Happy Birthday Rani Mukerji: 5 times the Queen of hearts left her fans surprised

From Hey Ram to Mardaani, the actor has marked a place in fans' hearts with her versatility in portraying unconventional roles

Rani Mukerji

Rani Mukerji, who is known as the queen of Hearts, is going to complete her 26thyear in Bollywood and today is her birthday. Rani Mukerji made her screen debut way back in 1996 with a Bengali film named Biyer Phool, directed by her father Ram Mukherjee. However, her first role as a leading lady was in Raja ki Aayegi Barat for which she was felicitated with a Special Jury award at the Screen awards.
Later that same year, Rani booked her seat permanently with her performance in Kuch Kuch Hota Hain among the movers and shakers of Bollywood. She essayed the role of leading lady in numerous films, but some were definitely unconventional choices. Here’s the list of 5 such unusual choices which cemented her reputation as a powerhouse performer.

Hey Ram

Rani plays a Bengali bride Aparna, wife of Saket Ram, played by Kamal Hassan who returns to Kolkata to be with his wife. The premise of Hey Ram was drenched in controversy and it was not at all a conventional choice for Rani to make her presence felt with Kamal Hassan and Shah Rukh Khan. The film was screened at the 25th Toronto International Film Festival and it was India’s official selection to the Oscars in 2000. She was applauded for her performance.

Yuva

Rani played the wife of street thug Lallan Singh (Abhishek Bachchan) who works as a muscle for the ruling party. Both Lallan and Shashi (Rani) brought out the unpredictable, violent, dark shades of the couple in distress. The portrayal was truly dynamic and real. Out of the other subplots, this on-screen couple stayed back with the fans and critics. Mani Ratnam’s magical storytelling backed by A R Rahman’s brilliant scores made the experience memorable and Rani once again proved her genius as a powerful performer.

Paheli

Another unusual choice from the very predictable routine of Bollywood, Paheli was a remake of a Hindi movie called Duvidha by Mani Kaul which was released in 2005. It was appreciated by the critics for its folkloric original storytelling featuring two of the biggest stars, Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukerji, and was India’s official entry to the 79th Academy Awards. Rani was already marking her territory with her unpredictable choices and intense performances.

Black

Black is a story of a girl Michelle McNally (Rani Mukerji) robbed of her sight and hearing by an illness at a very early age. Debraj Sahai (Amitabh Bachchan) is hired to tutor her. Rani brought Michelle into life and compelled the audience to participate in a very difficult, captivating journey of life. The portrayal was well appreciated by both critics and cinema-goers. Despite its uniqueness, Black was declared as a commercial success and ranked among the highest-grossing films on Indian charts in 2005. Rani was felicitated with Filmfare for Best Actress and it was screened at various international film festivals as well.

Mardaani

Rani played a supercop and the Indian audience once again loved her in this new avatar. It was directed by Pradeep Sarkar and produced by Aditya Chopra. Crime branch officer Shivani Shivaji Roy (Rani) is still etched into our minds for her convincing gut-wrenching depiction. Mardaani received positive reviews and emerged as a commercial success.

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