Madhuri Dixit recalls being told to fix her nose early in her career: 'Don’t say this is how a heroine should look'

Madhuri Dixit shared her experiences with being body-shamed early on in her career, and what lessons she drew from it.

Madhuri Dixit was widely regarded as one of the most successful and liked actors of her generation. One might find it hard to believe that even she was subjected to unsolicited remarks about her appearance early in her career. In a new interview, the veteran actor revealed that she received comments about her nose and appearance before she achieved her first hit.

Madhuri on being body shamed

Madhuri Dixit began her acting career with supporting roles in the 80s.

In a conversation with Nayandeep Rakshit for his YouTube channel, Madhuri revealed that she would get comments on her appearance early in her career in the mid-1980s. “A lot of people told me when I had just started—do this, how is your nose, your this, your that. I used to go and say, ‘Mom, they’re saying this.’ And my mom would say, ‘Don’t worry about it. Once you have a successful movie, that’s the very thing they’ll love about you.’” Madhuri admitted that she found her mother’s conviction hard to believe, but it all changed once Tezaab was released and became a hit. Madhur became an overnight sensation.

The actor recalled that all the unsolicited advice eventually came to an end. “After Tezaab, nobody said anything about being skinny or being this or that. People just accepted me for who I am. Even today, I tell the new girls—Don’t try to be in a mould. Don’t say this is how a heroine should look. If you’re different, that’s a uniqueness you have. Play on that.”

Madhuri's recent work