Rani COLOURS
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With five releases in quick succession,
Rani Mukherjee is on a roll, says RAJEEV MASAND

With Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega just released, Rani Mukherji insists she is learning with every film. And learning very fast she must be, with this being her fifth film in seven months. Her fans have responded strongly to her bit part in the movie, but the amber-eyed lady isn’t exactly complaining. ‘‘I knew it was a small role, but I thought it would be interesting to play a role like this where for most part of the film I was expected to perform with only my eyes,’’ she says of her character in the movie — a girl in coma for the better part of the film.

Her other roles this year, she admits, have been more concrete. ‘‘I was this rich, spoilt teenager in Badal, a sweet Bengali wife in Hey Ram, a fun-loving romantic in Hadh Kar Di Aapne, and then a crude, foul-mouthed tart in Bichhoo.’’ Of the lot, she says she enjoyed her part in Bichhoo the most. ‘‘It was fun to be swearing all over the place,’’ she says, giggling uncontrollably, then reveals that co-stars like Salman Khan warned her against using foul language on-screen. ‘‘Salman told me that everyone uses bad language in real life, but never on screen. He said it would look very cheap to hear such words from a woman, but I thought it suited the character,’’ she explains.

Talking about her own foray into movies, Rani confesses she never really planned a career in showbiz. ‘‘Like all my friends, I was wondering what to do after I cleared my Class XII exams, when suddenly I was offered a role in Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat,’’ she recounts. ‘‘And since I wasn’t particularly inclined towards any of the traditional streams of education, I decided to give this a shot.’’ She says her friends were most surprised when they learnt of her decision. ‘‘I was always an introvert. Nobody thought I would join movies,’’ she says, however adding that she has become more friendly and comfortable around people since she made this career decision. Not surprisingly, once she’d given it a shot, Rani says she discovered that she was enjoying the job. ‘‘Had I chosen any other career, I’m sure I would have done justice to it, but perhaps I was destined to be an actress.’’

Despite the fact that her father is a veteran producer, Rani says she wasn’t quite prepared for the ways of this world. Revealing that she was easily bothered by nasty reviews and untrue gossip, the actress claims she has now wisened up. However, she is still a little uncomfortable with all the attention. ‘‘I try never to be rude to people who want photographs and autographs, but I don’t like to be followed and stared at constantly,’’ she complains. Also, having never idolised any star in her own youth, Rani says she can’t figure out the undying affection that some of her fans insist they feel for her.

Her friend circle, incidentally, comprises mostly her school and college friends. ‘‘I’m so much more comfortable with them,’’ she says. ‘‘And they treat me so normally,’’ she adds. From among the film industry, Rani is quick to mention that she is friendly with almost all her co-stars, male and female. ‘‘But I share a special bond with Aishwarya. We’re more like sisters, because we really care for each other,’’ she explains. Rani also adds that she’s not the sort of person who considers her contemporaries as her rivals. ‘‘Why should we behave in an unfamiliar fashion with each other?’’ she asks rhetorically, then goes on to add that ‘‘in fact, we should be friendly because we’re in the same business’’.

Where movies are concerned, although she does agree in principle that most women roles are similar (‘‘But then, heroes and heroines have to be positive characters in movies. They can never be grey’’), she also believes that there are a few good female parts going around. ‘‘Also, it is important to bring your own personality to even a cliched role so you can make it different,’’ she says.

Personally, Rani says there are scripts she has signed on instantly, others she has mulled over before agreeing. ‘‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai was one film I agreed to do as soon as Karan (Johar) narrated the subject because I believed in it,’’ she reveals. The reason she doesn’t have a problem doing films with more than one heroine, she says ‘‘is because firstly, I am confident of my talent and my hard work, and secondly, because I trust others. I don’t start out by thinking that people might give the other girl more prominence.’’ Her trusting nature has let her down on some occasions, but the actress refuses to take any names. ‘‘I’m quite forgiving by nature,’’ she says, insisting that she holds no grudges against anyone.

Almost immediately, there’s a knock on her make-up room door. A spot boy enters, armed with a large casserole of fish curry that her mother has sent for the unit. Inviting you to join her for lunch, Rani beckons co-stars Salman Khan and Preity Zinta (with whom she is shooting today for Abbas-Mustan’s Chori Chori Chupke Chupke) to sample some of her mother’s cooking. Her eyes glinting merrily even as the producer goes into raptures praising the curry, Rani calls her mum on the cell-phone to say her effort has been appreciated. A half-hour later, she slaps on the pancake and rushes towards the set. ‘‘Perfect shot, Rani,’’ you hear her director say. And suddenly, she’s smiling all over again.

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