MISS CONGENIALITY: Winning friends comes as easy to Mukherjee as good roles

Chalte Chalte has somersaulted Mukherjee into the A-list. She was, till date, attractive and dependable, but never a contender. The hyped projects, mega-moolah endorsements and high-profile magazine covers were reserved for hotter stars like Kareena Kapoor and Preity Zinta. But Mukherjee's ascent has come when both her rivals are fumbling with forgettable flops and Bollywood is busy reshuffling the deck. With Chalte Chalte, Mukherjee has proved that she can play high-glam diva as well as the rest of them. Stylist Manish Malhotra, make-up artist Mickey Contractor and hair expert Dilshad Pastakia reworked her from head to toe. The extra inches, gauche clothes and simple demeanour went out of the window to be replaced by halter tops, skirts and boots. The promos were enough to start Bollywood buzzing. But Mukherjee's talent has never been tied to her trendy quotient. In a sea of factory-produced anatomically correct Barbie dolls, she is real. Her performances are nuanced and understated. "She doesn't act," says Saathiya director Shaad Ali, "she reacts." Art house auteur Sudhir Mishra, who directed her in the upcoming Calcutta Mail, says, "She doesn't make everything ponderous. She allows you to see the film."

Queen of Arts

CHALTE CHALTE The audience has taken to Mukherjee's sassy new look as Shah Rukh's wife in one of the year's biggest hits.

SAATHIYA Mukherjee clicked at the box office and with critics as Oberoi's estranged wife in the silver jubilee film.

CALCUTTA MAIL Being malleable helps. She pairs as easily with 40-plus Anil in this forthcoming film as with the younger actors.

At 24, Mukherjee is also malleable enough to work with several generations of heroes. In Calcutta Mail, she is paired with 40-plus Anil Kapoor, while in Saathiya she played Vivek Oberoi's wife. More importantly, she matches marvellously with the reigning Khan trinity. She started her career with Aamir Khan in Ghulam and Shah Rukh in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and has had close ties with them since. Shah Rukh, who requested her to do Chalte Chalte after dropping Rai, is a mentor, friend and guide. "He slaps me when I'm not focusing," she says. Salman, a mercurial mystery, is also a friend. In fact, if Bollywood was high school, Mukherjee would be voted Miss Popular. She does not belong to any clique, and by all accounts, is attitude-free.

Anil Kapoor attributes this to her being a filmmaker's daughter-her father Ram directed Leader. "Many girls act bigger than they are," says Anil, "but Rani has her head on her shoulders. She is an absolute professional." There are, of course, insiders who wonder whether Mukherjee is more scheming than simple. "It is not possible to be close to so many people," says one of her earlier directors. "She is calculating and fake." The grapevine buzzed frantically after Mukherjee stepped into Rai's shoes in Chalte Chalte-one story had her rushing to Shah Rukh's office after his showdown with Salman and offering to do the film for only Rs 11 lakh. Though Mukherjee and Rai are civil when they meet, the famous friendship has frosted over.

However, Mukherjee's friends tell another story. Priyanka Soni, her neighbour and friend, says loyalty is the actor's strongest trait: "Her devotion to people she cares for is total and complete." Reema Lahiri, music composer Bappi's daughter who was with Mukherjee in school and college, remembers her as a "simple, conservative, introverted girl who studied a lot". Kajol's poor cousin, Mukherjee grew up in suburban Mumbai. In the mid-1990s, the family went through a particularly bad phase when her father, who had middling success in films, underwent bypass surgery and broke with the rest of the clan. Mukherjee was in Class XII when producer Salim, a family friend, offered her a film. Her mother Krishna encouraged her to take a screen test which went so badly that Krishna suggested Salim take another girl. But when Mukherjee did the first shot of Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat, she knew she had found her calling.

Success, however, hasn't changed Mukherjee's surroundings-she still lives in an unassuming suburban apartment and doesn't have a secretary. "Numbers don't affect me," she says, "because they change every Friday. What matters is doing good work that leaves an impact. It is about people remembering you even in a flop film."

Perhaps. But becoming the hottie du jour never hurt.