Bollywood actresses like Madhuri Dixit and Alia Bhatt paid tributes to legendary Kathak dancer, composer, singer Pandit Birju Maharaj who passed away at the age of 83. Other celebrities, including Hema Malini, Anupam Kher, Kajol, Janhvi Kapoor and filmmaker Subhash Ghai also remembered the veteran. His disciple, Madhuri Dixit shared her picture with Birju Maharaj and said, “He was a legend but had a child-like innocence. He was my guru but also my friend. He taught me the intricacies of dance and ‘abhinay’ but never failed to make me laugh at his funny anecdotes. Thank you Maharaj-ji for everything you taught me in dance along with humility, elegance and grace.” While Alia Bhatt “had the honour and privilege of spending three full days with Pandit Birju Maharaj in 2018 while prepping for ‘Ghar More Pardesiya’”, Anupam Kher said, “He used to tell me , ‘teri aankho me bahut shararat hai’ (there is a lot of naughtiness in your eyes).” Interestingly, an actress from a younger generation, Janhvi Kapoor also shared a picture with him on her Instagram account.
