Madhuri Dixit Nene made a magnificent appearance in the teaser of her upcoming film Kalank but said at the launch event in Mumbai on Tuesday that it was tough and emotional for her to play a role which was to be originally essayed by Sridevi. Madhuri plays Bahaar Begum in Kalank and was offered the role in the film after Sridevi's sudden death last year – the Chandni actress was supposed to play the role initially.

While speaking about replacing Sridevi in Kalank, Madhuri said that it wasn’t easy for her at all and that the entire cast and crew remembered the veteran actress while shooting for the film.

[caption id="attachment_228304" align="aligncenter" width="1140"] Sanjay Dutt and Madhuri Dixit in a still from Kalank[/caption]

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"Firstly, her demise was sad news for us and when I was approached for the role, it was not easy for me. I have immense respect for her. She was a good artiste and a good human being too. To step into the role, when you look into it as an actress, it's a different scenario as you add your own inputs to the character, but we used to remember her on sets as she was a part of the film,” Madhuri said at the teaser launch.

"Once you start working, you have to move on and do your job... I did that, but missed her too,” she added.

[caption id="attachment_219135" align="aligncenter" width="647"] File photo of Sridevi[/caption]

Sridevi died on February 24 in Dubai last year. After her death, her daughter Janhvi Kapoor announced that Madhuri had replaced her mother in Kalank.

Directed by Abhishek Varman, Kalank, co-starring Sanjay Dutt, Varun Dhawan, Aditya Roy Kapur, Alia Bhatt and Sonakshi Sinha, is releasing on April 17.