Rani Mukherji breaks her silence

Of late, she has taken plenty of flak. Just five days away from the release of Laaga Chunari Mein Daag , here’s Rani Mukherji in conversation with Princy Jain.

Of late, she has taken plenty of flak. So, it’s only fair that she should give her side of the story. And yes, despite some tricky questions, she remains cool, calm and collected. Just five days away from the release of Laaga Chunari Mein Daag , here’s Rani Mukherji in conversation with Princy Jain

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“I am very talkative,” says Rani Mukherji, as she breaks her silence. And she does answer every question, but not without being hedgy about the big one – is she engaged..or even married to Aditya Chopra?

That she’s played her media cards wrong in recent months is obvious. During the shoot of Laaga Chunari Mein Daag she infuriated the press in Varanasi where she was shooting, with her high-handed behaviour and rude remarks.

And now, she has been taunting the media, “I have five kids, go find them and I will give you a reward.”

Funny? Well, never mind. But yes, it would be insightful to find out what has made her the Rani Mukherji of today. Once, she seemed to be a sweet tempered, friendly girl eager to make an impression…but now? Which is why I want to know:

For over a year, you have been silent despite a blitz of rumours. So what has prompted you to talk now? Publcity for Laaga...?
As an actress, I do owe a certain amount of responsibility to my fans and filmmakers. So here I am, obviously because my film is just a few days away from its release. I have to talk about my work, clear all queries and doubts.

Your silence could have been misunderstood. Are you okay with that?
It’s not about being silent. I’m quite a chatterbox. It’s just that, I prefer talking to my family and friends. I am not the sort who picks up the phone to inform the press about what I wore to a party last night, what food I ate, how long I played with my niece and where I plan to take the family for a vacation. I’ve never gone on a self-promotion trip and never will. If it is felt I’ve been silent for a while, let it be perceived any which way.

So, there are two images of you right now. One of a family girl and the other of a girl involved with Aditya Chopra who is still to get his formal divorce. Your comment?
( Without flinching) I am what I am. Such rumours excite a few people, let them believe what they want to. Mercifully, there are many more people, so many of my fans who are busy with their respective lives, and give a damn about the rumours.

I have not reached that stage in my life where I have to give clarifications for the rubbish written about me week after week in the press. I am not accountable to rumour mongers, I am only accountable to my fans, family and the filmmakers I work with.Why are you asking me all this? I will only talk about my film.

Okay.. so go ahead tell me.

In

Laaga

.., I’m Badki, a girl from Varanasi. It was like getting back to my childhood days.. I was this loud and spoilt prankster. I play a girl who has to choose an unconventional path to sustain her family. I have three different roops .. or looks.. for which I must give credit to my make-up artiste and designer.

You had quite an eventful shooting schedule in Varanasi.

If you are hinting at the incident with the media, that’s part of life. On the whole, the trip to Varanasi was excellent. My family are great followers of Lord Shiva.. going to the Kashi Vishwanath temple means a lot to us. We were shooting there in November, the birthdays of my parents are during that month. So my entire family, including the most special member, my niece Mayasha, were with me. I could actually spend some time with Mayasha, simply sitting on the ghats of the Ganga.

Apparently there were bad vibes between Jaya Bachchan and you during the shoot.
Please, that is so unfair.. I don’t know where that’s coming from. In fact, the haveli where we shot was like one big adda , there was wonderful Bengali food around.

Dada (director Pradeep Sarkar) Jayaji, Konkona and I would be chattering away in Bengali. Dada can teach anyone to speak in Bengali.. everyone on the set was speaking in half-Hindi, half-Bengali..

From a very busy 2005 to just Tara Rum Pum and Laaga..in 2007.Why?
But I want it that way. I’ve wanted to do this since the last three years. When I was doing Black, I only wanted to do Black . I shot for The Rising and Veer-Zaara alongside.. but they were smaller roles.

Being committed to one project means I can be at the beck and call of my director. For the rest of the time, I can do ad films and be with my family. I may have achieved what I have after working round the clock during the last five or six years. Today I don’t have to run around like a mad girl anymore.

Won’t Black be a tough act to follow?
Is that performance a constriction or an advantage? If I sit and analyse Black , I wouldn’t be able to do any other movie ever.

Every actor or a director has one magical film in his or her career.. which they can never repeat. Still, every film has its own value, its own quality and that should be respected.

Okay. Durga puja is around the corner.What are your plans?
It’s after years that I will in Mumbai during the puja. Last year, I was shooting for Tara Rum Pum and made a fleeting visit on Dashmi.

This year Kunal (Kohli) does not want my dates, so I am allowed to be with my family. Also, this is going to the first puja of my niece, so it’s super special.