Three-time
National
Award-winning
actress
Surekha
Sikri
passed
away
in
Mumbai
following
a
cardiac
arrest
on
Friday.
She
was
75.
The
entire
film
and
TV
industry
is
deeply
saddened
by
her
demise
and
are
mourning
the
loss
by
paying
their
tributes
to
the
veteran
actress.
Many
actors
and
actresses
have
shared
their
fondest
memories
of
working
with
her
as
well.
Surekha's
Balika
Vadhu
co-star
Toral
Rasputra
told
ETimes
TV
that
she
was
shocked
to
hear
the
sad
news.
The
actress
also
expressed
regret
that
she
could
not
meet
her
co-actor
and
veteran
actress.
She
then
recalled
being
extremely
nervous
while
shooting
her
first
scene
with
Sikri
and
said,
"I
was
shivering
during
my
first
scene
with
her.
She
was
an
institution
of
acting
and
here,
I,
a
newcomer,
had
to
deliver
a
long
dialogue
with
her.
I
had
rehearsed
the
scene
many
times,
but
I
was
still
very
nervous.
I
didn't
want
to
irritate
her
by
going
through
too
many
retakes,
but
she
was
very
patient.
She
used
to
treat
her
scenes
even
during
rehearsals
as
the
final
shot.
Shooting
with
her
for
three
years
of
Balika
Vadhu
was
memorable,
I
learnt
a
lot
about
acting
from
hre.
It
is
a
great
loss
for
me
and
the
entire
industry."
Annup
Sonii,
who
played
her
son
in
the
show,
recalled,
“Surekha
ji
and
I
were
from
the
same
institute…we
are
both
alumni
of
the
National
School
of
Drama
(NSD).
She
was
my
senior
and
was
known
to
be
brilliant.
Having
heard
so
much
about
her,
it
felt
like
a
dream
come
true
when
I
got
to
work
with
her
in
the
show.”
He
went
on
to
add,
“She
must
have
been
60-plus
when
we
started
shooting
for
Balika
Vadhu.
Many
actors
at
that
age
might
feel
that
abhi
bohot
kaam
kar
liya
and
they
take
their
work
for
granted,
especially
when
it
comes
to
daily
soaps,
but
not
her.
The
kind
of
passion
she
had
for
her
craft
was
commendable.”
Sharad
Malhotra,
who
was
once
neighbours
with
the
late
actress,
fondly
remembered
her
and
told
TOI,
“A
few
years
back
when
I
was
residing
at
my
Yari
Road
(Mumbai)
home,
Surekhaji
and
I
were
neighbours
for
about
5-6
years.
Whenever
we
would
bump
into
each
other
while
leaving
for
shoots
or
coming
back
I
would
make
it
a
point
to
talk
to
her
about
her
work
and
health.”
He
added
that
the
news
of
her
passing
away
has
certainly
been
hard
on
him
as
she
was
not
only
a
terrific
actor
but
a
warm
individual
as
well.
Sharad
also
regretted
the
fact
that
he
never
got
a
chance
to
work
with
her.
Vatsal
Sheth,
too,
recalled
working
with
Sureka
Sikri
as
a
child
artist
in
Just
Mohabbat.
He
called
the
experience
a
privilege
and
said,
“I
remember
during
the
show,
she
made
me
comfortable
when
I
would
do
a
scene
with
her.
In
fact,
all
of
us,
while
we
did
a
scene,
I
remember
she
would
be
the
principal
of
the
school!
The
way
she
performed
a
scene
left
us
in
awe
of
her.
She
was
such
a
fine
actress.
She
has
done
some
great
work.
We
all
were
kids
at
that
point
of
time
and
we
used
to
look
up
to
her.
It
is
sad
to
hear
the
news
of
her
passing
away.
May
her
soul
rest
in
peace.”
Surekha
Sikri's
Sanjha
Chulha
co-star
Pankaj
Berry
remembered
the
late
actress
in
an
interaction
with
ETimes
TV.
He
called
her
a
great
actress
and
a
great
human
being.
He
also
gave
a
shout
out
to
the
kind
of
fantastic
work
she
has
done
in
theatre,
TV
and
films.
Berry
also
spoke
about
his
experience
of
working
with
Surekha
ji
and
said,
“I
really
had
a
great
experience
working
with
her
on
Sanjha
Chulha
and
I
noticed
one
thing
I’d
say
woh
bahut
hi
gehrayee
mein
jaa
kar
kaam
karti
thi.
She
worked
very
smoothly,
was
an
effortless
performer
which
I
noticed
while
working
with
her
on
the
show.”
Meanwhile,
many
celebrities
from
the
industry
are
also
sharing
their
condolences
on
social
media
for
the
late
filmmaker
by
putting
out
posts
in
her
memory.
Sidharth
Shukla,
who
worked
with
Surekha
Sikri
in
Balika
Vadhu,
also
paid
tribute
to
the
late
actress.
He
took
to
Twitter
and
wrote,
"RIP
Dadisa...
May
God
bless
your
soul
#SurekhaSikri."