Mardaani Rani Still Ruling Hearts @37

Bollywood actress Rani Mukerji still manages to make hearts skip a beat as she turns 37

Bollywood actress Rani Mukerji still manages to make hearts skip a beat as she turns 37. It still seems like yesterday when the actress took Bollywood by storm as the sexy Tina in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai. She has become more selective with her movies, but can give actresses much younger than her a run for their money.

Here's a pictorial look at her journey as she turns a year older.

Rani Mukherji was born on March 21, 1978 in Mumbai. She went to Maneckji Cooper High School and graduated in Home Science from SNDT Women's University.
Rani comes from a film-oriented Bengali family. Her father Ram Mukherji founded of Filmalaya Studios, while mother Krishna was a playback singer. Her brother Raja is a film producer-turned-director. Her maternal aunt, Debashree Roy, is a renowned Bengali actress.

Rani's cousins are actresses Kajol, Sharbani and Tannishaa, and director Ayan Mukherji.
Rani made her acting debut when she was 14 in the Bengali film Biyer Phool (1992). She made her Bollywood debut playing the lead role of a rape victim in Raja Ki Ayegi Baraat in 1996. Later, she returned back to college to complete her education.

After a two year hiatus, Rani was cast as the glamorous Tina in Karan Johar's directorial debut Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), opposite Shah Rukh Khan and cousin Kajol. And the rest, as they say, is history!

She also won a Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the movie.
Rani starred opposite Mr Perfectionist Aamir Khan in Ghulam in the same year. The hit song Aati Kya Khandala is still very popular today.
Rani's early successes were then followed by a string of forgettable films. Although Badal opposite Bobby Deol and Hello Brother, also featuring Salman Khan, were box office hits in 1999 and 2000, she still had a long way to go.

In 2001, Rani starred in Abbas Mustan's romantic drama Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, co-starring Salman Khan and Preity Zinta.

The actress next played the lead in Kunal Kohli's romance Mujhse Dosti Karoge (2002), with Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapoor. It was the first of many collaborations with Yash Raj Films.
Rani then starred in Shaad Ali's critically acclaimed Saathiya (2002), opposite Vivek Oberoi. She won a Filmfare Critics' Award for Best Performance, and among several other nominations, received her first Best Actress nomination at the Filmfare. Saathiya proved to be a turning point in Rani's career.
Rani's first 2003 release was Aziz Mirza's drama Chalte Chalte opposite Shah Rukh Khan. Her role was similiar to her character in Saathiya, and she received her second nomination for the Filmfare Best Actress Award.

In 2004, her performance as a Bengali housewife in Mani Ratnam's Yuva won Rani her second Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award.
Next up was the romantic comedy Hum Tum (2004), opposite Saif Ali Khan, which became one of the biggest hits of the year. The film, based on the 1989 film When Harry Met Sally, was directed by Kunal Kohli. Rani finally received her first Filmfare Best Actress Award.
Yash Chopra's love saga Veer-Zaara (2004) ,alongside Shah Rukh Khan and Preity Zinta, had Rani playing the role of a lawyer.
Rani's most critically acclaimed performance was as the visually-challenged, hearing and speech impaired Michelle McNally in Black (2005). It earned her the Filmfare Best Actress Award for the second year in a row.
In 2005, Rani starred in three other high-profile films: Shaad Ali's Bunty Aur Babli, Amol Palekar's Paheli and Ketan Mehta's Mangal Pandey: The Rising.
The actress was offered the lead role in Mira Nair's Hollywood film The Namesake but turned it down because the shooting schedule clashed with that of Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006). The multi-starrer film had her share screen space with Amitabh Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta and Kirron Kher.
Rani's first 2007 release, Ta Ra Rum Pum, where she played a pianist turned housewife, was a semi hit.

Critical and commercial failures like Pradeep Sarkar's drama Laaga Chunari Mein Daag and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Saawariya failed to do justice to Rani's talent.
Rani's role in Kunal Kohli's Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic (2008), however, received positive reviews.
Rani donned an itsy-bitsy bikini to show off her toned body in Dil Bole Hadippa (2009), where she featured opposite Shahid Kapoor. But the film turned out to be a box office dud.

In 2011, Rani made a comeback of sorts in No One Killed Jessica with actress Vidya Balan. Directed by Raj Kumar Gupta, the movie earned Rani another Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress.

2012 was a great year for the actress as she had two major releases. Rani received good reviews for her acting chops in Anurag Kashyap's production venture Aiyyaa, although the film failed to make an impact at the box office.

Right after Aiyyaa, she was seen sharing screen space with Aamir Khan once again in Reema Kagti's sensational thriller Talaash. The film was a hit.

Rani received rave reviews for her performance as a sexually repressed wife in Bombay Talkies (2013).

In 2014, Rani Mukerji featured as a police officer in Yash Raj Films' Mardaani. The film was a sleeper hit and gained appreciation for addressing the hard hitting subject of human trafficking in an apt way. Post Mardaani rani was invited worldwide to speak on the subject of women safety.
Rani however hasn't announced any projects post the release of Mardaani.

Rani and director Aditya Chopra have been one of Bollywood's most secretive couples. And therefore it came to no one's surprise when she married the director in a clandestine marriage in Italy in 2014. The wedding was a family and close-friends event only. Even post her marriage, Rani Mukerji, who has retained her maiden name, has hardly even been photographed with her husband.

Here's wishing Rani a very happy birthday and a great year ahead.