Rani Mukherjee

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Rani Mukherjee, born March 21, 1978 in Bengal, India is a popular Bollywood actress. Rani Mukherjee comes from a film-oriented family of Bengali origin: Her father Ram Mukherjee is a retired director and her mother Krishna formerly worked as a playback singer. Her brother Rani Mukherjee is also a film producer. Her maternal aunt, Debashree Roy, was a popular Bengali actress and her cousin Kajol is another successful Bollywood actress. Sharbani Mukherjee is her cousin. Soon after graduating from Maneckjee Cooper High School in Juhu, Rani received a few film offers and moved to Mumbai to pursue a career in acting.

Gossip columnists have linked Mukherjee to many industry figures, but she has strongly denied every single rumor of romance. Gossip columns have also claimed that she is feuding with one or another Bollywood actor or actress, but she strongly denies these rumors as well. Mukherjee seems to lead a hard-working life, totally focused on her career. She appears in the news only for appearances at movie premieres, special events, film festivals, award ceremonies, film promotion-related proceedings, or charity work. Home is important to her: in 2006, the actress bought a new house for herself in Juhu, the interior design for which was done by Twinkle Khanna. She is very close to her niece, Mayesha whom she lovingly calls 'Mishti' (which means 'sweet' in Bengali).

She began her film career with the Bengali film Biyer Phool. Her first Hindi film was Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat (1996), which did not do well at the box office. However, her next two releases - Ghulam and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998) - were hits. For the latter she received her first Filmfare Award in the Best Supporting Actress category. Mukherjee was in great demand after sudden stardom and signed contracts to work in many promising projects. Unfortunately, most of the movies were average to poor performers at the box office . In 2002, she starred in Saathiya which was critically and commercially successful.

In 2003, she starred in Chalte Chalte opposite Shahrukh Khan; the film was a semi-hit. However, 2004 was the most significant year in her career. Her performances in Yuva and the commercially successful Hum Tum earned her even more awards - the Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for the former, and the Filmfare Best Actress Award for the latter. Her performance as a Pakistani lawyer in Veer-Zaara was also acclaimed and earned her many award nominations. In 2005, Mukherjee starred in four high-profile films. Bunty Aur Babli and The Rising were among the biggest grossers of the year. She received critical acclaim for every film, especially her performance in Black. These successes established Mukherjee as one of the industry's most bankable stars. Mukherjee had two releases in 2006: Karan Johar's Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna, which was successful at the box office and B.R. Chopra's Baabul, which performed poorly at the box office and received mixed reviews from critics .

The actress has been an active stage performer and participated in numerous world tours. Temptations 2004 was her most successful concert, in which she performed alongside Shah Rukh Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Preity Zinta, Arjun Rampal and Priyanka Chopra. She also 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, to be held in Delhi. For her one-and-a-half-minute dance act alongside Saif Ali Khan, she was reportedly paid 1.5 crore rupees, the equivalent of about 300,000 U.S. dollars.