Recently, I was fortunate to meet and talk at length to two very special women.  These were no ordinary women --- they were Rani Mukerji and Priyanka Chopra --- top Bollywood actresses and also two of the stars of the highly successful ‘Temptations 2004’ concert (for a review of the concert please read lokvani.com archived article published on 10/21/04).

 What caught me immediately, of course, was their striking beauty.  But what I left with was even more powerful.  I left with an understanding that they have a greater asset --- these two actresses are made of substance.  They were deep and thoughtful in their answers;  determined and ambitious in their chosen career; and they both are extremely talented.  Both Rani and Priyanka strive to be better and better with each film they do; they have then chosen roles in films that are challenging and outside the norm.  These two actresses want to grow professionally and continue to expand their horizons … in one word, Rani and Pryanka are driven.

  Rani Mukerji

2004 is Rani’s year.  Her acting in Yuva, Hum Tum, and Veer-Zara all reflect Rani’s talent as an actress.  Her upcoming movie, “Black” is her most challenging role thus far, “My most difficult role is actually going to be coming, that is ‘Black’ where I play a deaf, dumb and blind girl… I got introduced to people who are handicapped and to see the kind of life they lead, to be playing one of them. It just took me to another world you know where we don’t come from that world, for them everything is ‘Black’; they can’t hear, they can’t see, they communicate through sign language, they communicate through touch.” 

Black, which is directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali (Devdas, Hum Dil De Chuke Sanum) features Rani in the lead with Ambitab Bachan as her teacher.  It may likely be the film, along with the other films she has acted in this year, that places her as the ”RANI” (Queen) of Bollywood – a title that she will have earnestly earned.  

 Rani was not an overnight success.  She has been driven, determined, and serious about her acting career.   She says “When you are in this field, you don’t feel satisfied or fulfilled with anything you achieve. And once you take the first step and after you accomplish that, you want to be part of good films and you want to be part of great films and hit films and once you accomplish that then you are again wanting more in the sense you are looking for roles that will make you even a bigger star and people look at you in a different way. So I guess with every step in films you never feel ‘yes I’ve achieved it’ and after that, you ask, can I go on for more? can I do more films?  There is always a want for more.  There is never a feeling of a full stop You keep waiting for another role that will stun the audience, stun yourself.”

Priyanka Chopra

If you have not heard of Priyanka Chopra yet, you soon will.  The 22 year old former Newton North High School student (yes, Newton, Massachusetts!)  and Miss World (2000) is currently a big name on the Bollywood list of up-and-coming female actresses.  She won the prestigious Filmfare Award last year for best female debut for her performance in Andaaz and has signed on for other compelling roles.

Coincidentally, Priyanka feels her most challenging role is the film that hit theaters this past weekend,

Aitraaz, in which she stars with Akshay Kumar and Kareena Kapoor.  She says, “ its got lot of colors to it, lot of shades to it.  I totally don’t believe in the ideologies of the character I am playing, so it was very difficult to do.  It took lot of convincing myself, sitting with my directors, doing lot of homework to actually believe in what I was doing and doing it with conviction.”

 I asked Priyanka what is the one thing she would want people to know about her,
“I am very simple person.  I don’t really need much to make me happy.  I adore what I do.  I don’t think I could do anything else.  Someone up there helped me find my vocation.  Just keep watching the movies that we make, because we make them with a lot of hard work and lot of passion and it’s great when we see people responding the way they did in Atlantic City today  - you feel like a complete rock star.  It’s really nice to have people love you so much because that’s what pushes you to do better.”

Priyanka is a rock star.  At the Temptations concert, Priyanka’s singing ability thrilled the audience.  She covered some classical hindi ballads but also sang some Western songs, including a Christina Aguleria hit.  Her voice and talent was well received by the 14,000+ attendees.  However she was modest when I asked her about her singing.  “Most people don’t believe I am the one singing it….I do want to pursue it , however I don’t know how and when, because I still have to establish myself in the career I have chosen right now.”

Priyanka would be taking courses in engineering if she were not acting and Rani said she would likely be a  homemaker with kids if she was not acting.  Well, we are all lucky then that Priyanka and Rani have chosen to become performers and entertain us for the moment.  Bollywood is lucky to have talent like Rani and Priyanka --- two actresses who are driven to give us their best.

I would like to thank Rani, Priyanka and the rest of the Temptations team, including the Morani's & Bharat Jotwani for making these interviews possible.

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