Rani Mukerji on Monday completed 30 years in Hindi cinema and marked the milestone with a rare personal reflection on her journey. In a note shared by Yash Raj Films, the actor said she still feels like a newcomer every time she faces the camera, despite having spent three decades in the industry. The sentiment struck a chord with fans and colleagues who have followed her career since the mid 1990s.
Recalling her early days, Mukerji said she did not enter films with a master plan or long term ambition. She wrote that acting found her at a young age and slowly became her purpose. Even today, she said, the nervousness before a shot remains the same and keeps her grounded. “I still feel like that young girl, hoping I belong here,” she said.
Mukerji made her debut with Raja Ki Aayegi Baaraat and went on to become one of Bollywood’s most consistent leading actors in the 2000s. Films like Saathiya, Hum Tum, Black and Bunty Aur Babli shaped her screen identity, while later choices such as No One Killed Jessica and Mardaani reflected a clear shift towards stronger, more rooted characters. She has often spoken about trusting instinct over image, a decision that helped her stay relevant as the industry changed.
In her note, Mukerji also acknowledged the people she worked with and the audience that stayed with her through different phases. She described cinema as a space that taught her responsibility early on and gave her both success and failure in equal measure. The message was widely shared online, with fans calling her journey an example of quiet longevity in Bollywood.
The milestone comes at a busy time in her career. Mukerji is set to return as cop Shivani Shivaji Roy in Mardaani 3, expected to release later this year. As she steps into her fourth decade in cinema, the actor made it clear that the hunger to learn remains unchanged. For her, the work continues, one film at a time.