Premium

‘My Bollywood career was an accident’: Rani Mukerji says she joined films to help family ‘make ends meet’

In a recent interview with Karan Johar, Mardaani 3 star Rani Mukerji shared that even though her father Ram Mukherjee too was a filmmaker, the household made just enough to ‘make ends meet’.

3 min readBengaluruJan 22, 2026 06:40 PM IST

Recalling her early days in Bollywood, Actor Rani Mukerji shared, "Destiny had other plans for me."

Actor Rani Mukerji on Thursday joined her friend and filmmaker Karan Johar for an interactive session where she reflected on her 30-year journey in cinema. The actor also reflected on the beginning of her career and her personal life with the director and her husband, Aditya Chopra. While the actor made her Bollywood debut with the 1996 film Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat, did you know that her career started by accident and without a plan?

Rani and Karan Johar sat for a session at Yash Raj Films Studios on Thursday morning. While Karan asked Rani about her childhood, the actor revealed that even though she came from a film family, as her father Ram Mukherjee too was a filmmaker, the household made just enough to ‘make ends meet’.

Also read | Rani Mukerji says she is scared of her Gen Alpha daughter Adira: ‘Can’t slap her, she would slap me back’

Adding that her parents never thought she’d work, Rani shared, “I don’t think they even had dreams for me. At the time we were growing up, it was never really something that occurred to my dad that I was going to work. It was (considered) more of a boy’s responsibility. That responsibility they saw through my brother. With me, it was very clear. They wanted to get me married at a very young age.”

Rani Mukerji and Aditya Chopra tied the knot in 2014.

Rani also recalled how she made her Bollywood debut with Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat, which was produced by Salim Akhtar, a friend of her father and shared with Karan, “Destiny had other plans for me. With the offer that came for Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat, my mum just told me, ‘Salim uncle is a family friend, and he has offered you a film. Why don’t you take it up?’ ”

Rani shared that her mother had agreed to the offer somewhere for financial reasons too. “I didn’t realise it then that probably my mum was finding a way to make the financial situation in my house better. Because they knew that if I do well in this field, it would be good for us. But at that time, I didn’t see it from that angle,” added Rani Mukerji.

While Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat did not work at the box office, it got Rani noticed, leading to films life Ghulam and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, which kickstarted her career in mainstream Bollywood.

In the same interview, Rani Mukerji also opened up about her husband Aditya Chopra, who is how the Chairperson of Yash Raj Films. The actor mentioned, “It’s his simplicity that draws me towards him.” She went on to add how his grounded nature and quiet charm have always been a source of comfort and admiration in their life together.

Watch Rani Mukerji’s video here: