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If awards and the box-office are any criteria to go by, Madhuri Dixit is, undoubtedly, India's number one star. She is also a major trend-setter. At a time when music had become secondary to violence, it was Madhuri who revived the drawing power of melody. Movie-makers realised that a good film could counter the impact of video by including imaginatively-picturised song and dance numbers that viewers would come back to see again and again.

She has been a trend-setter in more ways than one. When obscenity, of the David Dhawan brand, had begun to rule the box-office, Madhuri's innocent face (despite all her navel-revealing dances) turned all formulas topsy-turvy with one single film. With one clean stroke (pun intended), Hum Aapke Hain Kaun achieved what no amount of censor laws could do -- made dhoti-lifting and double-meaning dialogues redundant.

Alpana Chowdhury spoke to the actress, known as much for her gyrations as her dazzling smile, about her craft, the film-makers she has interacted with and her co-stars.

Which are the roles you have enjoyed doing?

I have worked with a lot of directors and done a variety of roles.... But, offhand, I would say my characters in Tezaab and Sangeet were very well-defined. To a large extent, I would say I even enjoyed doing Raja, in which I played a wild, impulsive girl who didn't think too much about the repercussions of her actions. Playing her had a different charm altogether!

Hum Aapke Hain Kaun was another enjoyable experience. What was appealing was the Indianness, the situations of a joint family -- for the first time the characters were real, identifiable. Nisha was very close to what I am in real life. It's very funny -- apart from everything else that people started emulating, many even christened their dogs Tuffy!

Actually, I have enjoyed working in most of my films.

Do any of your forthcoming films exploit your potential as an actress?

I have three films coming up, each very different from the other. In the Pankaj Parasher - directed Rajkumar I play a role very different to what viewers have seen of me so far. It's a costume film, with huge sets, and is like a fairy tale, with a once upon a time, a long time ago kind of story. I play a very arrogant girl who is brought up to believe she is somebody special.

Mrityudand, being made by Prakash Jha, is a very, very believable story. It has a lot of substance and, at the same time, is very pleasant to look at. It has beautiful lighting. We've shot in a 400-year-old house in Wahi. I play a strong, educated woman in this film.

Prem Granth has been made very much in the Raj Kapoor tradition. For a debut, Rajeev Kapoor has done a pretty good job as a director. It has a very dramatic subject, with a rustic background. The song, Jungle mein sher, bagon mein mor, shehron mein shor is very catchy, the kind of song kids will pick up.

Have you had any rotten eggs in your career?

Not many. But there have been a few. Like last year I had a release -- Paapi Devta -- which was seven years in the making.

Do you dread the release of such films?

In the initial stages I used to be apprehensive. But now my philosophy is: Once you've done a film you've done it, there's nothing you can do about it.

Did you have such an attitude even in school?

No. In school I got the jitters because our marks were announced in front of everybody, so it was mass humiliation if you fared badly.

Now it would be even more so...

Yeah. The mass grows. All-India mass (laughs). But seriously speaking, the failure or success of a film is not in your hands. You have done your best, left no stone unturned.

Have you faced criticism for your performances?

Luckily, no.

What about for the song Choli ke peeche kya hain?

When people saw the film they felt the hue and cry over the song had been much ado about nothing.

How do you go through the motions of acting in a film whose director you just can't vibe with?

You do whatever you are doing convincingly because you know all along that what you are doing is going to be watched by a lot of people. I have done even two-bit roles to the best of my ability.

Considering the chaotic manner in which Hindi films are made, how do you get a feel of the characters you are portraying? Are you aware of their emotional graph?

I have only 6, 7 films on the floor, so I definitely get the feel, Also, the director is always there to guide you as he has the whole concept very clearly in his mind.

You have worked with some of the biggest names among the film directors. How have you been influenced by them?

To begin with, it was Subhash Ghai who made me take my profession seriously. Till then, I had plans of continuing my studies and doing films simultaneously. When he offered me a film he said I had to make a choice between excelling in studies or excelling in acting. I chose the latter.

But his film, Ram Lakhan, got postponed for a while, and in the meanwhile N Chandra signed me for Tezaab. It was thanks to his and choreographer Sarojji's efforts that I learnt to dance comfortably before the camera. Prior to this, I always felt uneasy doing film dances. I used to feel inhibited by the camera angles and never really gave of my best.

Chandraji wanted the Ek, do, teen number to be the highlight of the film so Sarojji insisted on rehearsals which I was only too delighted to do. We rehearsed for a week and shot the song in one continuous shoot of 36 hours. I signed my first film in 1984, but I started working in earnest after the success of Tezaab in 1988.

Indra Kumar, under whom I worked for the first time in Dil, made me realise it is idiosyncracies that create entertainment on screen. He brings out the comic in you, creates an element of fun. Earlier, I used to wonder if I was looking foolish on screen. Dil got me my first Filmfare award. I got my second one for Induji's Beta.

The way Sooraj Barjatya marketed Hum Aapke Hain Kaun made me understand how important it is to market a well-made film well. It is not enough just to make a good film -- you must ensure the theatres are worth sitting in, the snacks are worth eating, that video piracy is effectively curbed if you want people to buy tickets and see your film in a cinema-hall. You have to make movie-going an outing that the whole family enjoys.

Working with Prakash Jha has been a very organised affair. As a director, he is very prepared. When you work in an art film, you speak a different language (though Mrityudand is not like Damul). That is what is fascinating. You have to be very real.

Have you learnt anything from your co-stars?

One thing I have learnt from Rishi Kapoor. He mustn't be aware of it himself. I was observing him during the shooting of Sahiba. He was leaning his dialogue, a long one, and I could see the process his mind was going through. Looking at him, I realised that if you put the emotions first and then the words it's easier to convey your dialogue without looking like you are mouthing someone else's words. You get the natural rhythm.

Today, you are totally at ease before the camera, but were you overawed by the system when you first stepped into filmdom? Were you nervous facing a camera before a whole unit of unknown people?

You know something? Because I had never been exposed to this medium before I was totally unaware of these things. Since I didn't realise the magnitude of the situation I wasn't nervous.

A case of ignorance being bliss?

Yeah (laughs heartily). I didn't even realise the significance of Subhash Ghai issuing all those full page ads about me when he re-launched me. So I wasn't under any kind of pressure. For me it was just, 'Oh, my face is finally seen!' I realise today the impact of those ads!'