Queen of hearts

With Rani Mukerji, it is often tempting to use the Queen in her name and slip it into the headline or copy. That would explain this story's heading partially but really, it is also a word that sits well with the actor. By her own admission, she has always received a lot of attention (from the boys) even before she took up acting in movies as a career.

Diminutive in size she may be, but give her a meaty role and she always packs in a punch.

The last time she did that was as the firebrand unapologetic news anchor Meira Gaiety in No One Killed Jessica.

Her new avatar of Meenakshi Deshpande, a Maharashtrian girl from Pune, shimmying and shaking in —Agha bai, Dreamum wakeuppum and the Sawa dollar (lavani song) in the film Aiyyaa is a tad different though. This once Mukerji is essaying a sweet, homely girl with a heightened sense of smell. She falls in love with a South Indian man (Prithviraj as Surya) because she likes the way he smells! Considering Mukerji's spunk, it is no surprise that she brings a certain exuberance to this romantic film with a difference. In a freewheeling chat between movie promotions, she assures it is anything but routine. Excerpts.

Allow us a peek into Meenakshi Deshpande's mind..

Outwardly, Meenakshi is a very sweet, homely soft-spoken girl but in reality she is a contrast. In her dreams she aspires to be someone else. She does not like the fact that her parents dress her up from 6 to 9 to meet boys they want her to marry. She is a romantic at heart, and also a dreamer.

She imagines herself as Madhuri, Sridevi and Juhi. Performing Bollywood dance moves, belly dance and lavani is part of her fantasy.

... contd.

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