Dedh Ishqiya will see the return of Madhuri Dixit on silver screen after a long gap. But don’t make the mistake of terming it as her comeback. If you do that, be prepared to get castigated by Madhuri. How many times will I make a comeback,” the pretty actress asks anyone who dares to pronounce that dreaded term. Well, Madhuri may not exactly be making a comeback with Dedh Ishqiya but evidently much is at stake for this diva who needs a hit badly in her second innings. In a candid chat with Tellychakkar.com, Madhuri Dixit opens up about the current competition, pressure and how things have changed today in Bollywood. Let’s start with Dedh Ishqiya. Tell us a bit about your character in the movie? I play Begum Para which is a very beautiful character written by Abhishek (Chaubey). She is the Begum of Mahmudabad which is in Lucknow and is a very beautiful and poetic woman. She is a widow and holds a Swayamvar because it was her husband’s last wish that if she ever remarries then her second husband should be a poet. So every year she has this Swayamvara planned for her and many Shaayars from states across India come down to woo her. We are seeing you after a long gap now. How much would you say is at stake with both Dedh Ishqiya and Gulaab Gang, considering that Aaja Nachle didn’t exactly hit the bull’s eye? Well (pauses and thinks) a lot is at stake because as you said you are seeing me on screen after a gap. How the film does is very important. And the characters I play in both these movies, too are different from each other. Begum Para is a very strong character. It’s a multi layered character. So are you nervous this time around? No. Not at all. On the contrary, I am excited and very upbeat. I think Dedh Ishqiya is a complete entertainer. Vidya Balan delivered a stand-out performance in Ishqiya? What do you think about her? Well, she is a wonderful actress. I liked her not just in Ishqiya but in her first movie as well. In fact I had also mentioned at that time that Vidya is the one to watch out for. She is a great actress. I think she is very very talented. Who do you see as your contender today? I don’t look at anyone as my contender. I think our film industry is a very creative field. It’s not a race which you have to run and win. It’s all about how you better yourself, how well you can play your character, how cleverly you portray your role. It’s all about nurturing your talent and taking it forward. It’s not about competing with someone. Do you have any favourite character that you would like to play on-screen today? I don’t have a favourite character as such. I am more excited and interested in seeing how deep a character given to me is. I am thankful that cinema in India has come a long way and women today are portrayed as characters and not just victims as they used to be in earlier films. How has the Bollywood changed from the 90s? During those days, we never went out of our way to promote movies. There were four or five channels and not much was needed to be done. But now things have changed. We have to go all out and promote our movie today. We have to go out and say that this is our new product and please come and watch it. And plus you are watching a lot of stuff like serials, Hollywood films and many other things. So to make your product sell, you have to make a lot of noise. So I think it is more hardwork today than it was then. Yes it was hardwork then too because we didn’t have swanky vanity vans then as compared to now. But today it is hardwork of a different kind. How did your husband find the rushes of Dedh Ishqiya? Well Shriram loved the promos. He is very proud of my work. How are your kids coping with Mumbai’s culture? My kids love the informal culture that we have here. They love being here. The only thing they miss the park which you had in dozens in Denver.