Rani Mukerji: Longevity comes from embracing your age

By - Mohar Basu

NOVEMBER 16,2021

For someone who is recovering from a knee injury, Rani Mukerji is surprisingly upbeat as she promotes Bunty Aur Babli 2. The wacky energy of her film and the fact that it reunites her with Hum Tum co-star Saif Ali Khan after 13 years probably keep her going. But above all, she is happy to be Babli all over again after the 2005 hit. 'When Bunty Aur Babli was first developed, we wanted to take the franchise forward. Shaad [Ali, director] wasn't convinced. Adi [Aditya Chopra, producer] kept the story for a long time, looking for a director who would make it his own. Finally, it was Varun [V Sharma, director] who whipped up a fantastic screenplay. It is not a regular comedy it has its heart in the right place,' she begins.
Mukerji believes that Khan and she have matured, just like their on-screen characters. 'Saif was a little childish when I met him on the sets of Hum Tum [2004]. Today, he is mature and sorted. We have rediscovered our chemistry with this film. This time, we brought our love and respect on screen. I admire him as an actor his comic timing is impeccable. We fed off each other's energies. Our common ground this time was that we were both parents. So, we exchanged notes.'

Well, it appears our Hum Tum characters grew up. Probably the right time to ask if there will ever be a sequel to the romantic drama. 'For now, no. But I hope there are more Bunty Babli sequels in the offing.'

Letting go of their vanities, Khan piled on the kilos to play the average Fursatganj middle-aged man while Mukerji plays mother to a 10-year-old in the con caper. That must be refreshing compared to 10 years ago, when vanity was sacrosanct to an actor's existence. 'Today, it's liberating how movies have changed and how actors are viewed. Earlier too, I did Black [2005] and Yuva [2004] where I didn't care about my characters's [appearance]. I like interesting parts because longevity comes from embracing your age and the person you are. I don't want to convince the audience otherwise. That said, I've done a glamorous film after so long.'