MOVIES, MAGIC, MADHURI!

With a smile that few can resist and a talent that few can match, Madhuri Dixit Nene adds a new dimension to terms like eternal and ageless. As she returns with a bang with Netflix drama The Fame Game, we dig deeper into the trail that brought us Madhuri 2.0 a

- RUCHIKA MEHTA

Some stars never stop shining. Some stories never fade away. And some actors of a certain brilliance return to the game as though they had never left. Madhuri Dixit ene is of this eternal grade.

The trajectory of her fame traces two very different curves. Madhuri Dixit 1.0 was the 'Dhak Dhak' girl who turned even more seductive for "Choli Ke Peeche', a dancing diva for 'Channe Ke khet Mein' and mischievous for 'Didi Tera Devar Deewana'. And today, we have with us Madhuri 2.0. But more on that later.

Madhuri took the world by storm, held hearts captive and combined her dazzling beauty and million-watt smile with a talent to dance and emote like no other. In fact, many have equated her smile and features to the legendary Madhubala and Marilyn Monroe. Pandit Birju Maharaj had declared her the best dancer in Bollywood, and to Saroj Khan, she was a "choreographer's delight”.

With over 70 movies to her name, Madhuri is no stranger to awards and accolades. In 2000, she was named the highest-paid actress in the Guinness World Records. She's won several Filmfare awards and was also featured in Box Office India's list of top actresses for 10 consecutive years. A Padma Shri recipient, she has her very own wax figure at Madame Tussaud's in London. There's a lake named after her in Arunachal Pradesh, where a song from Koyla was shot. And a star in the Orion is named 'Madhuri' a literal testament to her star power!

In 1999, at the peak of her illustrious career, she married Dr Shriram Madhav Nene, an accomplished heart surgeon from Los Angeles who had never watched any of her movies. And for the next 10 years, she played the devoted wife and mother to two boys, living the US dream in Denver, Colorado — until the lure of her land and her love for cinema drew her back to Mumbai in 2011.