The Reigning Queen

Rani Mukherjee was destined to one day serve as Queen of Bollywood; "Rani," after all, means "queen." She's everywhere right now. It seems every time I read about Bollywood, I also read about Rani. She swept Filmfare's Best Actress categories last year: she won Best Actress for Hum Tum and Best Supporting Actress for Yuva. And she had an important supporting role in last year's Best Picture winner, Veer-Zaara. She will likely win another Best Actress award this year for her performance in Black, where she played a woman deaf, blind, and mute. She was, for lack of a better word, amazing.



OK, before I ramble on about how talented Rani is, let me clear some air: she is no Kajol, though they are both Mukherjees (second cousins). But she has filled the void in Bollywood left by Kajol and has become one of my favorite actresses. Her small role in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai put Rani on the map, but it wasn't until Saathiya that I felt Rani could carry her own movie. But her filmography in 2004-2005 speak for itself. If it's a popular and good Hindi film, it probably stars Rani Mukherjee. She has three blockbusters under her belt this year: Black, Bunty aur Babli, a comedy in which she plays a con artist, and Paheli in which she plays an abused wife who's in love with a ghost (at least I think that's what it's about; I haven't seen it... yet. I've heard it's really good). She's also starring in the just-released Mangal Pangey: The Rising along with Aamir Khan, in which she plays a prostitute. I would bet this will also be a hit.

There's not much more to say, really. She's a fantastic actor, is well respected in the industry, avoids scandal most of the time (OK, there were those rumors about Govinda and Karan Johar), is a bankable star, works hard, has amazing yellow eyes, and has signed more interesting projects for the future. Not bad for a girl who never wanted to be an actress growing up.

My Favorite Rani Films (there are many):
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998)--with SRK, Kajol, and Salman Khan
Chori Chori Chupke Chupke (2001)--with Salman Khan and Preity Zinta
Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham (2001)--with SRK, Kajol, Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan
Saathiya (2002)--with Vivek Oberoi
Yuva (2004)--with Abhishek Bachchan
Hum Tum (2004)--with Saif Ali Khan
Veer-Zaara (2004)--with SRK and Preity Zinta
Black (2005)--with Amitabh Bachchan
Bunty aur Babli (2005)--with Abhishek and Amitabh Bachchan

Next up: Aamir Khan