Surekha Sikri, veteran actress dies of cardiac arrest at 75

Veteran actor Surekha Sikri passed away in Mumbai on Friday morning after suffering a cardiac arrest at the age of 75. She had been unwell for quite some time and had suffered a brain stroke in 2020 and a paralytic stroke earlier in 2018. She is survived by her son Rahul Sikri.

Surekha Sikri's manager Vivek Sidhwani told Indian Express, "Three-time national award winning actress, Surekha Sikri has passed away following a cardiac arrest earlier this morning at the age of 75. She had been suffering from complications arising from a second brain stroke. She was surrounded by family and her caregivers. The family asks for privacy at this time. Om Sai Ram."

Dadisa's popularity

In 1978, Surekha Sikri made her debut with the film titled 'Kissa Kursi Ka' and went on to play supporting roles in a number of Hindi as well as Malayalam films. She was also known for her powerful roles in Indian TV serials and rose to fame as Kalyani Devi Dharamveer Singh aka Dadisa in the popular television show 'Balika Vadhu'.

Surekha Sikri won the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress thrice, for her roles in 'Tamas' (1988), 'Mammo' (1995) and 'Badhaai Ho' (2018). Her outstanding performance in the Ayushmann Khurrana-starrer 'Badhaai Ho' drew immense popularity and was seen as a career comeback performance for her. The actress was last seen in the Netflix anthology 'Ghost Stories', which was directed by director Zoya Akhtar.

Suffering financial crisis?

Last year, there were reports of the actress going through a turbulent period financially, especially after she was admitted to the hospital because of a brain stroke. However, she denied it later.

"That was incorrectly put out in the press. Surekhaji has her own finances and the family, including her son, is by her side. There is no need for financial assistance for now. Many of her well-wishers, colleagues and filmmakers were kind enough to offer financial assistance. They have been informed that the family is taking care of everything and giving her the best possible treatment. We would like to acknowledge everyone who reached out to us," her manager had told Mid-Day.