Rani Mukherji

Rani Mukerji comes from a film oriented family. Her father Ram Mukherjee is a retired director and one of the founders of Filmalaya Studios while her mother Krishna was a singer. Her brother Raja Mukherjee is a film producer, now turned director. Her aunt, Debashree Roy, is a national award-winning Bengali film actress and her cousin, Kajol, is a popular Bollywood actress and another cousin, Ayan Mukerji is the writer and director of Wake Up Sid.

Mukerji is a trained Odissi dancer, and began learning the dance in the tenth grade. Mukerji studied at Maneckji Cooper High School in Juhu, and later moved to Mithibai College in Mumbai.

After doing a short cameo appearance for the first time in her father's Bengali film Biyer Phool (1992), Mukerji started an acting debut five years later, as the protagonist of Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat (1997). Her performance as a rape victim in the film was well received, but the film failed to do well . Nevertheless, she received a Special Jury recognition at the Star Screen Awards. However, when the film failed at the box office, she returned to college to complete her education.


She had a relly good comeback in 1998 with Ghulam, opposite Aamir Khan; the film did well. The song Aati Kya Khandala made Mukerji popular among the masses, earning her the nickname of Khandala Girl. Then she went into Karan Johars film, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, co-starring Shahrukh Khan and Kajol, followed for her that year. The movie was a really good blockbuster, and she received her first Filmfare Award in the Best Supporting Actress category.

She followed her career by signing on several others. Unfortunately, most of them did not do well . Although Badal was one of the highest grossing films of 2000, she still didn't succeed to establish her status in the industry at that 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 being Priya Malhotra, a woman who is unable to conceive after a miscarriage, so hires a surrogate mother. On the website 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 in 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.

It wasn`t going good for her but after 2001 into 2002 things started turning around for her includind starring in Hum Tum, Kabhi Alvida Naa Khena and many others

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.[29] Her performance was generally well received, with one critic noting, "Rani enacts the role of the mother/wife proficiently."[30] Her last two releases of the year, Pradeep Sarkar's drama Laaga Chunari Mein Daag where she played the role of a women 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 June 2008, received positive reviews from critics. Her most recent release, Dil Bole Hadippa was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival, September 2009 under the Yash Raj Films banner and performed averagely at the box office. Her performance in the film was generally well-received by critics. The movie co-stars Shahid Kapoor and Anupam Kher. Mukerji is currently shooting for No One Killed Jessica which is being produced by UTV Motion Pictures and directed by Rajkumar Gupta, the film is believed to be based on the Jessica Lal murder case




Filmography

Rani Mukherji - filmography

5 most recent films

Saawariya - Blu-ray - 2.5 stars
Saawariya - 2.5 stars
Hum Tum - 3.5 stars
Chori Chori - 3.0 stars
Bas Itna Sa Khwaab Hai - 2.0 stars

5 highest-rated films

Hum Tum - 3.5 stars
Chori Chori - 3.0 stars
Chori Chori Chupke Chupke - 3.0 stars
Saawariya - Blu-ray - 2.5 stars
Saawariya - 2.5 stars

5 lowest-rated films

Bas Itna Sa Khwaab Hai - 2.0 stars
Saawariya - 2.5 stars
Saawariya - Blu-ray - 2.5 stars
Chori Chori Chupke Chupke - 3.0 stars
Chori Chori - 3.0 stars

Most frequent co-stars

Ajay Devgan - 3 times - show films
Kamini Kaushal - 3 times - show films
Sonali Bendre - 3 times - show films
Satish Shah - 3 times - show films
Smita Jaykar - 3 times - show films

Most frequent directors

Goldie Behl - 3 times - show films
Milan Luthria - 3 times - show films
Sanjay Leela Bhansali - 2 times - show films
Kunal Kohli - 1 times - show films
Abbas Alibhai Burmawalla - 1 times - show films