For the longest time, Madhuri and Sanjay not just avoided each other in public, but also evaded questions on each other. While Sanjay got married to Manyata Dutt, the Dhak Dhak girl moved to US with her doctor-husband Ram Nene. While Madhuri maintained a stoic silence all these years, Sanju baba never shied away from expressing his admiration for Madhuri. In fact, in 2017, at an event, Sanjay Dutt was asked which actress would he want to marry, if given a choice today. The 58-year-old actor without any hesitation said, "I would like to marry Madhuri Dixit."
Earlier in 2010, during his appearance on 'Koffee With Karan', when Karan Johar asked Sanjay whether he had met Madhuri after her return to Bollywood, Sanjay had said, "No, I have heard she is. But I just want to tell her to go home and take care of the kids. Be with the children, abhi kya acting karni hai."
When Sanjay Dutt's biopic 'Sanju' hit the screens last year, there were reports that Madhuri had asked director Rajkumar Hirani to remove all reference of her from the movie. Parallels were also drawn between her and Sonam Kapoor's character in the film. Despite being head over heels in love with Sanju (played by Ranbir Kapoor), Sonam's character chose to get married to a doctor in the film.
However, Madhuri later cleared the air and told Mid-Day in an interview, "For where I am today, this [the topic of Dutt] has become redundant. Life has come a long way since then. I don't know where these reports are coming from. In any case, it doesn't make a difference to me."
Considering their history, it was no surprise then that Karan Johar bringing back the iconic Bollywood couple in his film 'Kalank' was touted as one of the biggest casting coups of the decade.
Recently, in an interview to a daily, Sanjay Dutt opened up on the experience of reuniting with Madhuri after two decades. He said, "Yes, working with her is a pleasure (smiles). What is the time frame that we hadn't met or seen each other? Two decades, perhaps a little more. Madhuri is such a great actor. I've done many films with her - Thanedaar (1990), Saajan (1991), Khalnayak (1993), Mahaanta (1997)... I can't even recall in one go. So, to work with her again in that one scene that we did together in Kalank was amazing."
"She's got that command as an actor. It's a pleasure to share screen space with her after so many years. So much has gone past, people have matured. She herself comes across as such a matured actor,’’ he added.