Madhuri Dixit-Nene says she is yearning to resume work on Karan Johar-backed Netflix series
Uma Ramasubramanian (MID-DAY; May 29, 2020)

Madhuri Dixit-Nene is itching to return to the hustle and bustle of a set, and with good reason. The Coronavirus lockdown was announced barely a week into the shoot of her maiden web series, the yet-untitled Netflix drama produced by Karan Johar. The two are joining forces to tell the story of a superstar who vanishes without a trace. "Karan is one of the most creative people I have come across. He has a hold on various aspects of filmmaking, and hence, makes an actor's job simpler. He constantly reinvents himself," says the actor, thrilled to reunite with him after Kalank (2019).

Even though she may have bided her time before making her acting debut in digital entertainment, Dixit argues that she understood the potential of the web world early on. "When I started Dance With Madhuri [dance tutorials] online, people were apprehensive and [wondered] how it will pan out. But Sriram [husband] and I were clear that we wanted to do it. That was an experiment we did years ago because we believed in the medium."

Celebrated for her acting and dancing, Dixit proved she is a talented singer with the release of her single, Candle. Ask her if she was nervous about going behind the mic, and she says, "There was no hesitation. Many people are scared of experimenting, but I always loved singing. I wanted to do something that spreads hope in the current scenario."

DNA (August 30, 2015)

Madhuri Dixit Nene’s online portal Dance With Madhuri has come out with a new dance called BollyOut, conceptualised along with her husband, Dr Sriram Nene who tells us, “We put it to the test by putting heart rate monitors on Madhuri during her Dancercise classes. We found that she lost 400 calories in 15 minutes.” BollyOut is a high-intensity, low-impact workout that pays close attention to muscle groups, metabolism, heart rates and caloric burn. Combined with good nutrition, it may be just what the doctor (Nene?) ordered for a healthy lifespan and lifestyle. Says Mads, “Dance effortlessly keeps me toned and makes me happy. BollyOut was our effort to share my secret on fitness with everyone. It digs deep into my dance and Bollywood roots to get you to move and stay fit.” So there you have it. Just dance!

Ropes in celeb choreographers for her online academy
Vinod Talreja (DNA; November 14, 2014)


“We are revamping the website and upgrading the whole system. Plus, we are adding a lot of new elements like heart rate monitor, a combination of dance and exercise to get people to stay in shape and much more. People often ask me how I stay fit and I always say, it’s dance. Not everybody thinks that they are dancers and they want to learn dance, but they would love to dance to keep themselves fit.”

Mads’ online dance academy was eventually launched as a mobile app. That time, Madhuri roped in Pandit Birju Maharaj and Saroj Khan to take lessons on her website. However, the revamped version will also feature videos by Terence Lewis, who will be teaching techniques of contemporary dance along with Madhuri.

Ask her if she plans to have more choreographers on board, and here is what she says, “A lot of people have already agreed. Remo (D’souza) has given the nod. I would love to have Prabhu Dheva and Kamal Haasan, who are both great dancers. We are also in talks with some dance schools to come on board.”

Madhuri is extremely happy that the platform has emerged as a ‘community’. “We realised we could spread the joy of dancing easily via the digital medium and more than 100,000 people are enrolled. Besides, it’s easy — you can be carrying a smartphone always and learning dance at any time of the day and anywhere. It’s a community, really,” says the actress. Has she signed any new films, we ask and she says, “I am listening to a few scripts.”

Dr Sriram Nene on ditching the American dream and discovering karma in Mumbai.
Yolande D'Mello (MUMBAI MIRROR; November 2, 2014)

It seems too much for one lifetime. Cardiovascular and Thoracic surgeon Dr Sriram Nene spends his Friday afternoon swapping notes with innovators, doctors and investors at the annual INK Conference at a Santacruz five-star.

The host introduces the doctor by listing a litany of degrees and scholarships (including a Scholars Program in Medicine from Washington University). In the same breath, she mentions that Nene is married to Hindi film actress Madhuri Dixit. The two wed in 1999, after which Dixit moved to Denver where Nene was based. In 2011, the family, including their sons Arin and Rayaan folded up their life in America to return to India.

In the audience, a demure Dixit sits listening to her husband who takes stage next. His two-hour session discusses the marriage of technology and medicine in a bid to aid healthcare. Nene, 48, is one of eight speakers. Before him, an innovator presents an ECG machine hidden in an iPhone cover.

As Nene begins his talk, the first slide of his presentation is an Apple II, a 9-bit home computer that first went on sale in 1977. A self-taught programmer, he was barely 15 when he began creating software for real estate and education firms. "Technology was always a passion. I grew up reading about Michelangelo and Leonardo Da Vinci," he says.

When it came to choosing a graduate course however, Nene fell into the all-too familiar wrangle of a career in business versus medicine.

One of five siblings, he was born in London and grew up in America to Indian immigrant parents who left India in the 1960s. "My dad is an engineer, one of the first to be educated in the family; a self-made man. He wasn't sure if business was the best option," Nene says. "It's typical Asian immigrant behaviour. My sister is an attorney," he adds when we catch up with him later in between chatting with our photographer in fluent but accented Marathi.

He went on to study medicine on a scholarship, spending the next 17 years in the field (four years of undergraduate programme, four in graduation, seven in general medicine and two in surgery). In Denver, he was known as a specialist in mitral valve repair and endovascular aortic surgery, also having trained in Da Vinci robotic surgical system. Which is why when he announced that he was packing his bags, the media couldn't stop asking why.

Giving up a celebrated career was part of a larger calculation, he explains. "I didn't quit medicine. I transitioned. Surgery was about execution. There were long hours of boredom punctuated with moments of terror. But there was a thrill. Unlike practitioners of medicine who must observe, prescribe pills and wait, I was able to see results immediately," he says. However, his interaction with patients occurred only when disease or disorder was at a mature stage. "I've always been a believer in early prevention," he says.

Scalability was another concern that worried him. Presenting the findings of a mental calculation that drove him to move away from conventional medical practice, he shares, "If I can do 400 surgeries in a year, it's still not enough. In the US, there is one doctor for every 350 people. In India, there's one for 1,300 patients."

Unlike the US, where he argues, medicine has been commercialised, India continues to maintain integrity in the field. "Businesses come and go. But how you conduct it is critical. As Indians, we value relationships. What you put out is what you get. It's what you call karma," he says.

For a taste of this work ethic and a dose of "culture", Mumbai became home. This, he says, has been his longest stint in the city. "My grandparents stayed in Hindu Colony, Dadar. When growing up, I'd visit them every other year."

The shift has also meant bearing the full brunt of Dixit's stardom. Media houses call Nene media shy but he considers himself a "fairly straightforward" man. "Having been in the industry for 30 years, Madhuri is more than familiar with the media. But I don't believe in talking. I'm a do-er," he says, admitting that he isn't averse to using the influence she has on the press. "I proved what I needed to before I met her. I come with a certain skill set and so does she. We are trying to use them collaboratively for a worthy cause."

This is evident on stage, when Nene introduces the concept of Dancercise, a video format dance lesson featuring Dixit. The new leg of Dance with Madhuri will launch next month, allowing viewers to log on and experience a customised dance lesson from Dixit or her guests, Bollywood choreographers Saroj Khan, Terrance Lewis and Remo D'souza. "We set a belt on Madhuri to measure her pulse, number of steps and oxygen levels when dancing," he explains.

Viewers stand to burn 400 calories with 15 minutes of Bollywood-style jhatak matak. In future, viewers following the dance sequence in their homes will also have fitness wearable technology to monitor their body function and share it with their doctors. The programme currently boasts 45,000 subscribers in 206 countries. RnM Moving Pictures, the digital content company that the couple own, is being used to get the message out.

Nene also divides his time as chief medical officer at GOQii - a firm founded by entrepreneur and angel investor Vishal Gondal — that develops app systems for medical tracking.

"Here, patients can play a larger role in their own healthcare. Gamification, including earning points for healthy behaviour, and the ability to share results on social media make healthy living fun," he says.

Reacting to a question on why he didn't end up joining a top city hospital, when news reports had speculated about his association with Harkisandas and KEM, Nene agrees he was "in talks". "I've been in touch with directors of all major hospitals, whether Breach Candy, Lilavati, KEM or Apollo. I could join them but I'd rather design a medical system that works and have them approach me for it."

At the end of the session, a magician takes the stage to woo a sceptical audience with card tricks. As he makes a burnt paper levitate, he admits there's no magic; only disguised tact. "The ash rises because that is all I want you to see," says the magician.

Nene wraps up his talk with ease. He has been getting practice. Only last week, he was in Rio, delivering a speech at the TEDGlobal conference. "My parents still don't get what I do for a living," he smiles. "I like to joke that I'm saving the world."

Madhuri Dixit- Nene says it is a great time to be an actor. Heroines are no longer slotted as only avengers, victims or eye- candy
Itee Sharma (MID-DAY; February 16, 2014)

From playing a graceful, shrewd protagonist in Dedh Ishqiya to a fierce defender of women’s rights in Gulaab Gang, Madhuri Dixit-Nene is having a whale of a time with her comeback. The diva talks about juggling motherhood with films, her willingness to attempt new roles and working with her 1990s arch rival, Juhi Chawla.

Is Gulaab Gang a more commercial version of your 1997 film, Mrityudand ?
No, not al all. In Mrityudand, I played an educated girl who marries into a feudal family but rebels against the inequality and discovers her own inner strength. In Gulaab Gang, I play a leader who forms a gang of women vigilantes and brings justice to the oppressed. It is strong role: she is educated and believes women should be empowered. She believes education will help women and also encourage men to respect women.
But this message is conveyed in a very masala way; there’s song, dance, fights and dialogue baazi.

You are working with your 1990s rival Juhi Chawla in the film. You are known as the Dhak-dhak girl, what comes to your mind when you mention Juhi?
The word bubbly comes to my mind.

Juhi is stepping into a new zone with this film by playing the villain. Are you also game to doing a dark role?
I have set no boundaries for myself. I don’t want them. I won’t do a negative role for the heck of it; a grey role has to interest me. But I am clear — I want to do any kind of film or role that interests me.

How do you feel about the way your equation with Huma Qureshi was portrayed in Dedh Ishqiya?
What can I say? (Smiles) What I liked about Dedh Ishqiya was the ambiguity. It was your interpretation of what it is. The two women don’t want men in their lives; they lead their lives independently. They could be sisters. I liked the open-ending of the film. New sensitivities are coming to movies. Women are real people on screen. Roles which do not slot women in the regular moulds of an avenger, a victim, or eye candy, are now being written for us.

Which film, do you think, changed the game for you?
Tezaab. It was my first hit, it had the big dance sequence (Ek Do Teen) and the manner in which the romance with Anil Kapoor was portrayed was different. After my debut in Abodh I didn’t know whether I should continue doing films so I returned to college and mainly did roles like in Awaara Baap and Swati that required only 10 days of my time. After I did a song in Karma, Subhash ji (Ghai) said if I stopped doing small roles, he would sign me for Ram Lakhan . I was destined to do films.

Has Bollywood changed drastically? 
Discipline has seeped in, everything is so organised now. Earlier, the writer could pen the dialogues early morning. It was haphazard, now it is relaxed. You can read the script a number of times.

What about your own attitude — has it changed over time?
Earlier, when I would walk in at the sets, I wasn’t answerable to anyone. Now, I have my kids and husband and I have to manage my time accordingly. I could do things spontaneously before but now I have to plan, so I have to work harder.

How do you rate yourself in juggling personal and professional commitments?
Between 8.5 and 9. One can never be a perfect 10.

Are your kids Arin and Ryan inclined toward the performing arts like their mother?
I don’t know. As of now, they are into tennis. But they are learning tabla too.

So what’s your focus — films, your dance school or your family?
I am focusing on everything. We already have 88,000 students in my online academy, www. dancewithmadhuri. com. I want it to become a community for dance and dance lovers. If I get a good film, I will do it; if not, I will take a break.

Which young actress do you think can become the next Madhuri Dixit?
(Giggles) No one can be someone else; they have to make a name for themselves. But I see a lot of talent. I like Vidya Balan; Priyanka was fabulous in Barfi!. In the newer lot, I like Parineeti Chopra, Anushka Sharma Sonakshi Sinha and also Alia Bhatt (whom I have seen in the trailers of Highway). Deepika Padukone is blossoming.