Sridevi has said that she is hurt by the comments SS Rajamouli made, on her turning down the role of Sivagami in Baahubali. She said that in her long career, she has turned down many films, and asked why Baahubali was singled out.
SS Rajamouli had earlier said that his first choice for playing Sivagami was Sridevi, but Sridevi had demanded a very high pay for the role, and made other demands. He then offered the role to Ramya Krishnan
According to a report in Indian Express, Sridevi spoke to a Telugu news channel while promoting her upcoming MOM, and said, “I could not be part of many films in my career due to various reasons. But I don’t know why only this film is being talked about. Baahubali part 1 and part 2 came out and both became big hits. And I don’t understand why people still talk about it.”
“I have avoided talking about it for a long time. But, once and for all, I want to clear the air. There are rumours that I asked about Rs 10 crore for the role, including an entire floor in a hotel and 10 flight tickets etc.”
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Sridevi, pointing at her long career and 300+ films, said that the industry would have very quickly disowned her for inflating her price. She said, “People in the industry would have sent me packing if I was like that. But, when you hear such things about yourself, you really get hurt. I don’t know if the producer wrongly told Rajamouli that I made all these demands or there could have been some miscommunication. I think it is not in good taste to speak on a public platform like this.”
Sridevi also said her husband, Boney Kapoor, is a producer, and understands and sympathises with producers. She or he would therefore never demand a high pay and put the producer in trouble.