MUMBAI: A new uninhibited Sridevi has  suddenly emerged from the selfimposed exilic cocoon. And the new Sridevi is spilling out on the streets.

On Tuesday evening Sridevi brought all traffic to a screeching halt in Juhu when she jumped out of her car carrying her enormous entourage and that included her husband, the utterly devoted Boney Kapoor and decided to beat the traffic by hotfooting it to the venue of a music release where her old co-star Rishi Kapoor was patiently waiting for his Chandni to show up.

Says a source, "It was a shocker to  all of us to see the Goddess marching towards us, the waiting expectant devotees of the devastating deity, with Boney huffing and puffing after her."

Explains the source, "Sridevi and Boney were stuck in traffic. Rishi Kapoor had reached well in time at the venue, the Novotel. In fact he was one of the first to arrive with his wife Neetu Singh.Since there was no sign of Sridevi he sauntered over to the nearby Sun ‘n’ Sand hotel for chai, returned. Still no sign of Sri…"

That’s when Sri broke all traffic rules. When she got to know that she was just 10 minutes walking-distance from the venue she jumped out before Boney could protest, much to the startled delight of passersby who saw the regal beauty trooping forward with Boney and gang huffing after her.

Apparently Sridevi, always known to shy away from communication, actually stopped smiled and let two passersby take pictures with her.

A far cry from the time when she asked her mother permission before talking to strangers.

 

We confirmed the incident with the host of the event, director Samir Karnik who said, "Haan yaar. Sridevi actually jumped out of her car and walked to our music release when she came to know Chintuji had been waiting for her. It was really sporting of her considering she’s still a diva and easily recognizable on the roads. We had our hearts in our mouth when we saw her approaching with a crowd of people following."

We hear Sridevi is making a concerted effort to overcome her inherent shyness because of her two daughters. Apparently the girls specially the elder one, keep urging their superstar-mom to come out with them, meet their friends, go shopping, and relive a life that she missed out on while shooting round the clock when she was younger.

Says husband Boney Kapoor indulgently, "Sri and my daughters are friends. The three girls have a lot of fun together. If I’m lucky I’m also included in the merry-making sometimes."