Madhuri will miss ‘Guru-shishya bond’ with Saroj Khan

Mumbai, July 5

Actress Madhuri Dixit is feeling the loss of veteran choreographer Saroj Khan even more as it’s Guru Purnima.

Saroj Khan passed away at around 1.30 am on Friday after a cardiac arrest. She was 71.

“I still can’t believe master ji is no more. Losing a friend, philosopher & guide like her is devastating. It was difficult for me to put down my grief in words. I had spoken to her daughter when she was in the hospital & she told me that Saroj ji would be fine. Two days later, she was gone,” Madhuri posted on social media.

“The Guru-Shishya bond that we shared, the assurance that she would be my mother on the sets, I’ll miss everything,” she wrote.

On the occasion of Guru Purnima on Sunday, the actress paid a tribute to the choreographer with whom she had worked on multiple songs.

“Nobody can make women look so beautiful, desirable & sensuous on-screen like her. She made everything look like poetry in motion. Smitten by her, I had told her, ‘Saroji ji, agar aap shakkar hoti na (had you been sugar), I would add you in my cup of tea & drink it.” She would laugh heartily at this. I’ll miss that playful laughter,” said Madhuri.

Recalling the first time, she met Saroj Khan, she said: “It was while shooting for Maine Rab Se from Karma. Saroj ji asked me so many questions, one being ‘Where did you learn to dance?’ Unfortunately, our sequence was removed from the song. I’ll miss her many questions.

Saroj Khan was a game changer in the industry, felt Madhuri.

“She was the rebel in the male-dominated profession. There were rough edges to her personality & I feel that’s because life has been pretty uneven to her. I’ll miss that determined & headstrong woman,” she said.

Dancing in front of the camera and dancing on stage are two different things, pointed out the actress.

“Saroj ji taught me how to romance the camera when we worked on Ek Do Teen. Such was the song’s popularity that Filmfare had to create the Best Choreography category to honour Saroj ji. I’ll miss her resolve to push the envelope all the time,” she said.

“Her Nazakat, the aadayein, the elegance of every move, I was besotted. I knew we would do a lot of songs together. So we decided not to repeat any of the movements. She agreed to create hook steps that people will identify with every song. We created so many movements with no knowledge about what they are called. Who knew Tamma Tamma step was Dab? I’ll miss inventing hook steps with her,” she added.

Saroj Khan was close to Madhuri’s family as well. “This loss is deeply personal. There’s no one like her & there won’t be another like her. Saroj ji, I’ll miss everything about you. I’ll miss your ‘Perrrfect’!,” concluded the actress.