Mini Biography
Mukerji comes from a film-oriented family of Bengali origin. Her father,
Ram Mukherjee, is a retired director and one of the founders of "Filmalaya Studios". Her mother,
Krishna Mukherjee, was a playback singer. Her brother,
Raj Mukherjee is a film producer, now turned director. Her maternal aunt,
Debashree Roy, was a Bengali-film actress and her cousin,
Kajol, is a Bollywood actress.
Mukerji is a trained Odissi dancer, and began learning the dance in tenth grade. Mukerji studied at Maneckjee Cooper High School in Juhu, and later enrolled at Mithibai College in Mumbai.
While in school at the age of 14, Mukerji did a cameo role in her father's Bengali film Biyar Phool (1992). In 1994,
Salim Akhtar, a family friend, offered her a film called
Aa Gale Lag Jaa (1994) but her father was against it as she was too young. Mukerji turned down the offer and
Urmila Matondkar was cast instead.
Two years later,
Salim Akhtar came up with another offer and insisted on her playing the protagonist of
Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat (1997). After a long discussion with her father, she agreed to do the film. When the film was unsuccessful at the box office, Mukerji returned to college to complete her education.
Mukerji had a successful comeback in 1998 with
Ghulam, opposite
Aamir Khan; the film did well at the box office.
The song
Aati Kya Khandala made Mukerji popular among the masses, earning her the nickname of
Khandala Girl.
Karan Johar's directorial debut,
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, co-starring
Shahrukh Khan and
Kajol, followed for her that year. The movie was a blockbusterand she received her first
Filmfare Award in the
Best Supporting Actress category.
She followed her career by signing on several projects. Unfortunately, most of them did not do well at the box office. Although
Badal was one of the highest grossing films of 2000, she still did not succeed to establish her status in the industry at that point of time.
In 2001, Mukerji starred in
Abbas Mustan's romantic drama
Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, co-starring
Salman Khan and
Preity Zinta. The film was released after a one-year delay, and was one of the first Bollywood movies to handle the issue of
surrogate childbirth Mukerji's role was that of Priya Malhotra, a woman who is unable to conceive after a miscarriage, thus hires a surrogate mother.
Rediff.com wrote, "Rani Mukherji is handicapped with a role that doesn't give her much scope besides weeping and sobbing. To her credit, she manages to hold her own even while playing a stereotypical sacrificing
bhartiya nari."
In 2002, Mukerji played the lead role in
Kunal Kohli's romance
Mujhse Dosti Karoge!, co-starring alongside
Hrithik Roshan and
Kareena Kapoor. Although the movie did not do well in India, it generated great business overseas, and marked her entry into India's biggest production house:
Yash Raj Films. Later that year, Mukerji starred in
Shaad Ali's critically acclaimed
Saathiya opposite
Vivek Oberoi. Essaying the role of Suhani Sharma, a medical student who deals with the tensions and discontent of being married at a young age, she won a
Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance, and among several other nominations, received her first
Best Actress nomination at the
Filmfare. Manish Gajjar from
BBC noted, "...Rani Mukerjee...plays the character of a middle class girl with great conviction."
Mukerji's first 2003 release was
Aziz Mirza's drama
Chalte Chalte opposite
Shahrukh Khan. The film saw her play a similar role to that of
Saathiya, and she received her second nomination for
Filmfare Best Actress Award. Among another three releases that year, Mukerji starred in
Chori Chori, where she portrayed her first comic role. Although the film did not do well at the box office, Mukerji's comic timing was praised.
In 2004, her performance as a Bengali housewife in
Mani Ratnam's
Yuva won Mukerji her second
Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award. Though the film failed to do well, her performance was critically acclaimed with one critic writing, "the role demanded an actress of substance and Rani more than lives up to the expectations".She followed through by playing the leading role in the romantic comedy
Hum Tum, which became one of the biggest hits of the year The film, based on the 1989 film
When Harry Met Sally..., was directed by
Kunal Kohli. Mukerji's portrayal of Rhea Sharma, a woman of today's generation, won her several awards, including her first
Filmfare Best Actress Award.
BBCwrote about her performance," Rani is fast becoming one of the more dependable and versatile actresses of her generation.
Her last release of the year was
Yash Chopra's love saga
Veer-Zaara, co-starring alongside Shahrukh Khan and
Preity Zinta. The film, which emerged as the top grossing movie of the year in India and abroad, tells the love story of an Indian officer, Veer Pratap Singh, played by Khan, and a
Pakistani woman, Zaara, played by Zinta. Mukerji played the supporting role of Saamiya Siddiqui, a Pakistani lawyer who takes it upon herself to find the truth about Veer Pratap Singh.
Mukerji in her critically acclaimed performance as the blind, deaf and mute Michelle McNally in Black (2005), which earned her the Filmfare Best Actress Award for the second consecutive year.
In 2005, Mukerji starred in four high-profile films:
Sanjay Leela Bhansali's
Black,
Shaad Ali's
Bunty Aur Babli,
Amol Palekar's
Paheli and
Ketan Mehta's
The Rising. She was primarily noted for her performance in
Black. When Bhansali first came to Mukerji with the offer, she turned it down
and stated that she was not confident enough to play a deaf-blind girl.
Once the director put faith in her, she agreed to do it and intensely studied sign language with professionals at the
Helen Keller Institute in
Mumbai.
Mukerji received much critical acclaim for her performance and collected numerous trophies in the category of
Best Actress at various award ceremonies.
IndiaFM noted, "There's no denying that Rani delivers her best performance to date. With no dialogues in her lap, the actress conveys through expressions solely and what a terrific impact she makes. Here's a performance that should act as a reference guide for all aspiring actors".
Her next release,
Bunty Aur Babli, surfaced as one of the biggest hits of the year.
The film, though successful at the box office, opened to mixed reviews, and so did Mukerji's performance, with one critic writing, "Rani has done a great job most of the time, though she does tend to go a little over the top in the crying scenes.
Nevertheless, Mukerji received
Best Actress nominations from the
IIFA Awards and
Filmfare Awards.
Mukerji was offered the lead role in
Mira Nair's
Hollywood film,
The Namesake (2007) but owing to clashing dates with
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, she could not commit to the project
Her first release in 2006 was
Karan Johar's drama
Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, which consisted of a multi-starrer that included
Amitabh Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan,
Abhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta and
Kirron Kher. The film opened to mixed reviews but emerged as the most successful movie ever overseas.
The film tells the story of two unhappily married couples in New York, which results in an extramarital affair. Mukerji played the role of Maya Talwar, a woman layered with self-doubt and question about the relationship between her and her husband, played by Abhishek Bachchan; her performance was well received.
Rajeev Masand from
CNN-IBN concluded, "Rani looks a million bucks and she dives under the skin of her character to make that part one that we will remember for a long time."
She received several nominations for
Best Actress, and won her third
IIFA Best Actress Award for the third consecutive year. Mukerji's next release was
B.R. Chopra's
Baabul. The movie did not do well at the box office in India,
though proved to be a hit overseas.
Her role as a widow met with mixed reviews.
Recent work, 2007-present
Mukerji's first 2007 release,
Ta Ra Rum Pum, where she played a pianist turned housewife and a mother for the first time on celluloid, was a semi hit.
Her performance was generally well received, with one critic noting, "Rani enacts the role of the mother/wife proficiently."
Her last two releases of the year,
Pradeep Sarkar's drama
Laaga Chunari Mein Daag where she played the role of a woman who is forced to take up prostitution due to family problems and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's
Saawariya where she again essayed the role of a prostitute, were critical and commercial failures in India.
Mukerji's role in Kunal Kohli's
Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic, which released on 27 June 2008,
received positive reviews from critics; however, the film failed to do well at the box office. Her most recent release,
Dil Bole Hadippa was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, opened on 18 September 2009 under the
Yash Raj Films banner and performed averagely at the box office. Mukerji starred as a feisty Punjabi village girl who dreams of playing first class cricket, no matter what it takes. Her performance in the film was generally well-received by critics.
The movie co-stars
Shahid Kapoor and
Anupam Kher. Mukerji starred in the film
No One Killed Jessica, which was produced by
UTV Motion Pictures and directed by
Raj Kumar Gupta. The film is based on the
Jessica Lal murder case. Upon release the film as well as Mukerji's acting received positive reviews.
Personal life
Mukerji changed the English transliteration of her surname from Mukherjee to Mukerji several years ago. At the time, it was reported that she did this for numerological reasons. In 2006, Mukerji stated that numerology was not a concern; her name had been put down as Mukerji on her passport, and she wanted to be consistent
Mukerji has three homes in
Mumbai, including her childhood home. She bought a
bungalow in
Juhu for herself and her parents in mid-2005. The house went through a two year renovation with the interiors done by
Twinkle Khanna and
Sussanne Roshan.
Controversies
In June 2005, Mukerji was widely criticized following the publication of an interview with British newspaper
Desi Xpress. Mukerji was asked to name her idol and she replied, "
Adolf Hitler".
However, in an interview with
Times Now a year later, she denied ever mentioning Hitler's name.
In November 2006, Mukerji was shooting for the film
Laaga Chunari Mein Daag in
Varanasi when avid fans crowded the set. Security personnel beat the crowd back.
A media storm followed as various groups insisted that Mukerji should have stopped the security guards. Mukerji later issued an apology.
Other work
In March 2004, Mukerji visited the sandy dunes of
Rajasthan to boost the morale of the
jawans. It was for a show where entertainers and stars visit Indian troops in far-flung regions to encourage them along with the NDTV team.
In February 2005, Mukerji performed at the
HELP! Telethon Concert to help raise money for the victims of
Tsunami in company with other
Bollywood stars.
She was highly involved in the
Temptations 2005 show in New Delhi. The actress helped to raise funds for the National Centre For Promotional of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP), a leading disabled rights' group.
Mukerji donated her prize money, her half-share of 50 lakh rupees from her 2007 appearance on
Kaun Banega Crorepati with
Preity Zinta, to the Holy Family Hospital. She said that this institution looks after children with heart problems.
Mukerji is a stage performer and has participated in two world tours. Her first world tour was in the year 1999 with
Aamir Khan,
Aishwarya Rai,
Akshaye Khanna and
Twinkle Khanna. It was called the
Magnificent Five.
Five years later,
Temptations 2004 came along. It was the most successful Bollywood concert in its time. Mukerji performed alongside
Shahrukh Khan,
Saif Ali Khan,
Preity Zinta,
Arjun Rampal and
Priyanka Chopra in nineteen stage shows across the globe.
In 2005, Mukerji was a guest of honour at a state dinner to greet
General Pervez Musharraf in company of the Indian prime minister
Manmohan Singh.
Mukerji was the only Bollywood actress on the elite guest list.
She appeared along with various other Bollywood actors at the Closing Ceremony of the
2006 Commonwealth Games in
Melbourne, as part of a performance showcasing Indian culture, on behalf of the
2010 Commonwealth Games.
In the media
Rani Mukerji occupied the top slot of Filmfare's 'Top Ten Bollywood Actresses' list for two years in a row (2004–2005). She was also placed number one on Rediff's 'Top Bollywood Female Stars' Rankings for three consecutive years (2004–2006), while in 2007, she was ranked at number five.
In February 2006,
Filmfare Magazine placed her eighth amongst the "Ten Most Powerful Names of Bollywood",
an achievement she repeated from the previous year, where she was ranked at number ten, the only woman on the list.
] In 2007, she was ranked at number five.
On Women's International Day 2007, Mukerji came in fourth position on the
All-Time Best Bollywood Actresses Ever listing.
She was placed at number #36 by UK magazine
Eastern Eye as one of "Asia's Sexiest Women" (Sept/2006).Mukerji is frequently featured in various lists by
Rediff.com, among them,
Bollywood's Most Beautiful ActressesBollywood's Best Dressed Women and
Women of Many Faces
Mukerji has made four appearances in
Karan Johar's talk show
Koffee with Karan. She appeared with
Kareena Kapoor,
Shahrukh Khan and
Kajol,
Madhuri Dixit as a surprise guest and with
Vidya Balan promoting their film
No One Killed Jessica (2011) Rani made her entry in to the small screen with the dance reality show
Dance Premier League in 2009.
temper and can bake amazing cakes.’
“She is very young. As the years go by, the difference between the process she goes through and the one I went through, will get clear,” Rani points out.
