That Madhuri Dixit is still Bollywood’s uncrowned queen and most loved actress was evident once again as the entire film industry here became engrossed in Madhuri mania as the mystique lady returns to the silver screen after a six-year hiatus with Anil Mehta directed Hindi film ‘Aaja Nachle’ due for release next week. 

Legions of Madhuri’s fans wait eagerly as the 42-year-old actress returns with the film that she says has similarities with her life. Fans as well as the industry pundits are keen to see how Madhuri weans her magic at this mature age for in Bollywood, heroes can afford to sing and dance around trees with heroines half their ages, while heroines have to say adieu at 30 or when they are married.

Madhuri had moved out of Mumbai and settled in the USA soon after her marriage to Dr Sri Ram Nene in 2002, says that it’s funny that people think that she gave up movies because of her marriage.

Of course when you have babies you have to take time off and so she too didn’t want to work when she was pregnant. She says that she wanted to enjoy her time, spend time with her children. But when Aditya Chopra got in touch with Madhuri at just the right time when she was thinking that maybe now it’s time to get back to work.

Talking about ‘Aaja Nachle’, Madhuri says that her comeback was prompted by the script of her new movie which is strikingly similar to her life. She says that the film is a story of a obsessive dancer who makes it big as a choreographer and then moves to the United States. The dancer returns to India on hearing that her dance guru was in his death bed and when he passes away, she dedicates herself to saving a theatre where she learnt dancing as a child.

Madhuri goes on to say that the script of Aaja Nachle’ is not only very nice, but also written in a realistic manner. She feels that it is about theatre, yet it’s very contemporary because that’s what is happening in society today showing how we are adopting a new culture and at the same time forgetting our roots and identity.

As the film makes an observation on that, Madhuri feels that it has parallels with her life and she can identify with this girl coming from New York and how she takes up this mission. Above all the scope for dance enticed her to accept the film.

When asked if being a 42-year-old heroine with two children often frightened her to be wholly and solely responsible for selling a film,  she chucked the question saying that anything like this is ‘flattering”