Bidding ADIEU: It was now or never

It took no time for a selective few to encash on the death of legendary Bollywood actress, Sridevi. A crooked few saw the event of her death, sadly, as an opportunity to monetise upon. Auto-rickshaw drivers were seen overcharging the commuters, many of whom were fans of the superstars. Cab aggregators Ola and Uber too showed surge prices towards Andheri-Lokhadwala for most part of the day until evening.

The auto drivers picking fares from Andheri station, to Lokhandwala, were quoting fixed fares rather than going by meter. Most people had turned to the local and buses for commute. “The rickshaw drivers were charging anything. Normally, they do not go on share basis till Lokhandwala but yesterday they were quoting Rs 40 per seat,” said K Verma, who travels to work to Andheri.

The traffic on road made matters worse for motorists and the fans as it only kept the meters rolling. The BEST buses plying on the routes to Andheri-Lokhandwala too faced problems moving through the traffic. “We had to short terminate some routes due to roads being closed for the funeral,” said a BEST official. The traffic police had already diverted few routes for Sridevi’s funeral procession. These were on SV Road, Western Express Highway and Andheri JVPD in order to avoid vehicular traffic getting affected by the funeral.

ONE LAST TIME

I have seen all the films of Sridevi. My entire family is her fan and her films have not only motivated people but in fact, my sister pursued dancing after being inspired by the actress. We are all shocked and sad after having learnt about her demise and so have travelled all the way from Telangana to Mumbai to pay her homage. We have been her since the past three days ever since we learnt this saddening news.
Satyamma Narimha, Telangana

I work in a garment unit and managed to take the day off. I am originally from Orissa. I am an ardent Sridevi fan. I liked her in Chandini. All her songs from the movie were really good and her performance was also very good. We went to the Celebration Centre at 11 am but we could only manage to see the bus that was carrying her body. We followed the body here to see if there is any chance of seeing her up close but this place was even more crowded
Najma Shaikh, Saki Naka

We are students and wanted to go to our clinic. We have an OPD shift and then have to go to our clinic for some work. When we left, it was so crowded that we could not even move. We had to walk. That is when we asked our office and they allowed us to be here. We wanted to see the mortal remains of Sridevi and also other people who are coming to give condolences. It was too crowded to see anything
Dr Pranita Sonawane, Vile Parle

I have always liked her work. She was particularly good in the movie English Vinglish. We wanted to see how a cremation process of an actress is done. I was not here so much for the actors and celebrities who were dropping by, though we managed to see Amitabh Bachchan and Shakti Kapoor while we were walking to the crematorium from our college. Since there was too much traffic and there was no auto available, our clinic allowed us to stay here and watch whatever we could
Dr Deepika Rathod, Vile Parle

I perform Hindu rites and rituals and have seen her (Sridevi) and her husband attending one in the past. She was a great actor of the country and I wanted to be here when she is going to be on her last journey. I particularly liked her work in Mr. India. She has done a lot of good work for people in general too. I prayed for her and on behalf of the entire Arya Samaj pray that her soul rest in peace
Pandit Bhupendra Shashtri, Andheri