Vijayalakshmi Vadlapatla, popularly known by her stage name Silk Smitha, is an Indian actress who works primarily in South Indian films. She came to the limelight after playing the role of Silk in the Tamil film Vandichakkaram (1979). She is popular for playing bold and glamorous roles in South Indian films.
Wiki/Biography
Smitha was born on Friday, December 2, 1960 (age 36 at the time of her death) in Kovvali village in Denduluru Mandal, Eluru, Andhra Pradesh, India. Her zodiac sign is Sagittarius. She studied till Class 4 but dropped out due to financial constraints in her family. Her parents wanted her to get married at a young age. However, she was abused by her husband and in-laws and divorced at the age of 14. Smitha wanted to be an actress since she was a child. Soon after leaving her husband’s house, Smitha moved to Madras (now Chennai) and found a job as a makeup artist.
appearance
Height (approximate): 5′ 5″
Hair color: Black
Eye color: Black
Family and caste
Silk Smitha was born into a financially poor Telugu family.
Parents and siblings
Silk Smitha is the daughter of Ramallu and Sarasamma. She has a younger brother named V. Naga Vara Prasad.
Silk Smitha’s brother
Relationship with husband
Smitha’s parents married her off when she was very young. However, she was unhappy with the treatment she received from her husband and her in-laws, so she ran away from home. Not much is known about her husband. Later, there were rumors that Rajinikanth and Shilkh Smitha were having an affair.
Rajinikanth
She is also rumoured to be in a relationship with Tamil actor, writer and director Vinu Chakravarthy.
Vinu Chakravarthy
Profession
Silke Smitha started her career as a makeup artist for actresses. Soon, she got a small role in a film. Silke started her acting career by playing small roles in Malayalam films like Pushyaraagam (1979), Saraswatheeyaamam (1980), Ivar (1980) and Angadi (1980). She made her Malayalam film debut as the heroine in the film Inaye Thedi (1981). The film was shot in 1979 but released much later. Impressed by her looks, the film’s director Anthony Eastman named her Smitha.
Silk Smitha by Inaye Thedi
She next made her Tamil debut in Vinu Chakravarthy’s film Vandichakkaram (1980), in which she played the role of “Silk”. The film was a huge hit and brought her honours. After the release of the film, Smitha added the name “Silk” to her screen name and became “Silk Smitha”.
Silk Smitha in Vandichakkaram
Soon she was playing showgirls and sluts. She went on to star in many popular Tamil, Malayalam, Kannada and Hindi films. Her dancing and daring performances in films like Moondru Mugam (1982) made her the ultimate symbol of sex appeal in South Indian cinema.
Some of her popular films include “Sakalakala Vallavan” (1982), “Moondram Pirai” (1982), “Paayum Puli” (1983) and “Thanga Magan” (1983).
Smitha also acted in many popular Hindi films like Pataal Bhairavi (1985), Ms. Tarshan (1990), Drohi (1992) and Reshma Ki Jawani (1996).
die
On September 23, 1996, Smitha called her friend Anuradha to discuss something that was upsetting her. Anuradha told her that she would visit her after dropping her (Anuradha’s) children off to school. When Anuradha went to visit Smitha, she found her hanging at her home in Kodampakkam, Chennai. Later, the post-mortem report revealed that Smitha had committed suicide. She had a high amount of alcohol in her system at the time of her death. Although the exact reason for her suicide is unknown, Smitha was reportedly going through several problems at the time, including severe depression, romantic disillusionment, and financial crisis.
In an interview, veteran Kannada actor Ravichandran revealed that Smitha had called him a few hours before her suicide (perhaps to talk about something that was upsetting her), but he failed to pick up her call. He said:
I was busy shooting that day (September 23, 1996) and was surprised to find Smitha frantically trying to contact me several times. I tried to speak to her but the call was blocked due to poor signal. I thought it was just a routine call. However, the next day, to my horror, I realized that Smitha had committed suicide. I couldn’t imagine why she called. It still bothers me now.”
Favorite things
- Film Directors: Bharathi Rajaa, Balu Mahendra
Facts/Trivia
- Smitha has loved makeup since she was a child.
- Vinu Chakravarty’s wife, Karna Poo, taught Smith Tower English. She even arranged dance, acting and etiquette classes for Smith Tower.
- According to her family, she had a small circle of friends. Silk was an introvert and had a hard time making new friends.
- Smitha is known in the film industry for her bad temper, strong will and outspokenness.
- Most of her co-stars consider her to be punctual (reaching movie sets on time), responsible, and ambitious.
- Her friends often described her as having a “gentle” and “childlike” personality.
- Smitha is popular for her doe-like eyes, golden complexion and toned physique.
- When Smitha was at the peak of her career, she had an incredible audience appeal. In the words of Tamil film historian Rando Gay,
Films that have been lying around for years can be sold simply by adding a Silk Smitha song.”
- In 2011, Ekta Kapoor made a film called Dirty Photo (2011) inspired by the life of Silk Smitha. The film was released on Smitha’s birthday and was also dubbed in Telugu and Tamil. Later, Smitha’s brother V. Naga Vara Prasad objected to it and said that the film was made without the family’s consent.
- In 2013, a Kannada film titled Dirty Pictures: Silk Sakkath Hot was released, which was based on the life of Smitha and Veena Malik. The film starred Veena Malik in the lead role. The film was a huge hit in Karnataka.
Dirty Pictures: Silk Sakkath Hot Posters
- In May 2013, the Malayalam film Climax, based on Smitha’s life, was released.
- In a career spanning 17 years, Smitha acted in around 450 films.
- Smitha is known as the Marilyn Monroe of Indian cinema because of her uncanny resemblance to the actress.
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education