You can expect magic even as she casually enters a room. In a matter of seconds, she warms up the space with her dazzling presence, simply by flashing her million-dollar smile. It can only be Madhuri Dixit, duh!
After ruling the industry for several years only to give it all up and make a success of her marriage, the actress is all set to blow 40 candles on May 15. rediff.com celebrates by recommending some of her movies.
Readers' Choice: Madhuri's Best Films
Having said that, it's quite a task to select a handful from an oeuvre comprising mostly hits, super hits and blockbusters.
Dixit has made us swoon in delight with her incredible dancing, thrilling performances and sizzling screen presence in films like Tezaab
But Madhuri's treasure trove is humongous. Here's a look at a few more roles that contributed to her fame.
The romantic
Film: Dil
Director: Indra Kumar
Co-star: Aamir Khan
Plot: After a series of college campus squabbling, love blooms between a penny-pincher's son (Khan) and tycoon's daughter (Dixit). Despite parental opposition, they elope and marry. Misunderstandings and melodrama follow, leading to an aww-inducing climax at the airport.
Aces: It could be yet another dose of boy-meets-girl mush, but Dil -- released on the same day as Sunny Deol's Ghayal -- went on to strike gold at the box office largely because of Anand-Milind's popular score and Aamir-Madhuri's charming screen chemistry. Also, even in a potboiler, Madhuri showed her range as a performer. She paraded in fancy outfits (which seemed fashionable then and tacky now), with a perky attitude and, at the same time, breathed fire as the rebellious lover defying her family, or the forlorn estranged wife longing to be with her ailing better half.
Extras: English subtitles.
The showgirl
Film: Beta
Director: Indra Kumar
Co-star: Anil Kapoor, Aruna Irani
Plot: A dominating and greedy mommy (Irani) makes an obedient illiterate out of her stepson (Kapoor). Her plan of acquiring the wealth is foiled when the compliant beta marries a bright, educated lass (Dixit), who sees through her evil mom-in-law.
Aces: A remake of K Bhagyaraj's Tamil hit, Enga Chinna Raasa, Beta is best remembered for Madhuri's sexy moves in Dhak dhak. Which is a pity, considering the actress delivered a powerhouse performance against an equally lethal looking Irani. Even as AK was overshadowed in the middle of these bickering ladies, the trio went on to pick a Filmfare trophy for their histrionics in this over-the-top family drama.
Extras: English subtitles.
The comical
Film: Kishen Kanhaiya
Director: Rakesh Roshan
Co-star: Anil Kapoor, Shilpa Shirodkar
Plot: First there was Ram Aur Shyam. Then came Seeta Aur Geeta. Kishen Kanhaiya (Kapoor in a double role) followed suit.
Aces: In this twisted tale of twin troubles, Madhuri stood out with her incredible dancing and amusing impersonation of Dev Anand and Raj Kapoor. Playing a movie buff, she made the implausible digestible with her vivacious conviction and that killer smile. The movie was a moneymaking proposition, marking yet another winner for the sought after Anil-Madhuri jodi.
Extras: English subtitles.
The de-glamorised
Film: Parinda
Director: Vidhu Vinod Chopra
Co-star: Anil Kapoor, Jackie Shroff, Nana Patekar and Anupam Kher
Plot: Two brothers (Kapoor and Shroff). One works for the underworld, while his younger sibling is oblivious to this ugly fact. When his brother's colleagues kill his police officer friend (Kher), the kid decides it's payback time.
Aces: Intense and hard-hitting, Parinda is hard to stomach for its emotional violence. Though essentially the story of two brothers, two ideologies and a unstable ganglord, a make-up free Madhuri was noticed for adding touching vulnerability and soft focus appeal to the heavy duty proceedings. The actress enacted a very steamy bedroom scene with her favourite Kapoor, followed by a sequence that was gruesome and hard to forget.
Extras: English subtitles.
The offbeat
Film: Mrityudand
Director: Prakash Jha
Co-star: Shabana Azmi, Om Puri and Ayub Khan
Plot: A woman's fight against injustice in a male-dominated rural setting.
Aces: Filmmaker Jha's film deals with solid topics like class discrimination, corruption and chauvinism, conveyed through the medium of various characters and their subplots. But its theme is mostly woman-oriented, with Dixit in the centre of all the chaos. The actress has often said in interviews that she cannot see herself playing meek characters because she believes herself to be a strong individual. This attitude shines throughout in Mrityudand, conveying the inner and outer strength of the character Ketki.
Extras: English subtitles.
The nasty
Film: Pukar
Director: Rajkumar Santoshi
Co-star: Anil Kapoor, Namrata Shirodkar
Plot: An army officer (Kapoor) gets wrongly framed thanks to his jealous best friend (Dixit) who happens to love him and doesn't meet with reciprocation. Seeing her object of affection in jeopardy awakens her conscience. She resolves to set matters straight no matter what it takes.
Aces: Madhuri conveyed the negative hues of her character quite effectively in the film that co-starred her with Kapoor yet again. Besides acting superbly, the dancer in her matched every step with Prabhudeva to the rocking beats of Kay sera sera. Not to mention her sashaying in a pale blue chiffon sari against the freezing backdrop of Alaska. That's professionalism, Madhuri style!
Extras: English subtitles.
The cameo
Film: Prahaar
Director: Nana Patekar
Co-star: Nana Patekar, Dimple Kapadia, Gautam Joglekar
Plot: An army man attempts to fight the dishonest law and order system after learning how one of his protégées was mugged and murdered.
Aces: A fabulous directorial debut from Patekar. His realistic presentation of the military academy and human loss was tersely woven into a tense storyline. The critically acclaimed film also featured Madhuri as a simple Christian girl coping with her fiancé's demise. Though it was a brief part, the actress lent the role a touching tenderness that was hard to overlook.
Extras: English subtitles.
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