[custom_adv] Rani Mukerji ( born 21 March 1978) is an Indian film actress. One of the most popular and highest-paid Hindi film actresses in the 2000s, she has received several awards, including seven Filmfare Awards. [custom_adv] Her roles have been cited in the media as a significant departure from previous screen portrayals of Indian women. [custom_adv] Although Mukerji was born into the Mukherjee-Samarth family, in which her parents and relatives were members of the Indian film industry, she did not aspire to pursue a career in film. [custom_adv] However, while still a teenager she dabbled with acting by playing a supporting role in her father's Bengali language film Biyer Phool (1996) and accepted a leading role in the 1996 social drama Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat on the insistence of her mother. [custom_adv] She then began a full-time career in films and the 1998 action drama Ghulam was her first commercial success. [custom_adv] She gained wider recognition for a supporting role in the romance Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998). The year 2002 marked a turning point for Mukerji when she was cast by Yash Raj Films as the star of the drama Saathiya. [custom_adv] She gained wider recognition for a supporting role in the romance Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998). The year 2002 marked a turning point for Mukerji when she was cast by Yash Raj Films as the star of the drama Saathiya.