Madhuri Dixit
In the three decades that Madhuri Dixit
has dedicated to entertaining Hindi film
buffs, the hugely talented and enduringly
beautiful actress saw herself evolve as a
performer and as a person. She feels that
the new crop of artistes in filmdom
comes prepared to handle the increasing
“pressures” in a more organised industry.
“The industry is more organized now, but
of course, there is too much pressure and
people are less forgiving. The new
generation is completely prepared and
they are well-groomed today…that was
not there before,” Madhuri told IANS in
an interview here.
“We started and learned (the art) as we
worked.
But today, the new actors are
confident. It is wonderful. Of course,
there is a lot of pressure to deliver good
performance,” she added.
During her prime, Madhuri was compared
to many of her contemporaries, but she
“can’t say if the competition has become
bitter now”.
“It’s a creative world.
Everybody is doing
what they do best and they are trying to
make their space.
It’s not that just one
person is going to dominate the industry
because in that case, we would not have
had names like Madhubala, Meena Kumari
ji, Nargis Dutt ji…all of them were shining
at the same time,” the 46-year-old
thespian and dancer said.
After having started an acting career with
the 1984 film “Abodh”, Madhuri went on
to cement her space in Hindi movies with
entertainers like “Tezaab”, “Ram Lakhan”,
“Tridev”, “Parinda”, “Dil”, “Sailaab”,
“Khalnayak”, “Hum Aapke Hain Koun” and
“Dil To Pagal Hai”.
If acting came naturally to her, it was her
fluid dancing skills, elegance, enigmatic
smile and her charismatic personality
which were a bonus for her. She got plum
roles in with the best of banners,
directors and actors. And she continues to
court them.
But she remains as grounded as ever.
How?
“This credit goes to my parents because
of the way they have brought me up…
their values. My mother has always stood
by me and even through all the ups and
downs, she always had encouraging words
to say to me.
“Even after marriage, I found a family
where my in-laws have a thinking like my
parents,” said the actress, who married
Sriram Nene, a US-based doctor, in 1999.
She says even though she was treated like
a star everywhere she went, “I always
had a reality check at home waiting for
me”.
“I am an actress and I have so many fans
who adore me.
But when I go home, I
am a mother, daughter, wife…and I forget
everything else,” said the mother of two
boys.
After her wedding, Madhuri had shifted
base to Denver, and she gave the big
screen a miss to realise her dream of
having a family and children.
“I had never dreamt to be an actress, but
when I became one I wanted to be the
best.
I wanted to dance and act the best,
but that was on the professional level. On
the personal front, having a family, kids…
it was a big part of my dream because I
come from a big family,” said the doting
mother.
She says visiting glitzy Bollywood parties
that are a norm for actors was a pain for
her.
“I never liked it. It was a baggage which I
had to carry with me.
But this (having a
happy family) was something that I
always wanted.
When I was in Denver
and raising my kids, it was part of the
dream I was living,” said the actress, who
will soon be seen in “Gulaab Gang”,
perhaps a career defining role in which
she portrays the leader of a gang that
fights for women’s rights. (IANS)