MISS GORGEOUS SMILE

Madhuri was a model to start with.  She was launched into films by the Rajshri Banner which was respected but had not yet reached the heights it attained under Adi Barjatya.  The early Rajshri movies were mostly in a rural, pastoral settings much like Geet Gata Chal.  Hence, in Abodh (1986) Madhuri started out playing an innocent teenager who learns about life and being a wife after she is married.

She was noticed when she starred in the 1988 N Chandra hit Tezaab as Mohini.  She co-starred with Anil Kapoor.  Her dance 'Ek Do Teen' attained iconic status in the movie.  Her slim frame, beautiful face and gorgeous smile won the hearts of cinegoers and started Madhuri off on a path to stardom.  It is hard to forget a sad crowd that returns from rescuing Mohini from the gangsters with Chunkey Pandey driving a van and singing 'So gaya hai rasta', with Madhuri trying to catch Anil Kapoor's eye.

Next up, in 1989, were Dayavan, Ram Lakhan and Parinda. Madhuri had a small role in Dayavan, and a hot scene that (sources say) she is ashamed of.  Ram Lakhan was a Subhash Ghai movie co-starring Madhuri with Anil Kapoor again.  Subhash Ghai was in his element and Anil Kapoor was one of the biggest stars then.  There were great songs here and plenty of emotional scenes to bring out Madhuri's star quality.  Madhuri could be relied upon to bring life to a dance sequence. After the vivacious 'Ek do Teen' she had the romantic 'Tere Lakhan ne bada dukh deenha' here.

Vidhu Vinod Chopra's Parinda was much acclaimed but the main tussle in the movie was between Nana Patekar and Anil Kapoor.  However, Madhuri was the female lead here.

DIL DA MAMLA HAI

Madhuri had a string of indifferent movies, a decorative role in hero dominated movies. Vardi, Ilaka, Pap ka Ant, Tridev, Khilaf, Mahasangram, Izzatdar.  It was still the end of 80s and it was one of the worst periods for bollywood movies.  The movies were masala without any imagination, situations were juxtaposed with songs and actions to make up a 3 hour of cinema that the common man would enjoy from the front benches.

However, Madhuri must have lingered in the minds of young people because when Inder Kumar decided to make Dil, at the turn of the decade, he asked for a public opinion on who the young people wanted in the lead role.  The votes favoured Amir Khan and Madhuri.  Although, Amir usually paired with Juhi and Madhuri with Anil Kapoor, this pair was brought together on public demand. Dil ruled the hearts of the young.  The movie was set upon by the college going crowd and became a big hit.  

The songs were sung everywhere. The teasing song - Khambe jaise Khadi hai, the soulful- O Priya Priya, the rebellious- Humne ghar choda hai. The movie brought youth power back to bollywood and Madhuri pushed aside serious competition from Juhi to climb up to No 1 spot.

Up next were Sailaab and Thanedar in the same year.  Sailaab with Chunkey Pandey was not a bit hit, but the song 'Hum ko aaj kal hai intezaar' was.  Thanedar starred Madhuri with Sanjay Dutt, he went around bashing bad guys while Madhuri got to be his arm-candy and sang a hit song with him 'Tama Tama Loge'.

SAJNI

Next year brought Prahaar (1991).  Again the accent was on action by Nana Patekar, but Madhuri did have an important presence here as the grieving fiance of a crippled cadet killed by the mafia. The movie is a classic in its genre. A few indifferent movies later, Madhuri got to show her stuff in another great movie.

Saajan by Lawrence D'Souza had both Salman and Sanjay wooing Madhuri.  The story was emotional and romantic, and the movie was well made.  The songs were melodious and a big hit. Madhuri was great as a pretty girl torn between two brothers. The movie was a huge hit.

DHAK DHAK

1992 brought a movie that centred around the heroine for a change. Beta had Madhuri playing an assertive bahu who has to save her husband from the machinations of his evil stepmom.  The viewers had a dhak dhak time watching Madhuri snake around sensously to the song with Anil Kapoor in the movie.  This movie was a super duper hit.

Next year brought another dhak dhak number that ruled the charts.  The movie was a huge hit and Madhuri turned out another dance number that became a bollywood icon.  The movie, Khalnayak, and the song of course- Choli ke peeche kya hai.  Madhuri was a cop in disguise, out to bait and capture a dreaded Khalnayak on the run for her sweetheart, Jackie Shroff.  Madhuri and Sanjay were rumoured to be dating at this time, and the chemistry between them crackled, and the song epitomised it. The lyrics of the songs invited a lot of controversy for being explicit.  To ignite the matters further the choli was very beautiful too, and flaunted sensously by Madhuri.

SHAADI MAGIC

1994 brought Madhuri to the pinnacles of glory.  From the naughty choli waali, she played a simple middle class girl who falls for her jeeju's brother.  Rajshri's Hum Aapke Hain Kaun had Adi Barjatya at the helm and he took the story out of the usual Rajshri rural setting and superimposed it in an urban, opulent setting.  The movie worked big-time.  Salman and Madhuri sang songs, antakshari, met clandestinely on the terrace, had a tearful second half before settling into a romantic end. The movie was an all time blockbuster. It ran for weeks and weeks and conferred the status of a superstar heroine on Madhuri Dixit.  She was known as the female Amitabh Bachchan.  No heroine in recent times could come close to what she had achieved.

MIDAS TOUCH

She could carry off Raja with Sanjay Kapoor.  One good Madhuri dance number could raise the stakes on the movie. With Rajkumar, she was back with her hero of early days, Anil Kapoor.  But this time roud it was Anil who needed propping up.  Mohabbat, again with two younger heros, Akshay and Sanjay.

Mrityu Dand brought her critical acclaim.  She was known as a good actress anyway, but this movie focussed on her performance and less on her glamour and dancing skills. Rakesh Roshan's Koyla, despite the K factor, Shahrukh Khan and Madhuri, flopped.

It was left for Yash Chopra to reinvent cinema to lastest trends.  A tale of friendship and love, between Karishma, Shahrukh and Madhuri was next on the multiplex marquee. There were pretty moments, sartorial magnificence, good songs, a great ambience.  Dil to Pagal Hai was a runaway success.

ARTIST'S MUSE

Post Hum Apke Hain Kaun, which MF Hussain was said to have seen close to 40 times, the artist declared that Madhuri was his muse, his ideal Indian Beauty.  He took to painting Madhuri quite like Andy Warhol doing Marilyn Monroe. But MFH took his muse to another level.  He made a movie, Gaja Gamini in which Madhuri played several faces of a woman.  The movie was too arty to be a success in the commercial circuit. A couple of indifferent movies later, Madhuri teamed up again with Shahrukh.

This was the role most actresses aspire to. The danseuse Chandramukhi, the prostitute with the heart of gold who tries to stop Devdas from treading the path to perdition. Devdas was an opulent take on the favorite bangla story by Sanjay Leela Bhansali.  Despite several flaws, the movie was a huge success.  Madhuri as Chandramukhi was one of saving graces of the film.  Her competant acting brought grace to the unabashedly expensive sets and clothing. Like kohinoor that shines even in middle of heaps of glass, she shone in the glitter that was Devdas.

NEW ROLES

With advancing age, Madhuri was looking to settle down and start a family.  She married Sriram Nene and moved to Colorado. Dr Nene was coined the 'luckiest man' for bagging the best girl in India. She took her marriage as seriously as she had done her acting career and promptly had two sons.

Now she is looking for an encore with Aaja Nachle which is scheduled to release on 18th October 07.


GOSSSSSIP

Her first bad patch came when she was seen in a hot scene in Dayavan.  She regretted doing that instantly and vowed she would never be seen in revealing clothes.  She has done several sensous song and dance numbers, but rarely revealed much. Even the suggestive 'Choli ke peeche' was tastefully picturised.  She was choreographer Saroj Khan's favorite and they together brought life and magic to several dance items.

She was said to be involved with Sanjay Dutt, but they denied it. On a recent televion show Sanjay Dutt was asked rather pointedly what he wished for Madhuri, and he simply said he wished all the best for her.

Her marriage and relocation to US broke many hearts in India. Her fans should be happy to see her back.


FILMOGRAPHY

• Aaja Nachle (2007) (post-production)
• Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam (2002) .... Radha
• Devdas (2002/I) .... Chandramukhi
• Lajja (2001) .... Janki
• Yeh Raaste Hain Pyaar Ke (2001) .... Neha
• Gaja Gamini (2000) .... Gaja Gamini/Sangita/Shakuntala/Monika/Mona Lisa
• Pukar (2000) .... Anjali
• Aarzoo (1999) .... Pooja Nath
• Wajood (1998) .... Apoorva Choudhury
• Dil To Pagal Hai (1997) .... Pooja
• Mahaanta (1997) .... Jenny Pinto
• Koyla (1997) .... Gauri
• The Death Sentence: Mrityu Dand (1997) .... Phoolva
• Mohabbat (1997) .... Shweta Sharma
• PremGranth (1996) .... Kajri
• Rajkumar (1996) .... Rajkumari Vishaka
• Yaraana (1995) .... Lalita/Shikha/Kavita Krishnamurthy/Johnny
• Paapi Devataa (1995) .... Reshma
• Raja (1995) .... Madhu Garewal
• Zameen (1995)
• Anjaam (1994) .... Shivani Chopra
• Hum Aapke Hain Koun...! (1994) .... Nisha Choudhury
• Dil Tera Aashiq (1993) .... Sonia Khanna/Savitri Devi
• Aasoo Bane Angaarey (1993) .... Usha
• Khal Nayak (1993) .... Ganga (Gangotri Devi)
• Phool (1993) .... Guddi B. Choudhary
• Sahibaan (1993) .... Sahibaan
• Zindagi Ek Juaa (1992) .... Juhi Singh
• Beta (1992) .... Saraswati
• Dharavi (1992) .... Dreamgirl
• Prem Deewane (1992) .... Shivangi Mehra
• Sangeet (1992)
• Saajan (1991) .... Pooja Saxena
• Pratikar (1991) .... Madhu
• 100 Days (1991) .... Devi
• Jamai Raja (1991) .... Rekha
• Khel (1991) .... Seema
• Prahaar: The Final Attack (1991) .... Shirley
• Thanedaar (1990) .... Chanda
• Sailaab (1990) .... Dr. Sushma Malhotra
• Jeevan Ek Sanghursh (1990) .... Madhu Sen
• Dil (1990) .... Madhu Mehra
• Maha-Sangram (1990)
• Deewana Mujh Sa Nahin (1990) .... Anita
• Izzatdaar (1990) .... Mohini
• Khilaaf (1990) .... Sweta
• Kishen Kanhaiya (1990) .... Anju
• Pyar Ka Devta (1990) .... Radha
• Paap Ka Ant (1989)
• Tridev (1989) .... Divya Mathur
• Prem Pratigyaa (1989) .... Laxmi M. Rao
• Ilaaka (1989) .... Vidya
• Vardi (1989) .... Jaya
• Kanoon Apna Apna (1989) .... Bharathi
• Mujrim (1989) .... Sonia
• Parinda (1989) .... Paro
• Ram Lakhan (1989) .... Radha Shastri
• Dayavan (1988) .... Neela Velhu
• Khatron Ke Khiladi (1988) (as Madhuri) .... Kavita
• Tezaab (1988) .... Mohini
• Uttar Dakshin (1987)
• Hifazat (1987) (as Madhuri) .... Janki
• Awara Baap (1987)
• Mohre (1987)
• Abodh (1986) .... Gauri Girdhari Singh/Gauri Shankar Singh
• Swati (1986)