Bollywood actress Madhuri Dixit is known for many things: she has starred in more than 75 films, her career in Hindi film industry spans more than three decades and she is a professionally trained Kathak dancer. (She was even a muse of the Indian painter MF Husain.)
But for the director and screenwriter Sri Rao, Dixit was more than a Bollywood megastar. Rao grew up in a small Pennsylvania town with parents who once called India their home, and Bollywood became a link between the cultures that characterized him. Years later, Dixit’s outsized celebrity inspired Rao to create “The Fame Game,” Dixit’s first regular role in a major streaming series.
“It’s hard for me to adequately describe her to people who aren’t familiar with who she is because we don’t have a similar analogy in America,” Rao said of Dixit in a recent phone interview. “I’m trying to say she’s like Julia Roberts and Madonna and Meryl Streep, all in one, because her level of stardom is so much beyond what we know in the West.”
“The Fame Game”, which appeared on Netflix last month, follows the story of Anamika Anand, a Bollywood star with similar qualities to Dixit’s. Both have a fame that has continued over the years, and both are known as incredible actors and dancers. In the show, Anand’s life seems full of stars and glamour, but when she suddenly goes missing, the facade quickly begins to crumble. The show was acclaimed by critics and appeared in Netflix’s Top 10 most-watched list in more than 10 countries, including India, Pakistan and Australia.
Dixit, described by DailyExpertNews as the “reigning queen of Bombay’s film industry” in 2002 and a “Bollywood goddess” in 2007, has herself often tried to avoid labels. At the turn of the millennium, she left India for over a decade and chose to start a family in the United States. For most of that time, she also kept the film industry at a distance. In 2011, she came back to India with her husband and two children – and back to the movies. But for fans, the word “comeback” can never stick; her image at home was still so ubiquitous, it was as if she had never left.
In an interview last month, Dixit discussed the ubiquitous nature of stardom and the changes Bollywood has undergone during her career. These are edited excerpts from the conversation.
What was it like making a series instead of a movie?
Doing a series gives you a lot of time to develop not only your own character, but also the characters around you. They have their own little stories and all relationships come out beautifully as each character is developed. I think it will be a more exciting watch.
How much do you and Anamika have in common, and how did your experiences influence how you portrayed her?
At first glance, Anamika and I are very similar in the sense that we are big stars, and she also has a lot of experience in an area in which I have worked for so long. I have a family and children, and I am a wife, daughter, mother, all those roles. But her experiences are very different from mine because I was very sheltered. I had a mother who was very caring and protective, and Anamika’s mother is more dominant. I love playing her because her journey is so different from mine.
This is one of the few streaming series that has focused on the underbelly of Bollywood. How realistic did that image feel to you?
Anamika is still stuck in that era where everything was basically dumped on you, like, “You have to do this. You have to look a certain way. You have to behave a certain way.” And I think with me I had a little more freedom to choose what I wanted to do, I got opportunities to work with very good directors and scripts that were very progressive for the time.
Anamika is trapped in that world where it is very patriarchal. Now she’s trying to create that space for herself and she’s struggling not only with that, but with her family problems and stuff. So her journey was different, but in the show there are a lot of comments about the industry that are very real.
How has the industry changed since your earliest days?
I was lucky enough to get roles where the woman was the center of everything, even though it was a very male-dominated industry when I started. The only women on set were me, my hairdresser, and the one who played the female characters in the film. Now when I walk into a set, I see women everywhere in every department, be it the… [director of photography], or it is a makeup artist. Today you see women behind the camera, female directors, and there is a lot of power that women have now.
What has made Hindi cinema, and perhaps India in general, more open to being? by, for and about women†
I think society in general has changed. I remember we used to talk about a movie where women took center stage, it was either someone who is victimized and eventually rebels, or someone who has been wronged and goes to avenge her modesty. But today women are seen and perceived in a different way. Their characters are someone who helped launch the rocket to Mars, someone who was a great mathematician, someone who is a great sportswoman. Women play different roles [in society], and the writers write scrolls to that effect. Women who go into writing or directing have also changed a lot. Thinking slowly changes.
What do you think will attract global viewers and the South Asian diaspora to this show, especially as someone who has lived in the United States for many years?
The show takes a fresh look at Bollywood and says that while there is glitz and glamour, there is still the core, the family values. For the diaspora abroad, they love Bollywood, and we showed them that all the good is there. But fame is always like a double-edged sword.
Your stardom has lasted for decades, as it has for Anamika. What’s your secret?
I mean, there’s no secret; it’s not a fame game. I think it’s because I take my job very seriously. I fill my roles honestly, to the best of my ability, and I’ve never shrunk from working hard. Also all my fans who have supported me through thick and thin, and my family has always supported me and that is also very important. I just love what I do, and I’m very passionate about it. I am a very positive person and I am ready to grow. I am ready to learn. I am curious about everything. So I think that all helps.
There are allusions to moments from your actual career in the series, such as your signature dance move from the song ‘Channe Ke Khet Mein’ in the movie ‘Anjaam’. Do you have a favorite reference from the show?
It’s interesting that you ask me that because [the comedian] Lilly Singh posted a video on Instagram [of herself watching a scene] when on the screen I had a kid do the move. [Singh] got up and just started dancing. I think that’s the kind of euphoria and nostalgia and everything we’re looking for. People should just go out and check it out and have fun and think about what they like about Bollywood or what they have appreciated. That kind of reaction is really heartwarming, it’s fun and it’s great to watch.