Post by KhushiDreamz on Aug 23, 2006 23:04:48 GMT -5
by: Dinesh Raheja
May 30, 2004 (Mid-Day.com)
An irrepressible blithe spirit, Rani Mukerji can have you in splits with her witty, pithy answers but she also shows some rare spirit in the Hum vs Tum gender debate. What stays long after the interview is her definitive, unorthodox opinions on men.
Do you share the sentiment of your Hum Tum song, ‘Yeh ladkiyan na jaane kyon ladkon jaise nahin hoti’?
That’s just a song. In ‘Yeh ladkiyan’ the girl complains that boys wear smelly socks for two days in a row. But my father is a dapper dresser. He is very particular about wearing colour-coordinated clothes. And no guy in my house wears smelly socks!
As for wondering why boys are the way they are, my take is different from most other girls my age because my interactions with boys have been different. My family is quite conservative — my brother never took me along to party. As a result, even the guys that I know are conservative. I come from a family where I have been told that guys enjoy certain liberties, which women don’t.
Who decided the curfew hour in your house?
My dad. The mother appears to be the villain but it is the father who has got her all worked up in the bedroom about keeping tabs on the daughter.
Did you ever feel like protesting against this protective male gaze, which results in an in-house inequality?
No, I love my parents too much to do so. Besides, I am happy with the way they have brought me up. If my parents hadn’t kept a strict vigil, I might have gone wild. Incidentally, I started working at the age of sixteen-and-a-half so I feel like a boy myself.
Unlike an only child, you have grown up alongside your brother Raja. Has that made it easier for you to relate to and understand boys?
Absolutely. Besides I studied in a co-ed school and for me boys are buddies. I am as close to them as I am to my girlfriends.
When did you become aware that you are different from a boy?
Very early in life. I think it was in the school assembly when they asked the boys to stand in one line and the girls in another.
When did you notice some change in the way boys looked at you?
When I was in the seventh or eighth standard. It was a strange feeling. Guys with whom I had played games and shared my tiffin box were suddenly looking at me in a different way. I thought to myself, ‘What the hell is happening?’
You have self-admittedly come from a conservative family. And yet, you have chosen a profession where a dance director can baldly tell you, ‘Dupatta hata do, disturb kar raha hai.’ One would think it would be difficult to reconcile the two?
True, but fortunately I have been born in a film family. I grew up seeing my dad direct films and I have spent hours in my mausi’s (Debashree Roy’s) make up room in Calcutta studios. Whether it is the heroes or the cameramen, they have always treated me like a daughter.
So when I joined the film industry after Salim uncle gave me my first break, I didn’t ever feel that I was in the midst of strangers. I was always treated as family by all the units thereafter. I have never seen any one give me a sleazy look.
In Yuva your husband Lallan (Abhishek) beats you up. But your character continues to root for him. Can you understand physical abuse?
My father has never raised his hand on my mother. Yes, there have been instances when my brother wanted to strangle me but he stopped himself. My dad had warned him against it. I am a pampered child, a Rani in my house. The women in my house are treated like Lakshmi.
Even if my father accidentally steps on my toe, he mutters ‘Ma’ and does a pranam. Like every girl, I idolise my father. Therefore, the idea of a man beating a woman is something I can’t comprehend, let alone accept.
But, hypothetically speaking, what if your husband was to manhandle you?
It’s unlikely that a man I fall in love with would be a wife beater. Physical abuse is unacceptable to me. But I guess it must be difficult for a woman when there are children involved.
You have been working in films for more than half a decade now. Have you noticed any noticeable changes in the way male directors project women?
Yes. Women characters are once again assuming significance in films.
Karan Johar, Sanjay Bhansali and Yash uncle conceive wonderful women characters. In the ’50s and ’60s, Bimal Roy and Guru Duttji wrote beautiful roles for heroines.
You couldn’t take your eyes off a close-up of Waheedaji, Nargisji, Nutanji or Meenaji. Times are changing again. The Bhansali-shot close-ups of Ash and Madhuri in Devdas were awesome.
What about a male director shooting an unforgettable close-up of Rani?
Aayega na, abhi.
How much have men contributed to your growth as an actress?
I have no qualms about saying that men are really fantastic and I love them… no two ways about that. I have learnt so much from my male directors, and actors like Shah Rukh, Aamir and Govinda.
Did you ever rue the fact that you were born a Rani and not a Raja?
Never. I am happy being Rani. Also, I want my firstborn to be a daughter.
Do you feel more vulnerable because you are a woman?
Yes. I don’t think women ever get a chance to live for themselves.
You don’t think men live for their wives and their children?
Probably after 40. Till 40, men are very naughty. If my dad is loyal to my mom it’s because he got married when he was 40 and my mom 20.
So are you also looking out for somebody who is forty plus?
Definitely. My husband will be so overwhelmed with the idea of a young wife, he won’t be able to peel his eyes off me.
Men tend to attribute their indiscretions to their hormones.
Rubbish. Don’t women have hormones? It’s just that men can’t hold their horses. I also blame the women yaar; they just can’t stop looking good.
Should a woman accept a man with his faults?
No man is picture perfect. Loving is accepting each other with one’s faults.
Is infidelity on the list of forgivable faults?
No. Women (me included) belong to Kali mata’s dynasty. Therefore I will marry only a 40 plus man. Since by then, he will have had his fill of fun, he will be loyal to me for the rest of his life.
May 30, 2004 (Mid-Day.com)
An irrepressible blithe spirit, Rani Mukerji can have you in splits with her witty, pithy answers but she also shows some rare spirit in the Hum vs Tum gender debate. What stays long after the interview is her definitive, unorthodox opinions on men.
Do you share the sentiment of your Hum Tum song, ‘Yeh ladkiyan na jaane kyon ladkon jaise nahin hoti’?
That’s just a song. In ‘Yeh ladkiyan’ the girl complains that boys wear smelly socks for two days in a row. But my father is a dapper dresser. He is very particular about wearing colour-coordinated clothes. And no guy in my house wears smelly socks!
As for wondering why boys are the way they are, my take is different from most other girls my age because my interactions with boys have been different. My family is quite conservative — my brother never took me along to party. As a result, even the guys that I know are conservative. I come from a family where I have been told that guys enjoy certain liberties, which women don’t.
Who decided the curfew hour in your house?
My dad. The mother appears to be the villain but it is the father who has got her all worked up in the bedroom about keeping tabs on the daughter.
Did you ever feel like protesting against this protective male gaze, which results in an in-house inequality?
No, I love my parents too much to do so. Besides, I am happy with the way they have brought me up. If my parents hadn’t kept a strict vigil, I might have gone wild. Incidentally, I started working at the age of sixteen-and-a-half so I feel like a boy myself.
Unlike an only child, you have grown up alongside your brother Raja. Has that made it easier for you to relate to and understand boys?
Absolutely. Besides I studied in a co-ed school and for me boys are buddies. I am as close to them as I am to my girlfriends.
When did you become aware that you are different from a boy?
Very early in life. I think it was in the school assembly when they asked the boys to stand in one line and the girls in another.
When did you notice some change in the way boys looked at you?
When I was in the seventh or eighth standard. It was a strange feeling. Guys with whom I had played games and shared my tiffin box were suddenly looking at me in a different way. I thought to myself, ‘What the hell is happening?’
You have self-admittedly come from a conservative family. And yet, you have chosen a profession where a dance director can baldly tell you, ‘Dupatta hata do, disturb kar raha hai.’ One would think it would be difficult to reconcile the two?
True, but fortunately I have been born in a film family. I grew up seeing my dad direct films and I have spent hours in my mausi’s (Debashree Roy’s) make up room in Calcutta studios. Whether it is the heroes or the cameramen, they have always treated me like a daughter.
So when I joined the film industry after Salim uncle gave me my first break, I didn’t ever feel that I was in the midst of strangers. I was always treated as family by all the units thereafter. I have never seen any one give me a sleazy look.
In Yuva your husband Lallan (Abhishek) beats you up. But your character continues to root for him. Can you understand physical abuse?
My father has never raised his hand on my mother. Yes, there have been instances when my brother wanted to strangle me but he stopped himself. My dad had warned him against it. I am a pampered child, a Rani in my house. The women in my house are treated like Lakshmi.
Even if my father accidentally steps on my toe, he mutters ‘Ma’ and does a pranam. Like every girl, I idolise my father. Therefore, the idea of a man beating a woman is something I can’t comprehend, let alone accept.
But, hypothetically speaking, what if your husband was to manhandle you?
It’s unlikely that a man I fall in love with would be a wife beater. Physical abuse is unacceptable to me. But I guess it must be difficult for a woman when there are children involved.
You have been working in films for more than half a decade now. Have you noticed any noticeable changes in the way male directors project women?
Yes. Women characters are once again assuming significance in films.
Karan Johar, Sanjay Bhansali and Yash uncle conceive wonderful women characters. In the ’50s and ’60s, Bimal Roy and Guru Duttji wrote beautiful roles for heroines.
You couldn’t take your eyes off a close-up of Waheedaji, Nargisji, Nutanji or Meenaji. Times are changing again. The Bhansali-shot close-ups of Ash and Madhuri in Devdas were awesome.
What about a male director shooting an unforgettable close-up of Rani?
Aayega na, abhi.
How much have men contributed to your growth as an actress?
I have no qualms about saying that men are really fantastic and I love them… no two ways about that. I have learnt so much from my male directors, and actors like Shah Rukh, Aamir and Govinda.
Did you ever rue the fact that you were born a Rani and not a Raja?
Never. I am happy being Rani. Also, I want my firstborn to be a daughter.
Do you feel more vulnerable because you are a woman?
Yes. I don’t think women ever get a chance to live for themselves.
You don’t think men live for their wives and their children?
Probably after 40. Till 40, men are very naughty. If my dad is loyal to my mom it’s because he got married when he was 40 and my mom 20.
So are you also looking out for somebody who is forty plus?
Definitely. My husband will be so overwhelmed with the idea of a young wife, he won’t be able to peel his eyes off me.
Men tend to attribute their indiscretions to their hormones.
Rubbish. Don’t women have hormones? It’s just that men can’t hold their horses. I also blame the women yaar; they just can’t stop looking good.
Should a woman accept a man with his faults?
No man is picture perfect. Loving is accepting each other with one’s faults.
Is infidelity on the list of forgivable faults?
No. Women (me included) belong to Kali mata’s dynasty. Therefore I will marry only a 40 plus man. Since by then, he will have had his fill of fun, he will be loyal to me for the rest of his life.