Madhumati

Some Lesser Known Facts About Madhumati

• Madhumati was a renowned dancer in Bollywood films during the 1960s, 1970s, and 1980s. She was often compared to her contemporary, dancer Helen, at that time.

  

• Madhumati was born and grew up in a small village in Thane, Maharashtra.

• Although her father encouraged her and let her learn dancing, as she was very talented and interested in dancing.

• When Madhumati was only 8 years old, she was a trained artist in classical dance and was highly proficient in Bharat Natyam, Kathak, and Manipuri dance styles.

• At the age of 15, she opened her dance academy in Thane.

• It was the famous producer Dirubahi Desai who first spotted Madhumati’s talent. He was the Chief guest at an event where she was performing on stage, and wanted to sign her as a heroine for his film. However, her father was against her joining films as an actress. After much convincing, she was finally allowed to do just one dance number in the 1957 Marathi film Raja Harishchandra; unfortunately, the film was never released.

• Later in 1960, she bagged a Bollywood film, Zameen Ke Taare, where she played the role of Daisy Irani’s stepmother. As there were no romantic scenes, her father allowed her to act in this film. It was from this film that her name changed from Hutoxi to Madhumati.

• Later on, she continued to act in Hindi, Punjabi, South Indian, and Bhojpuri films and as a heroine and in small roles.

• Madhumati quickly rose to fame in Hindi and regional cinema, appearing in more than 250 films over her career. Her roles in Ankhen, Tower House, Shikari, and Mujhe Jeene Do showed not only her skill as a dancer but also her acting skills.

  

• Her last Hindi film was Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), where she did a small role.

• Some of her notable dance numbers included Uthegi Tumhari Nazar Dheere Dheere from the film Ek Raaz (1963), Maangi Hai Duaaen Hamane Sanam from Shikari (1963), Bane To Ban Jaae Zamana Dushman, and Main Teraa Hun Dulhaa from the film Dulha Dulhan (1964), among many others.

• Madhumati was very close to Nargis and Sunil Dutt. She considered Nargis her best friend, role model, mentor, and guide. Sunil Dutt was her ‘rakhi’ brother.

  

• Madhumati’s husband, Manohar Deepak, was also a renowned dancer of Bollywood and Punjabi films. She met him six months after the death of her father. They began working together and developed a strong bond.

• After the death of Manohar’s first wife, Nargis convinced Madhumati to marry Manohar, as she was already familiar with his family.

• Madhumati’s husband had four children from his previous marriage. Madhumati and Deepak decided not to have their own children, and they will raise his children together.

• She was just 19 years old when she married Manohar Deepak, and he was much older than her. Initially, Madhumati’s mother was against her marriage decision; however, later Madhumati convinced her mother.

• Both Madhumati and Manohar were an integral part of Sunil Dutt’s Ajanta Arts Cultural Troupe and did shows in India and outside India. They also visited many of the border areas of our country to entertain the ‘jawans’ or soldiers of the armed forces.

• Madhumati also did a show with Raj Kapoor at the Nefa border.

• After working for 25 years, Madhumati and her husband decided to quit the film industry.

• After quitting the film industry, Madhumati and her husband started a dance academy, Madhumati Academy of Acting and Dancing in Juhu, Mumbai. Some of her dancing students are Akshay Kumar, Govinda, Chunkey Pandey, Sumeet Saigal, Tabu, Amrita Singh, Baba Sehgal, etc.

  

• In 1992, after the death of her husband, she continued teaching at her dance academy.

  

• On 15 October 2025, Madhumati died due to age-related issues at her residence in Mumbai.

• After her death, many actors paid tribute to her on social media.