Five reasons why Rani rocks at 28

She’s single, she’s successful and she is sexy. She is also Bollywood’s resident queen. The petite, dreamy-eyed dusky beauty who shot to limelight as the Khandala girl is today one of the most sought-after Bollywood actresses. And, she has proved time and again that she is a talent mine.

As she turns 28 today, we look back at her decade in Bollywood and try to figure out it is that makes the five-feet something actress so popular with everyone from eight to 80?

Voicing Concern

When Rani made her debut, her raspy voice was considered her biggest drawback. After all who would want a good-looking Bollywood heroine to sound like a bhelpuri-wala on Chowpati beach.

Her voice seems to have grated the directors so much that her initial movies were dubbed by other actresses.

Little did the directors realise then that her ‘unusual’ voice would go on to become her USP.

Karan Johar was the first director to use her own voice in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai and it became a rage overnight. Today, Rani’s voice is considered sexy, unconventional and a signature of success.

Motley Mocktail

Rani has successfully managed to stay away from getting caught in stereotypes. She is neither the typical Bollywood babe-item-number sorts, nor has been typecast into the parallel-cinema mode. She can carry off a peppy wannabe character, Babli (Bunty aur Babli), or match Govinda’s jhatka for jhatka in a loud red mini-skirt (Had Kar Di Aapne) with élan.

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She can also as convincingly portray the de-glamorised, deaf-mute-blind Michelle McNally (Black).

She could floor you with her glam diva Tina (Kuch Kuch Hota Hai) image or she can be the coy, girl-next-door Suhaani (Saathiya).

Eyes, Eyes Baby

Rani's melting brown eyes and electric smile have won her as many fans as her "mindblowing, mindblasting, todu-phodu" performances across a wide spectrum of Bollywood films.

In a film like Black, where all she had to communicate were her eyes, she pulled off an absolutely convincing performance. Her dreamy, light eyes speak volumes and have won her many admirers.

Her make-up is carefully done to accentuate her smoky eyes and has become a rage among the young girls who want to Rani-like smoked, sensuous eyes.

Flab to Fab

Rani Mukerji's metamorphosis from the plump starlet to the svelte star would put butterflies to shame.

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There was a time when she was, well, pleasantly plump and was famous for her thunder thighs number Aati Kya Khandala (Ghulam), Kaali Naagin Si (Mann) and Hello Bother (Hello Brother).

However, she was perhaps the only actress who managed to carry her flab with as much panache as no one else. She oozed confidence in her multi-coloured micro-minis and did not come across as vulgar.

However, she shed all the extra flab and donned a slim avatar after Kuch Kuch Hota Hai

Jaya's reflection?

Though it sounds far-fetched, but Rani’s resemblance to the erstwhile Bollywood diva is quite evident. Apart from the Bengali lineage, both managed to carve a niche by essaying roles across a wide spectrum of cinema, without being typecast. Rani’s wannabe, loud Babli is reminiscent of Jaya’s role of a chirpi Chhuri wali in Zanjeer.

Another interesting parallel is Rani's role in Saathiya and Jaya's role in Silsila.

Both films dealt with marital discord, though treated the issue quite differently. Both portrayals were mature and sensitive.

Overall, Rani generally reflects all of Jaya’s traits and mannerisms and can easily be slotted into the gap that Jaya Bachchan had left behind when she quit acting.