Tamil work 16 Vayathinile (1977). After this, she went on to appear as the lead in yet another remake, Sadma (1983), which was an adaptation of Moondram Pirai (1982).

After this, she became a very popular face of the 1980s, and acted in several hit films such as Jaag Utha Insan (1984), Inquilaab (1984), Tohfa (1984), Sarfarosh (1985), Nagina (1986), Aag Aur Shola (1986), Mr. India (1987), Ram-Avtar (1988), Nigahen: Nagina Part II (1989), Chandni (1989), and ChaalBaaz (1989).

This streak of success continued well into the 1990s as well with films like Nakabandi (1990), Lamhe (1991), Khuda Gawah (1992), Heer Ranjha (1992), Gumrah (1993), Chandramukhi (1993), Laadla (1994) and Judaai (1997).

She is one of the most iconic leading ladies in the industry, particularly due to the fact that she chose to act in films which were women-centric, making her stand out. After the 1990s, she took a long break from acting.

She made a highly successful comeback with the lead role in English Vinglish (2012), where she portrayed an insecure mother who is disrespected by her family due to her lack of fluency in English. She then goes on to take classes in English and is given back her dignity. Her powerful portrayal of Shashi Godbole impressed audiences and critics alike. It also got her nominated for a Filmfare Award.

Sridevi married eminent film producer Boney Kapoor in 1996. He is the brother of one of her most popular co-stars, Anil Kapoor. Together they have two children, Jhanvi and Khushi. She was also a recipient of the Padma Shri from the Government of India in 2013.