‘I’m not a patch-up master’

Madhuri Dixit, back on the small screen to judge Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 4, doesn’t intend to bring warring Khans, Salman and Shah Rukh, together.

I haven’t flown in from Denver to get Shah Rukh (Khan) and Salman (Khan) to patch-up. Sure, they are both colleagues, but they are also adults who will work out their relationship as they think best. I’m not a patch-up master, I’m here to work,” says Madhuri Dixit, one of the three judges in the fourth season of the dance reality show, Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa.

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The buzz is that Salman Khan, who is hosting Bigg Boss 4 on Colours, wanted to be Dixit’s co-judge on the Sony Entertainment show, after actor Shahid Kapoor turned down the offer. But he was committed to the Colours’ show till January and couldn’t adjust the dates. “I just know that I’m one of the judges, with choreographer Remo (D’Souza). I don’t even know who the third judge is,” she says.

The actor has left her sons, Rin and Rayan, with her in-laws and husband, Dr Sriram Nene. They will fly down to be with her once school closes for Christmas. “My husband is very supportive of my work and till then, is cool with looking after them,” says Dixit, who had to be shown videos of the show’s versions from across the world before she agreed to come on board. “I can’t be harsh and pick petty fights with other panelists. And money wasn’t a priority. I just wanted to get back to dance, which is why I took on the show. We have our little jigs at home.”

Dixit was mobbed at the Mumbai airport when she arrived. Doesn’t she miss the adulation in the US? “No way,” she retorts. “As much as I love the attention, I enjoy being able to walk the streets of Denver without being mobbed. I wanted a peaceful family life and don’t regret taking a backseat from work.”

‘I missed Pamela’
Katrina Kaif is reportedly paying tribute to her in a song in Tees Maar Khan. Does she see herself in Kaif? “I don’t look for myself in any actor,” she says.

Baywatch star Pamela Anderson performed her Beta chartbuster, Dhak dhak karne laga… while in the Bigg Boss House. “I missed it!” Dixit exclaims. “I’ll ask my kids to send me a YouTube link or maybe ask the channel for a repeat run. I’d love to see what she’s done with my song.”

The actor admits she’s been chatting with her kids online everyday. “They’ve got me caught on to the Web. I’m catching on,” she laughs, however, admitting that she’s not on Twitter or Facebook. “But maybe now I’ll network to stay connected,” she says.

Dixit, a decade ago, had hosted a matrimony show on Sony called Kahin Na Kahin Koi Hai. A decade later, there were swayamvars conducted on national TV.

“That’s different,” she argues, “We made matches, but the idea was ahead of its time, so it didn’t find many takers. Maybe not a patch-up master, but I was once a matchmaker.”