Coordinates	33°55′31″N18°25′26″N
name	Shahid Kapoor
yearsactive	2003–present
birth name	Shahid Kapoor
birth date	February 25, 1981
birth place	Delhi, India
occupation	Film actor }}

Shahid Kapoor (; born 25 February 1981) is an Indian actor who appears in Bollywood films. He is also a trained dancer.

Starting off his career by working in music videos and advertisements, Kapoor made his Bollywood debut as a background dancer in Subhash Ghai's ''Taal'' (1999). Four years later, he made his debut as a lead in ''Ishq Vishk'' (2003) and won a Filmfare Best Male Debut Award for his performance. Following through with acclaimed performances in films like ''Fida'' (2004) and ''Shikhar'' (2005), he had his first commercial success with Sooraj R. Barjatya's ''Vivah'' (2006), and followed it up with ''Jab We Met'' (2007) and ''Kaminey'' (2009) which are also his biggest commercial successes so far.

Career

Early career, until 2005

Before starting off his career as an actor, Kapoor worked in several music videos and ads, including the Pepsi commercial with Shahrukh Khan, Kajol and Rani Mukerji post ''Kuch Kuch Hota Hai'' (1998) and the music video ''Aankhon Me Tera Hi Chehra'' by the Aryans along with Hrishitaa Bhatt. While doing so, he decided to join the Shiamak Davar Institute for the Performing Arts (SDIPA), where he was later seen in Subhash Ghai's film ''Taal'' (1999) as a background dancer in the song ''Kahin Aag Lage Lag Jawe'' along with actress Aishwarya Rai and in ''Dil To Pagal Hai'' (1997) of Yash Raj banner with actress Karisma Kapoor.

In 2003, Kapoor played his first leading role as Rajiv Mathur, a carefree young man in Ken Ghosh's moderately successful love story ''Ishq Vishk''. Appearing opposite Amrita Rao and Shenaz Treasurywala, the film was well received by audiences and Kapoor's performance earned him a Filmfare Best Male Debut Award. Film critic Taran Adarsh from ''indiaFM'' wrote, "Shahid Kapoor is an actor to watch. He has all the qualities to hit the top slot. Not only is he good looking, but he is an amazing performer as well. Very original as a performer [sic], the youngster has handled the dramatic and emotional moments with flourish. He is an exceptional dancer as well. All he needs to do is pick and choose his forthcoming assignments with care, so that the journey to the top slot is minus hiccups."

The following year, Kapoor joined once again with director Ken Ghosh in the thriller ''Fida'', where he co-starred alongside Kareena Kapoor and Fardeen Khan. The film failed to do well at the box office, yet Kapoor's performance was praised. ''The Tribune'' concluded, "...Shahid Kapoor shines in his role. He looks fresh. As an impulsive emotional and innocent guy, who is sucked into crime because of these very qualities, he manages to evoke your sympathies." He then appeared in the romantic comedy ''Dil Maange More'' opposite Soha Ali Khan, Tulip Joshi, and Ayesha Takia. His performance opened to mixed reviews; Rediff.com wrote that "Shahid tends to imitate Shahrukh Khan a lot. He does it well in some scenes, overdoes it in others..."

Featuring in three more films in 2005, success continued to elude Kapoor. However, his performance as Jaidev Vardhan, a man who is sucked into the world of money and greed in John M. Matthan's drama ''Shikhar'' was critically acclaimed, earning Kapoor his first Star Screen Award for Best Actor nomination. According to ''IndiaFM'', "Shahid Kapoor is only improving with every film. He matches up to Ajay in almost all sequences."

Breakthrough, 2006–present

In 2006, Kapoor starred in ''36 China Town''. Revolving around the story of seven individuals and a murder, the film became a moderate success despite receiving mixed reviews from critics. Shortly after the release of the film, Kapoor's second release of the year, Priyadarshan's comedy ''Chup Chup Ke'', followed. The film became a moderate success at the box office.

Kapoor's last release of 2006 was Sooraj R. Barjatya's romantic drama ''Vivah'', a film depicting the journey of two individuals from engagement to marriage. Co-starring alongside Amrita Rao, the film was received favourably by most critics and became one of the highest grossing films of the year as well as Kapoor's second biggest commercial success to date. Kapoor's performance earned his second consecutive nomination for ''Best Actor'' at the Star Screen Awards. Taran Adarsh wrote, "Shahid Kapoor performs like never before. If he was super-cool in ''Ishq Vishk'' and showed flashes of brilliance in ''Fida'', you've to watch him in ''Vivah'' to see his growth as a tremendous actor. He is exceptional in emotional sequences."

During the summer of 2006, Kapoor embarked on his first world tour, the ''Rockstars Concert'', along with Bollywood stars, Salman Khan, Kareena Kapoor, John Abraham, Esha Deol, Mallika Sherawat and Zayed Khan.

In 2007, Kapoor appeared in two movies. His first release was Ahmed Khan's ''Fool and Final''. The film received negative reviews and failed to do well at the box office; Kapoor's performance in the film did not receive positive reviews. His next release, Imtiaz Ali's comedy-romance ''Jab We Met'', opposite Kareena Kapoor, became one of the biggest hits of the year. The film tells the story of two people with two very different personalities meeting each other on a train and how they fall in love eventually. Kapoor portrayed the character of Aditya Kashyap, a dejected young industrialist full of angst and despair. The film was well-received by critics and Kapoor's performance earned him several nominations for Best Actor at a number of award ceremonies, including Filmfare. Rajeev Masand from ''CNN-IBN'' noted, "Despite the risk of being overshadowed by Kareena, his co-star in the film, Shahid Kapur leaves an indelible impression with a performance that is understated and mature, and indeed the perfect foil to Kareena's boisterousness."

Kapoor then appeared in the Aziz Mirza-directed film, ''Kismat Konnection'' (2008), opposite Vidya Balan. Upon release, the film under-performed at the box office.

In 2009, Kapoor portrayed the dual role of twins Charlie and Guddu in the caper thriller, ''Kaminey''. Directed by Vishal Bhardwaj, the film was a critical and commercial success and received mostly positive reviews. Kapoor's performance was also critically acclaimed. Rajeev Masand from ''CNN-IBN'' wrote, "Shahid Kapur rises to the challenge of creating two entirely different characters out of Charlie and Guddu, and delivers a credible performance as each. Breaking out of his chocolate-boy image, he gives evidence of his potential when trusted with well-written roles." Later in the year, Kapoor appeared alongside Rani Mukerji in Anurag Singh's romantic comedy ''Dil Bole Hadippa!'', which failed to do well at the Indian box office.

In 2010, Kapoor appeared in Ken Ghosh's film ''Chance Pe Dance'' opposite Genelia D'Souza, in which he portrayed the role of a struggling Bollywood actor. The movie received poor review from critics, but Kapoor's performance was well received. He then starred in Ahmed Khan's ''Paathshala'' alongside Ayesha Takia and Nana Patekar followed by Yash Raj Films' moderately successful ''Badmaash Company''. As of April 2010, Kapoor has completed filming for Satish Kaushik's ''Milenge Milenge'', which released on July 9, 2010.

Personal life

Kapoor was born to actor Pankaj Kapoor and actor/classical dancer Neelima Azeem on 25 February 1981. Kapoor's parents divorced when he was three. After the divorce, he lived with his mother and maternal grandparents in Delhi. He shared a good relationship with his father and stepmother Supriya Pathak. As far as his religious affiliation is concerned, Kapoor has stated in an interview that while his father is a Hindu and his mother is a Muslim, both his parents have taught him that he "should look at all religions without hatred and have compassion for every human being whatever his religion may be," saying that he believes that "there is one God up above."

He studied in Rajhans Vidyalaya, Mumbai. Kapoor is a vegetarian. He has three half siblings: a sister named Sanah and brothers named Ruhaan and Ishaan Khattar; Ishaan acted with him in the movie ''Vaah! Life Ho To Aisi'' (2005). His maternal grandfather was Anwar Azeem, a noted Marxist journalist and author from Bihar. His great great grandfather was the film director, screenwriter, Urdu novelist and journalist Khwaja Ahmad Abbas more popularly known as K. A. Abbas. His mother Neelima is the daughter of Anwar Azeem, one of the greatest Urdu writers. K.A. Abbas in turn was the grandson of Hali, the chief protégé of Urdu poet, Ghalib.

While filming ''Fida'' (2004), Kapoor began dating Kareena Kapoor. They dated for three years and then separated during the filming of ''Jab We Met'' (2007). According to him, they remained on good terms, with him saying, "I wish her all the happiness in the world. I have great respect for her. She is a wonderful girl."

Awards and nominations

Filmography

''Ishq Vishk'' ''Fida'' ''Dil Maange More'' ''Deewane Huye Paagal'' ''Vaah ''Shikhar (film) ''36 China Town'' ''Chup Chup Ke'' ''Vivah'' ''Fool n Final'' ''Jab We Met'' ''Kismat Konnection'' ''Kaminey'' ''Dil Bole Hadippa!'' ''Chance Pe Dance'' ''Paathshaala'' ''Badmaash Company'' ''Milenge Milenge'' ''Mausam (2011 film) ''Teri Meri Kahaani''

Year !! Title !! Role !! Other notes
1999	Taal (film)>Taal ''
2003	|	Rajiv Mathur	Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut
2004	|	Jai Malhotra
2004	|	Nikhil Mathur
2005	|	Karan
2005	Life Ho Toh Aisi!''	Aditya (Adi) Verma
2005	Shikhar'' ||	Jaidev Vardhan (Jai)
2006	|	Raj Malhotra
2006	|	Jeetu Prasad
2006	|	Prem
2007	|	Raja/Rahul
2007	|	Aditya Kashyap	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor
2008	|	Raj Malhotra
2009	|	Charlie/Guddu	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor
2009	|	Rohan Singh
2010	|	Sameer Behl
2010	|	Rahul Prakash Udyavar
2010	|	Karan
2010	|	Amit Singh (Immy)
2011	Mausam'' ||	Harinder Singh (Harry)	Post-production
2012	|	Multi-roles	Filming

See also

List of Indian film actors

References

External links

Kapoors, Shahid Kapoor, Shahid Kapoor, Shahid Kapoor, Shahid Kapoor, Shahid Category:People from Mumbai Kapoor, Shahid Category:Indian vegetarians Category:Mithibai College alumni

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Coordinates	33°55′31″N18°25′26″N
name	Amrita Rao
occupation	Actress / Model
spouse(s)	None
birth date	June 17, 1981
birth place	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
yearsactive	2002–present
website	http://www.amrita-rao.com }}

Amrita Rao (Konkani: अमृता राव, ; born 17 June 1981) is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films.

Beginning her career as a model, Rao made her acting debut with ''Ab Ke Baras'' (2002). She then starred in Ken Ghosh's love-story ''Ishq Vishk'' (2003) and earned a Filmfare nomination in the "Best Female Debut" category.

Personal life

Amrita was born in Mumbai to a Chitrapur Saraswat Brahmin family. She speaks Marathi, Hindi, English and her mother tongue, Konkani. She attended Canossa Convent Girls High school in Mumbai, and later enrolled in Sophia College to pursue a degree in Psychology. Her younger sister, Preetika Rao, is a Model, Journalist-Columnist and a South-Indian film actress.

Career

Modeling

While studying in Sophia College, Amrita auditioned for an advertisement for Fairever Face Cream. Her appearance in Cadbury’s Perk Karwa Chaut ad and the Bru Coffee advertisement helped her receive offers from film directors in Bollywood.

Acting

Amrita made her acting debut with ''Ab Ke Baras'' (2002), and followed that with her (2003) film, ''Ishq Vishk'', in which she portrayed Payal. She became an overnight star after the success that film. She followed this up with films ''Masti'' (2004) and ''Main Hoon Na'', ''Deewaar'' (2004), ''Vaah! Life Ho To Aisi'' (2005), ''Shikhar'' (2005), and ''Pyare Mohan'' (2006). She starred in Sooraj R. Barjatya's Blockbuster ''Vivah'' (2006) opposite Shahid Kapoor.

In 2007 Amrita made her debut in the Telugu film industry with ''Athidhi'' opposite Mahesh Babu. Amrita's releases in 2008 include ''My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves'' and ''Welcome to Sajjanpur''. Amrita's releases in 2009 are ''Victory'', and ''Shortkut''. Amrita's release in 2011 is ''Love U...Mr. Kalakaar!''. Year 2012 will see her comeback with the movie ''Hook Ya Crook''.

Awards and nominations

Filmfare Awards

Nominated

2004: Filmfare Best Female Debut Award for ''Ishq Vishk''

2005: Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for ''Main Hoon Na''

Star Screen Awards

Nominated

2003: Star Screen Award Most Promising Newcomer - Female for ''Ab Ke Baras''

2004: Star Screen Award Most Promising Newcomer - Female for ''Ishq Vishk''

2007: Star Screen Award Best Actress for ''Vivah'' 2007: Star Screen Award Jodi No. 1 along with Shahid Kapoor - ''Vivah''

Zee Cine Awards

Nominated

2004: Zee Cine Award Best Female Debut for ''Ishq Vishk''

International Indian Film Academy Awards

Winner

2004: IIFA Awards, Best Female Debut for ''Ishq Vishk''

Stardust Awards

Winner

2004: Stardust Superstar of Tomorrow - Female for ''Ishq Vishk''

2009: Stardust Searchlight Best Actress Award for ''Welcome to Sajjanpur''

Other awards won

2004: Sansui Awards, ''Best Debut - Female'' for ''Ishq Vishk''

2007: GR8 Women Awards, ''Young Achiever''

2007: Anandalok Puroshkar Awards, ''Most Promising New Talent'' for ''Vivah''

2007: Sports World Awards, ''Jodi of the Year'' along with Shahid Kapoor for ''Vivah''

2007: Dadasaheb Phalke Academy Award for ''Vivah''

Filmography

''Ishq Vishk'' ''Masti'' ''Vaah ''Pyare Mohan'' ''Heyy Babyy'' ''My Name Is Anthony Gonsalves (film) ''Victory (film) ''Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai'' ''Love U...Mr. Kalakaar!''

Year !! Title !! Role !! Notes
rowspan="2"	2002	''Ab Ke Baras''	Anjali Thapar/Nandini
''The Legend of Bhagat Singh''	Mannewali
2003	|	Payal Mehra	Nominated, Filmfare Best Female Debut Award
rowspan="3"	2004	|	Aanchal Mehta
''Main Hoon Na''	Sanjana (Sanju) Bakshi
''Deewaar (2004 film)	Deewaar''	Radhika
rowspan="2"	2005	Life Ho To Aisi''	Priya
''Shikhar (film)	Shikhar''	Madhvi
rowspan="2"	2006	|	Piya
''Vivah''	Poonam
rowspan="2"	2007	|	Special appearance in song "Heyy Babyy"
''Athidhi''
rowspan="3"	2008	My Name is Anthony Gonsalves'' ||	Riya
''Shaurya''	Neerja Rathode
''Welcome to Sajjanpur''	Kamla
rowspan="3"	2009	Victory'' ||	Nandini
''Short Kut: The Con is On	Mansi
''Life Partner (film)	Life Partner''	Anjali Kumar
rowspan="1"	2010	|	Tara's sister	Special appearance
rowspan="1"	2011	|	Ritu

References

External links

Category:1981 births Category:Indian film actors Category:Indian female models Category:Indian vegetarians Category:Living people Category:Telugu actors Category:Indian actors Category:Hindi film actors Category:Indian Hindus Category:Mangaloreans Category:Konkani people

ar:أمريتا راو bn:অমৃতা রাও de:Amrita Rao fr:Amrita Rao gu:અમૃતા રાવ hi:अमृता राव ml:അമൃത റാവു mr:अमृता राव pl:Amrita Rao fi:Amrita Rao ta:அம்ரிதா ராவ்

Coordinates	33°55′31″N18°25′26″N
name	Tokio Hotel
background	group_or_band
origin	Magdeburg, Germany
years active	2001–present
genre	Alternative rock, electronic rock, pop rock, teen pop emo, pop punk (early)
label	Universal Music GermanyCherrytree, Interscope (US)
website	www.tokiohotel.com
current members	Bill KaulitzTom Kaulitz Georg ListingGustav Schäfer
past members	}}

Tokio Hotel is a pop rock band from Germany, founded in 2001 by singer Bill Kaulitz, guitarist Tom Kaulitz, drummer Gustav Schäfer and bassist Georg Listing. The quartet have scored four number one singles and have released three number one albums in their native country, selling nearly 5 million CDs and DVDs there. After recording an unreleased demo-CD under the name "Devilish" and having their contract with Sony BMG Germany terminated, the band released their first German-language album, ''Schrei'', as Tokio Hotel on Universal Music Germany in 2005. ''Schrei'' sold more than half a million copies worldwide and spawned four top five singles in both Germany and Austria. In 2007, the band released their second German album ''Zimmer 483'' and their first English album ''Scream'' which have combined album sales of over one million copies worldwide and helped win the band their first MTV Europe Music Award for Best InterAct. The former, ''Zimmer 483'', spawned three top five singles in Germany while the latter, ''Scream'', spawned two singles that reached the top twenty in new territories such as France, Portugal, Spain and Italy. In September 2008, they won in the US their first MTV Video Music Award (VMA) for Best New Artist. In October 2008, they won four awards including Best International Artist and Song of the year at Los Premios MTV Latinoamérica (MTV Video Music Awards Latin America) held in Mexico. Tokio Hotel became the first German band ever to win an award at the MTV VMAs and also at the MTV Latin America Awards. They also picked up the Headliner award at the MTV Europe Music Awards 2008 held in Liverpool on November 6, 2008 and the Award for Best Group on November 5, 2009 at the MTV Europe Music Award (EMA) held in Berlin. They won an Award for Best World Stage Performance on November 7, 2010 at the MTV Europe Music Awards in Madrid. In July 2011, they became the first German band to win an MTV Video Music Awards Japan (VMAJ).

History

Founding

Tokio Hotel by vocalist Bill Kaulitz and guitarist Tom Kaulitz, who are identical twin brothers, drummer Gustav Schäfer and bass-guitarist Georg Listing. The four met in 2001 after a live show in a Magdeburg-Club, where Listing and Schäfer, who knew each other from music school, watched from the audience while Bill and Tom Kaulitz played on the stage. Under the name Devilish, the band soon began playing in talent shows and small concerts. After Bill Kaulitz's participation in a children's Star Search in 2003 at age thirteen (which he lost in the quarter-final), he was discovered by music producer Peter Hoffmann. Devilish changed their name to Tokio Hotel: "Tokio", the German spelling of the Japanese city Tokyo, due to a love of the city, and "Hotel" due to their constant touring and living in hotels. In 2006, a third and fourth single, "Rette mich" ("Rescue Me") and "Der letzte Tag" ("The Final Day"), were released; both reached #1 as well. "Der letzte Tag" contained a B-side called "Wir schließen uns ein", which was also accompanied by a music video.

''Zimmer 483''

The first single off their second album ''Zimmer 483'' (''Room 483''), called "Übers Ende der Welt" (later re-released in English under the name "Ready, Set, Go!"), was released on January 26, 2007 and quickly reached #1 in Germany and Austria, and #2 in France. ''Zimmer 483'' was released in Germany on February 23, 2007, along with a deluxe edition of the album containing a DVD. The album's second single, "Spring nicht" ("Don't Jump") was released on April 7. The tour accompanying the release of the album, The Zimmer 483 Tour, was scheduled to start in March 2007, but was delayed by two weeks because the band members wished to have a different stage design. A third single, "An deiner Seite (Ich bin da)" ("By Your Side"), was released on November 16. The single contains the B-side "1000 Meere" ("1000 Oceans"), for which a music video was also produced. On April 28, 2008 Tokio Hotel released their single "Heilig" but no music video for the single was released, because of the tight schedule they had.

''Scream''

Tokio Hotel's first English language album, ''Scream'', was released on June 4, 2007 throughout Europe. In Germany, the album was released as ''Room 483'' in order to emphasize the continuity with their last German album ''Zimmer 483''. ''Scream'' contains English versions of a selection of songs from their German-language albums ''Scream'' and ''Zimmer 483''. "Monsoon", the English-language version of "Durch den Monsun", was the first single from the album. "Ready, Set, Go!" (the translation of "Übers Ende der Welt") was released as the album's second single and "Don't Jump" (the translation of "Spring nicht") as the third single. A video for "Scream", the English-language version of their 2005 hit "Schrei", was also recorded, and was released to the iTunes Store in early March 2008.

Tokio Hotel gave their first concert in the United Kingdom on June 19, 2007. "Ready, Set, Go!" was released in the UK as the band's first single on August 27, 2007. The song reached #77 in the UK Singles Chart.

Tokio Hotel won an MTV Europe Music Award for Best InterAct on November 1, 2007 and were also nominated for Best Band. They performed "Monsoon" at the event.

Tokio Hotel released their first US single, simply called "Tokio Hotel", in late 2007. The single contains the tracks "Scream" and "Ready, Set, Go!", and was available exclusively at Hot Topic stores. Their second US single, "Scream America", was released on December 11, 2007. The single contains the track "Scream" and a remix of "Ready, Set, Go!" by AFI's Jade Puget. In February 2008, the band toured North America for five dates starting in Canada and finishing up in New York. After appearing and performing live on MuchMusic, while touring in Canada, "Ready, Set, Go!" entered the MuchOnDemand Daily 10, a countdown of videos chosen by viewers. It remained there for over a week, then returned to the top of the MOD Daily 10 chart on April 8. "Scream" was released in Canada on March 25 and in the US on May. 6

1000 Hotels Tour

The "1000 Hotels" European Tour began on March 3, 2008 in Brussels and continued to locations including The Netherlands, Luxembourg, France, Spain, Portugal, Italy, and Scandinavia, and was scheduled to finish on April 9; during the concert in Marseille, France on March 14, Bill started to experience vocal problems. He let the audience sing more frequently than normal and instead of the original 21 songs that were on the set list, they only played 16 songs. Bill apologized, in German, for his bad singing and explained that he was sick. Two days later, the band canceled Lisbon, Portugal concert minutes before it was supposed to commence. The rest of the "1000 Hotels" Tour and a scheduled North American Tour were cancelled following an announcement in Bild by the band's manager that Bill Kaulitz had to undergo surgery to remove a cyst on his vocal cords.

Bill Kaulitz had been putting strain on his voice after playing 43 concerts in the 1000 Hotels tour without vacation. He had to undergo Larynx surgery on March 30 to remove a cyst that had formed on his vocal cords. The cyst was the result of a throat infection that went untreated. Following his surgery, Bill was unable to speak for twelve days, and had four weeks of vocal rehabilitation. If Bill had continued singing the rest of the tour, his voice would have eventually been permanently damaged. Tokio Hotel started performing again in May 2008 and after that they embarked on a 2nd part of their 1000 Hotels European Tour adding many Open Air concerts and wrapping up the tour on July 13 in Werchter, Belgium.

North American Tours and ''Humanoid''

Tokio Hotel embarked on a second tour of North America in August 2008, which included a performance at the Bamboozled festival in New Jersey. The band's music video for "Ready Set Go!" was nominated for Best Pop Video at the 2008 MTV Video Music Awards, where they also won the award for Best New Artist. They returned to North America again in October 2008 for a month long tour of concerts and record store signings. In December 2008, a behind-the scenes DVD called ''Tokio Hotel TV – Caught on Camera'' was released. It contains footage from Tokio Hotel TV and backstage feature stories of the previous year on disc one entitled "History – The very best of Tokio Hotel TV!". A deluxe edition contains a second disc entitled "Future – The road to the new Album!" which features footage of the band on promotion tours and preparing for their third studio album.

In between the North American tours, the band returned to their record studio in Hamburg to record their third studio album, ''Humanoid'', which, according to their producer David Jost, is currently set for release on October 2 in Germany & October 6, 2009 in the U.S. This is despite earlier statements predicting a March/April 2009 release or a May/June 2009 release. The album was recorded in both German and English with both versions were released simultaneously worldwide. Nevertheless, the video for the single was released on September 3.

On November 2, it was announced on Tom's Blog that the second English single would be "World Behind My Wall" and its German counterpart, "Lass uns laufen", would be the second German single. The music videos for both versions were released on December 14 and December 15.

On June 24, the live music video for their single, "Dark Side of the Sun" was released on the band website.

On July 20, 2010 they released their second live album Humanoid City Live from Milan, Italy On November 22, 2010, their new song "Hurricanes and Suns," premiered on the Greek radio station Mad Radio. It was included in the bonus track on all versions of "Tokio Hotel: Best Of," a compilation album of their most successful songs. As well as the single for the 'Best of' release. The album will also include "Mädchen aus dem All", the first song the band recorded in a studio.

On December 14, 2010 their 'Best of' was released. December 2 was the World Premiere of the video for "Hurricanes and Suns" on their Official Website. On April 28, 2011 they received the "Fan Army FTW" award at the MTV O Music Awards, the networks first online award show. A clip of Bill and Tom thanking their fans was played after the winner was announced.

Asian performances

Tokio Hotel performed their first concert in Asia (excluding their concert in Israel) at the Audi Showcase in Singapore, followed shortly by the TM Connects With Tokio Hotel event in Malaysia, promoting the sales of their album Humanoid. They concluded the series of mini-concerts with Taiwan. They returned to Malaysia a couple of months later to perform at MTV World Stage Live in Malaysia 2010. They performed in Tokyo on December 15, 2010, after their South American Tour concluded in Distrito Federal, Mexico on December 2, 2010. In February, 2011 Tokio Hotel travelled to Japan to complete a second promo tour. A number of TV appearances and media interviews took place between February 8 and February 11.

On June 24, 2011 Tokio Hotel performed in Japan at “The Next Premium Night Tokio Hotel in Tokyo". The event was presented by Audi A1 and 150 fans were chosen to win tickets to attend the show. The event was the bands first acoustic performance in Japan. On June 25, 2011 the band performed live at the MTV Video Music Aid Japan in Tokyo. The show, which was formerly called the Video Music Awards Japan, was used as a music benefit to raise money for the Japanese Red Cross in order to help those who were affected by the recent earthquake.

Modeling and commercials

On January 19, 2010, lead singer Bill Kaulitz teamed up with twins Dean and Dan Caten of DSquared to walk the runway at a fashion event in Milan. Kaulitz made two appearances, as he opened and closed DSquared's Menswear Autumn/Winter 2010 show to Tokio Hotel song "Screamin".

Car maker Audi hired the two frontmen to star in their new advertising campaign to attract the younger generation. They were featured in an episode of Tokio Hotel TV (on Tokio Hotel's website) and also in a commercial.

On August 4, 2010, Tom Kaulitz got his own Reebok shoe commercial. Reebok signed the 20-year-old Tokio Hotel guitarist and sneaker addict to model shoes for the company. "At home, I created a little room like a little storage room," he said of his sneakers. He also said that he gets 10 new pairs a week. That's 520 sneakers a year.

Band members

Bill Kaulitz

Bill Kaulitz was born on September 1, 1989, in Leipzig ten minutes after his identical twin brother, Tom.

Tom Kaulitz

Tom Kaulitz (born 1 September 1989 in Leipzig, German Democratic Republic) is a German guitarist singer, songwriter and model from Tokio Hotel. He is the twin brother of Bill Kaulitz, and Tom was born 10 minutes before Bill.

Early life

Tom Kaulitz was born 1 September 1989 in Leipzig. His parents, Simone and Jörg Kaulitz, separated when Kaulitz and his brother were seven years old.His mother began dating Gordon Trumper, and married him in August 2009. Tom's guitar playing and his brother's singing showed their natural aptitude for music, and gave an early indication of their possibility of fame. Trumper helped the twins to start their own band. He and Bill began writing music at the age of seven years old. Due to their great desire to create a band, his twin brother Bill entered and became renowned on the reality TV talent show "Star Search." They met Georg Listing (then 14) and Gustav Schäfer (then 13), in the audience of one of their shows. Listing and Schäfer were friends and after the show, having liked what they heard and saw, made an offer to join. The band was promptly re-named "Devilish" due to an article published at the time that referred to their "devilishly great"[citation needed] sound. This continued until 2005 when Jost arranged a meeting between the band and Universal Music Group's Interscope Records and Tokio Hotel was signed. They began working immediately, releasing their debut LP Schrei ("Scream") later that year. Their first single from the album Schrei was "Durch den Monsun" ("Through The Monsoon"), which reached #1 in Germany within a month of its release. He then continued his dream with 3 members of the group.

Stalking incident

More trouble came for Kaulitz when in late 2008/early 2009 several female stalkers pursued the band relentlessly, even following his twin brother Bill Kaulitz to his parents' home in Germany and attacked the twins' mother. The issue seemed to end after Tom allegedly hit one of the stalkers at a gas station in April 2009 and drove off. However, a recent article in Bild stated that the issue had resurfaced and that Tom Kaulitz may stand trial for assault. In late December 2009, the charges against Tom were lifted and he is pressing charges himself — against the girl he allegedly hit — on grounds of stalking.

Personal life

Tom Kaulitz and his identical twin brother, Bill, used to live in Hamburg but have recently moved to Los Angeles in response to an incident involving stalkers and a robbery. They have also stated that it is easier for them to work on their new album, as it is closer to their manager David Jost. They are currently living in Los Angeles but also have a second home in Hamburg. Tom and Bill, have modeled for a PETA.de photoshoot. He models for Reebok for sneakers and shoes. Tom is friends with Nicole Scherzinger. Tom prefers to listen to hip-hop music. His favorite rapper is Samy Deluxe. As of September 2007, Tom uses Gibson guitars and Mesa/Boogie Rectifier Heads with Mesa Boogie Rectifier 4x12 cabinets. Tom currently has his hair in cornrows, which he had done in early 2009. Tom had allegedly been dating Chantelle Paige after the stalker incident, but later it was said that they had been going out to better publicise Tom and his band, as well as Chantelle’s band, Flipsyde. In an interview with her, Chantelle had said : "I think Tom is quite nice, actually he is my dream boy. But my friends have warned me about him".

Georg Listing

Georg (Moritz Hagen) Listing was born on March 31, 1987. His hometown is Halle. He began playing bass when he was thirteen years old, He has said that his playing style was heavily influenced by Flea of Red Hot Chili Peppers, and other musical influences include Die Ärzte and Oasis.

Awards

Since the release of the "Durch den Monsun" single in 2005, Tokio Hotel have gone on to win 102 awards in various categories and countries.

;2005

! Category	!Award	! Date
Best Newcomer	Comet Awards (Germany)	October 6
Super Comet	Comet Awards (Germany)	October 6
Best Newcomer	Eins Live Krone	November 24
Best Pop National Act	Bambi Awards	December 1
Best Single	Golden Penguin (Austria)	...2005
Best Pop	Golden Penguin (Austria)	...2005
Rock Band 2005	Golden Penguin (Austria)	...2005

;2006

! Category	! Award	! Date
Album of the year	Golden Penguin (Austria)	February 8
Band of the year	Golden Penguin (Austria)	February 8
Song of the year – ‘Der Letzte Tag’	Golden Penguin (Austria)	February 8
Best Newcomer	Golden Penguin (Austria)	February 8
Ausverkaufte Tourhalle	Sold-out-Award of Königpilsener Arena	March 11
Best Newcomer		March 12
Best Newcomer	Steiger Awards	March 25
Pop National	Radio Regenbogen (Germany)	March 31
SuperBand Rock – Golden Otto	Bravo Otto	May 6
Music Award	Bild OSGAR	May 22
Best Newcomer International	Popcorn Awards (Hungary)	May 26
Best Newcomer	Bravo Otto (Hungary)	June 24
Best International Band	Bravo Otto (Hungary)	June 24
Best Newcomer Band	Popkomm Bavarian Music Lion	September 21
Best German Pop Band	Goldene Stimmgabel	September 24
Best Selling German Artist	World Music Awards	November 15
Best Pop National Act	Bambi Awards	November 30
Best Live Act	Eins Live Krone	December 7
Best Rock band	MTV France

;2007

! Category	! Award	! Date
Single of the Year – Durch Den Monsun	Golden Penguin
Best Selling German Act – Album Schrei	European Border Breakers Award	January 21
European Border Breakers Award	NRJ Awards	January 21
Rock Award	BZ-Kulturpreis	January 23
Best Video National	ECHO Awards (Germany)	March 25
SuperBand Rock – Golden otto	Bravo Otto	April 28
Best Video	Comet Awards (Germany)	May 3
Best Band	Comet Awards (Germany)	May 3
Supercomet	Comet Awards (Germany)	May 3
Best Band	Jabra Music	July 2007
Digital prize	Festivalbar (Italy)	September 7
Most Successful Group Rock International	Goldene Stimmgabel	September 22
Most Successful Popgroup International	Goldene Stimmgabel Awards	October 3
Best Album	TMF Awards (Belgium)	October 14
Best Video	TMF Awards (Belgium)	October 14
Best New Artist	TMF Awards (Belgium)	October 14
Best Pop	TMF Awards (Belgium)	October 14
Best International Act	MTV Europe Music Awards (Germany)	November 1
Best band of the Year	MTV Italy Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award	December 1

;2008

! Category	! Award	! Date
Band of the Year 2007	Golden Penguin (Austria)	January
Best International Band	Rockbjörnen Award (Sweden)	January 24
Best Music National	Goldene Kamera (Germany)	February 6
Best Music Video	Echo Awards (Germany)	February 15
Best International Artist	Emma Gala Awards (Finland)	March 8
Best International Group	Disney Channel Kids Award (Italy)	March 28
Best Concert	Hitkrant (Netherlands)	May 2008
Best Mood Song – Monsoon	Hitkrant (Netherlands)	May 2008
Song that Satys in your Head – Monsoon	Hitkrant (Netherlands)	May 2008
Superband Rock – Silver Otto	Bravo Otto	May 3
Best Band	MTV TRL Awards (Italy)	May 17
Best Number 1 of the Year with Monsoon	MTV TRL Awards (Italy)	May 17
Best Band	Comet Awards (Germany)	May 23
Best Video – An Deiner Seite	Comet Awards (Germany)	May 23
Best Live Act	Comet Awards (Germany)	May 23
Super Comet	Comet Awards (Germany)	May 23
Best New Artist	MTV VMA Music Awards (USA)	September 7
Fan Choice Best Entrance	MTV VMA Music Awards (USA)	September 7
Best Male Artist International (Bill Kaulitz)	TMF Awards (Belgium)	October 11
Best Video International – Don't Jump	TMF Awards	MTV Europe Music Awards (Germany)	November 5
Best International Rock Band	Telehit Awards (Mexico)	November 12

;2010

! Category	!Award	! Date
Band of the Year	Golden Penguin (Austria)	January 29
Album of the Year	Golden Penguin (Austria)	January 29
Band of the Year	Bravoora Awards (Poland)	February 1
Best International Artist	Emma Gala Awards (Finland)	February 4
Walk of Fame	König-Pilsener Arena (Germany)	February 26
Best International Band	Radio Regenbogen Awards (Germany)	March 19
Favorite Music Star	Kids Choice Awards 2010 (Germany)	April 10
Best Live Act	Comet Awards (Germany)	May 21
Foreign Song of the Year - World Behind My Wall	Rockbjörnen Award (Sweden)	September 1
Concert of the Year	Rockbjörnen Award (Sweden)	September 1
Best World Stage Performance	MTV Europe Music Awards (Spain)	November 7
Best Band National	CMA Awards (Germany)	December 12
Best Single National - World Behind My Wall	CMA Awards (Germany)	December 12

;2011

! Category	!Award	! Date
Band of the Year	Bravoora Awards (Poland)	March
Star of the 20th Anniversary		March
Best Fan Army (Fan Army FTW)	MTV O Music Awards (USA)	April 28
Best Rock Video	MTV Video Music Awards Japan	July 2

References

External links

Official site

Official Youtube channel

Interscope records profile

Tokio Hotel on MTV

Category:German musical groups Category:German rock music groups Category:German pop music groups Category:German-language singers Category:English-language singers Category:People from Leipzig Category:Musical groups established in 2001 Category:Pop rock groups

af:Tokio Hotel als:Tokio Hotel ar:توكيو هوتيل az:Tokio Hotel bs:Tokio Hotel br:Tokio Hotel bg:Токио Хотел ca:Tokio Hotel cs:Tokio Hotel da:Tokio Hotel de:Tokio Hotel et:Tokio Hotel el:Tokio Hotel es:Tokio Hotel eo:Tokio Hotel eu:Tokio Hotel fa:توکیو هتل fr:Tokio Hotel fy:Tokio Hotel gl:Tokio Hotel ko:토쿄 호텔 hr:Tokio Hotel it:Tokio Hotel he:טוקיו הוטל ka:ტოკიო ჰოტელი lv:Tokio Hotel lt:Tokio Hotel li:Tokio Hotel hu:Tokio Hotel mk:Токио хотел ms:Tokio Hotel mn:Токио Хотел nl:Tokio Hotel nds-nl:Tokio Hotel ja:トキオ・ホテル no:Tokio Hotel nn:Tokio Hotel mhr:Tokio Hotel uz:Tokio Hotel pl:Tokio Hotel pt:Tokio Hotel ro:Tokio Hotel ru:Tokio Hotel simple:Tokio Hotel sk:Tokio Hotel sl:Tokio Hotel sr:Tokio Hotel sh:Tokio Hotel fi:Tokio Hotel sv:Tokio Hotel th:โทคิโอโฮเทล tr:Tokio Hotel uk:Tokio Hotel vi:Tokio Hotel vls:Tokio Hotel zh:東京飯店酷兒

Coordinates	33°55′31″N18°25′26″N
name	Kailash Kher
background	solo_singer
born	July 07, 1973Meerut, India
instrument	Vocalist
genre	Indie, Bollywood playback singing
occupation	Singer, Songwriter
years active	2003–present
website	kailashkher.com }}

Kailash Kher () (born 7 July 1973) is a Kashmiri Indian pop-Rock singer with very diverse music style often influenced by Indian folk music.

Career

After struggling in business, he took a shot at singing. After moving to Mumbai, the track ''Rabba Ishq Na Hove'' from the movie Andaaz was well received. In 2002, his song ''Allah ke Bande'' from relatively obscure movie Waisa Bhi Hota Hai Part II, made him a household name.

The band Kailasa includes Mumbai musician-brothers Naresh and Paresh Kamath who were earlier associated with Bombay Black.

Kher has a uniquely soulful, raw, high-pitched voice. He sang a number of the songs in the Bollywood film Mangal Pandey: The Rising, in which he also had a cameo appearance. His other Bollywood appearances include the movie Corporate in the song 'O Sikander'.

His song Teri Deewani from the album of the same name by his band Kailasa and especially the song Ya Rabba from the movie Salaam-e-Ishq has become a record-seller.

His recent venture into the Kannada film industry has proved a huge success. Special mention has to be made to his song "Hale patre" from the movie "Junglee" has proved a huge hit among the audience.

In 2007, he participated in a concert tour in North America entitled "The Incredibles", also starring Asha Bhosle, Sonu Nigam and Kunal Ganjawala.

In March 2011, he performed at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., as part of the Maximum India festival.

He was a judge on the singing talent contest, Indian Idol on Sony TV.

A R Rahman says

He is also a judge on the show "Kurkure Desi Beats Rock On with MTV", where he judges the "Desipann Quotient" of contestants. Nowadays he is engaged as one of the judge with singer Sukhvinder singh and Hard kaur,in the reality show "IPL Rockstar",a show especially made for IPL 2010, airing live from the stadiums,hosting IPL matches, on colors channel.

Recently he has recorded a song 'Sangini' for a reality show.

He is known to be a Sufi singer as well, his style is quite influenced by Sufism and the voice is very earthy and raw.

He composed the song "Ambar Tak Naara Gunjega" for Anna Hazare anti corruption movement and sung it in Ramlila Maidan during Anna Hazare protest.

Personal life

*

Discography

Jackie (ಜಾಕಿ), Ekka Raja Rani, nanna kaiyolage (ಎಕ್ಕ ರಾಜ ರಾಣಿ ನನ್ನ ಕೈಯೊಳಗೆ, ಹಿಡಿ ಮಣ್ಣು ನಿನ್ನ ಬಾಯೊಳಗೆ..)(Kannada)-2010

Krishnan Love Story (ಕೃಷ್ಣನ್ ಲವ್ ಸ್ಟೋರಿ), Mosa maadalende neenu bandeyaa..(ಮೋಸ ಮಾಡಲೆಂದೇ ನೀನು ಬಂದೆಯಾ..)(Kannada)-2010

Naanu Nanna Kanasu , Ondu Maamara(Kannada) 2010

Paathshala , aye khuda (Hindi) 2010

Love Sex aur Dhokha,Tu Gandi & Tainu TV Per Wekhya, Love Sex aur Dhokha (Hindi) 2010

Kaise Hai Ye Udaasi , Karthik Calling Karthik (Hindi) 2010

Phas Gaye Re Obama (Hindi) 2010

''Tauba Tauba'', Live From Stern Grove Festival: 2009 (English) 2010

''Salvadore'', Couples Retreat (English) 2009

Tiruboki, Rajani(kannada) 2009

Fatak, Kaminey (Hindi) 2009

O Nanna Olave ,Parichaya (Kannada) 2009

Chinnamma Kalyanam, Aakashamantha (Telugu) 2009

Okanoka Vurilo, Aakashamantha (Telugu) 2009

Kammukunna Chikatlona, Arundhati (Telugu)2009

Hale Patre Hale Kabbuna, Junglee (Kannada)2009

Tu Jaane Na (Unplugged), Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani (Hindi)2009

''Arziyan'', Delhi-6 (Hindi)2009

Chandni Chowk to China (Hindi)2009

Abhiyum Naanum (Tamil) (2008)

Chnada kane chanda, Chanda (kannada) 2007

Jana O Jana, Sajni(Kannada) 2007

Preethi yake bhoomi medilidhe (Kannada)(2007)

Parugu (Telugu) (2008)

Dhaam Dhoom (Tamil) (2008)

Kathanayakudu (2008)(Telugu)

Kuselan (Tamil) (2008)

Bheema (Tamil) (2008)

Ososi Raakasi (2007)(Telugu)

Salaam-e-Ishq (2007)

Bal Ganesha (2007)

Aaja Nachle (2007)

Dhaan (2007)

Humne Jeena Seekh Liya (2007)

Manorama Six Feet Under (2007)

Delhi Heights (2007)

1971 (2007)

Traffic Signal (2007)

Chirutha (2007)(Telugu)

Munna (2007)

Bombay Times (2\\

With Luv... Tumhaara (2006)

Keerthi Chakra (Malayalam) (2006)

Krishna (film) (2006)

Khosla Ka Ghosla (2006)

Veyyil (Tamil) (2006)

Sajni(Kannada)(2006)

Naksha (2006)

Aap Ki Khatir (2006)

Alag (2006)

Fanaa (2006)

Zinda (2006)

Majaa (2005)

Anjaan (2005)

Dosti (2005)

Ek Ajnabee (2005)

Kyon Ki (2005)

Hanuman (2005)

Chocolate (2005)

Barsaat (2005)

''Mangal Pandey: The Rising'' (2005)

Sarkar (2005)

Silsiilay (2005)

Kaal (2005)

Waqt: The Race Against Time (2005)

Tango Charlie (2005)

Classic (2005)

Kisna (2005)

Vaada (2005)

Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyo (2004)

Swades (2004)

Deewaar (2004)

Dev (2004)

Khakee (2004)

Kilichundan Mambazham (Malayalam)(2003)

Andaaz (2003)

As an actor

Corporate (2006)... Special Appearance In O Sikander Song

Mangal Pandey - The Rising (2005)... Sufi Singer

Waisa Bhi Hota Hai Part-2... Singer on the beach

Lyricist

Chandni Chowk To China (2009)

Dasvidaniya (2008)

Traffic Signal (2007)

Kaal (2005)

As music director

Chandni Chowk To China (2009)

Dasvidaniya (2008)

Sacred Evil - A True Story (2006)

Sangini-Perfect Bride (2009)

shakeela

darling

fool and final

good boy bad boy

dhol

aladin

Dil Bole Hadippa

vaah life ho to aisi

aa dekhen zara

Kurukshetra

Oye lucky lucky oye

Private music video

''Chaandan Mein''

Jhoomo Re (2006) - with "Saiyyan" receiving critical acclaim as his best song ever

''Kailasa''

See also

Kailasa (band)

References

External links

''Rediff'' interview with Kailash Kher

''indiafm'''s Kailash Kher filmography

Category:1973 births Category:Living people Category:Indian film singers Category:Indian male singers Category:Kashmiri people Category:People from Meerut Category:Sufi music

de:Kailash Kher fr:Kailash Kher kn:ಕೈಲಾಶ್ ಖೇರ್ ta:கைலாசு கேர் te:కైలాష్ ఖేర్

Coordinates	33°55′31″N18°25′26″N
name	Rani Mukerji
birth name	Rani Mukherjee
birth date	March 21, 1978
birth place	Mumbai, Maharashtra, India
years active	1997–present
occupation	Film actress
other names	Rani Mukherji Rani Mukerjee }}

Rani Mukerji (; born Rani Mukherjee on 21 March 1978) is an Indian film actress who works in Hindi movies.

Making her acting debut with ''Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat'' (1997), Mukerji had her first commercial success with Karan Johar's romance ''Kuch Kuch Hota Hai'' (1998), her biggest commercial success so far, and won a Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award for her performance in the film. She later starred in several films, most of which fared below expectations, but in 2002 she re-invented her image with the critically acclaimed drama ''Saathiya'', for which she received numerous awards and nominations.

In 2004, her performances in the hit ''Hum Tum'' and the critically acclaimed ''Yuva'' earned her the Best Actress and the Best Supporting Actress awards at the 50th Filmfare Awards, making her the first actress to win two major awards in the same year. She later received unanimous praise for her portrayal of a blind, deaf and mute woman in ''Black'' (2005), for which she garnered numerous major awards. Mukerji has since established herself as a leading actress of Hindi cinema.

Early life and background

Mukerji comes from a film-oriented family of Bengali origin. Her father Ram Mukherjee is a retired director and one of the founders of Filmalaya Studios while her mother Krishna was a playback singer. Her brother Raja Mukherjee is a film producer, now turned director. Her maternal aunt, Debashree Roy, is a national award-winning Bengali film actress and her cousin, Kajol, is a popular Bollywood actress and another cousin, Ayan Mukerji is the writer and director of ''Wake Up Sid''.

Mukerji is a trained Odissi dancer, and began learning the dance in the tenth grade. Mukerji studied at ''Maneckji Cooper High School'' in Juhu, and later enrolled at Mithibai College in Mumbai.

Acting career

Prior work and breakthrough, 1997-2002

After doing a short cameo appearance for the first time in her father's Bengali film ''Biyer Phool'' (1992), Mukerji made her acting debut five years later, as the protagonist of ''Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat'' (1997). Her performance as a rape victim in the film was well received, but the film failed to do well commercially. Nevertheless, she received a Special Jury recognition at the Star Screen Awards. However, when the film failed at the box office, she returned to college to complete her education.

Mukerji had a successful comeback in 1998 with ''Ghulam'', opposite Aamir Khan; the film did well at the box office. The song ''Aati Kya Khandala'' made Mukerji popular among the masses, earning her the nickname of ''Khandala Girl''. Karan Johar's directorial debut, ''Kuch Kuch Hota Hai'', co-starring Shahrukh Khan and Kajol, followed for her that year. The movie was a blockbuster, and she received her first Filmfare Award in the ''Best Supporting Actress'' category.

She followed her career by signing on several projects. Unfortunately, most of them did not do well at the box office. Although ''Badal'' was one of the highest grossing films of 2000, she still did not succeed to establish her status in the industry at that point of time. Among other films of that period, Kamal Haasan's ''Hey Ram'' was a critical success.

In 2001, Mukerji starred in Abbas Mustan's romantic drama ''Chori Chori Chupke Chupke'', co-starring Salman Khan and Preity Zinta. The film was released after a one-year delay, and was one of the first Bollywood movies to handle the issue of surrogate childbirth. Mukerji's role was that of Priya Malhotra, a woman who is unable to conceive after a miscarriage, thus hires a surrogate mother. Rediff.com wrote, "Rani Mukherji is handicapped with a role that doesn't give her much scope besides weeping and sobbing. To her credit, she manages to hold her own even while playing a stereotypical sacrificing ''bhartiya nari''."

In 2002, Mukerji played the lead role in Kunal Kohli's romance ''Mujhse Dosti Karoge!'', co-starring alongside Hrithik Roshan and Kareena Kapoor. Although the movie did not do well in India, it generated great business overseas, and marked her entry into India's biggest production house: Yash Raj Films. Later that year, Mukerji starred in Shaad Ali's critically acclaimed ''Saathiya'' opposite Vivek Oberoi. Essaying the role of Suhani Sharma, a medical student who deals with the tensions and discontent of being married at a young age, she won a Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance, and among several other nominations, received her first Best Actress nomination at the Filmfare. Manish Gajjar from ''BBC'' noted, "...Rani Mukerjee...plays the character of a middle class girl with great conviction."

Success, 2003-06

Mukerji's first 2003 release was Aziz Mirza's drama ''Chalte Chalte'' opposite Shahrukh Khan. The film saw her play a similar role to that of ''Saathiya'', and she received her second nomination for Filmfare Best Actress Award. Among another three releases that year, Mukerji starred in ''Chori Chori'', where she portrayed her first comic role. Although the film did not do well at the box office, Mukerji's comic timing was praised.

In 2004, her performance as a Bengali housewife in Mani Ratnam's ''Yuva'' won Mukerji her second Filmfare Best Supporting Actress Award. Though the film failed to do well, her performance was critically acclaimed with one critic writing, "the role demanded an actress of substance and Rani more than lives up to the expectations". She followed through by playing the leading role in the romantic comedy ''Hum Tum'', which became one of the biggest hits of the year. The film, based on the 1989 film ''When Harry Met Sally...'', was directed by Kunal Kohli. Mukerji's portrayal of Rhea Sharma, a woman of today's generation, won her several awards, including her first Filmfare Best Actress Award. ''BBC''wrote about her performance," Rani is fast becoming one of the more dependable and versatile actresses of her generation."

Her last release of the year was Yash Chopra's love saga ''Veer-Zaara'', co-starring alongside Shahrukh Khan and Preity Zinta. The film, which emerged as the top grossing movie of the year in India and abroad, tells the love story of an Indian officer, Veer Pratap Singh, played by Khan, and a Pakistani woman, Zaara, played by Zinta. Mukerji played the supporting role of Saamiya Siddiqui, a Pakistani lawyer who takes it upon herself to find the truth about Veer Pratap Singh.

In 2005, Mukerji starred in four high-profile films: Sanjay Leela Bhansali's ''Black'', Shaad Ali's ''Bunty Aur Babli'', Amol Palekar's ''Paheli'' and Ketan Mehta's ''The Rising''. She was primarily noted for her performance in ''Black''. When Bhansali first came to Mukerji with the offer, she turned it down and stated that she was not confident enough to play a deaf-blind girl. Once the director put faith in her, she agreed to do it and intensely studied sign language with professionals at the ''Helen Keller Institute'' in Mumbai. Mukerji received much critical acclaim for her performance and collected numerous trophies in the category of ''Best Actress'' at various award ceremonies. ''IndiaFM'' noted, "There's no denying that Rani delivers her best performance to date. With no dialogues in her lap, the actress conveys through expressions solely and what a terrific impact she makes. Here's a performance that should act as a reference guide for all aspiring actors". Her next release, ''Bunty Aur Babli'', surfaced as one of the biggest hits of the year. The film, though successful at the box office, opened to mixed reviews, and so did Mukerji's performance, with one critic writing, "Rani has done a great job most of the time, though she does tend to go a little over the top in the crying scenes. Nevertheless, Mukerji received ''Best Actress'' nominations from the IIFA Awards and Filmfare Awards.

Mukerji was offered the lead role in Mira Nair's Hollywood film, ''The Namesake'' (2007) but owing to clashing dates with ''Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna'', she could not commit to the project. Her first release in 2006 was Karan Johar's drama ''Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna'', which consisted of a multi-starrer that included Amitabh Bachchan, Shahrukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Preity Zinta and Kirron Kher. The film opened to mixed reviews but emerged as the most successful movie ever overseas. The film tells the story of two unhappily married couples in New York, which results in an extramarital affair. Mukerji played the role of Maya Talwar, a woman layered with self-doubt and question about the relationship between her and her husband, played by Abhishek Bachchan; her performance was well received. Rajeev Masand from ''CNN-IBN'' concluded, "Rani looks a million bucks and she dives under the skin of her character to make that part one that we will remember for a long time." She received several nominations for ''Best Actress'', and won her third IIFA Best Actress Award for the third consecutive year. Mukerji's next release was B.R. Chopra's ''Baabul''. The movie did not do well at the box office in India, though proved to be a hit overseas. Her role as a widow met with mixed reviews.

Recent work, 2007-present

Mukerji's first 2007 release, ''Ta Ra Rum Pum'', where she played a pianist turned housewife and a mother for the first time on celluloid, was a semi hit. Her performance was generally well received, with one critic noting, "Rani enacts the role of the mother/wife proficiently." Her last two releases of the year, Pradeep Sarkar's drama ''Laaga Chunari Mein Daag'' where she played the role of a woman who is forced to take up prostitution due to family problems and Sanjay Leela Bhansali's ''Saawariya'' where she again essayed the role of a prostitute, were critical and commercial failures in India.

Mukerji's role in Kunal Kohli's ''Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic'', which released on 27 June 2008, received positive reviews from critics; however, the film failed to do well at the box office. Her following release, ''Dil Bole Hadippa'' (2009) was selected to be screened at the Toronto International Film Festival. The project under-performed at the box office and Mukerji's portrayal of a feisty Punjabi village girl who dreams of playing first class cricket was generally well-received by critics. She next starred in UTV Motion Pictures' ''No One Killed Jessica'' (2011), a film based on the Jessica Lal murder case. Upon release, Mukerji's acting received mixed reviews. Anupama Chopra of ''NDTV'' wrote, "For me, the fatal, false note in ''No One Killed Jessica'' is Meera, the fictionalised tough-talking reporter played by Rani Mukherjee. The character is written superficially and Rani’s portrayal of her is equally banal. It’s all about externals. She argues a lot and proudly labels herself a bitch but her hair stays perfectly in place and in the end, she even gets to do a super-hero-like slow motion walk."

Personal life

Mukerji changed the English transliteration of her surname from Mukherjee to Mukerji several years ago. At the time, it was reported that she did this for numerological reasons. In 2006, Mukerji stated that numerology was not a concern; her name had been put down as Mukerji on her passport, and she wanted to be consistent.

Mukerji has three homes in Mumbai, including her childhood home. She bought a bungalow in Juhu for herself and her parents in mid-2005. The house went through a two year renovation with the interiors done by Twinkle Khanna and Sussanne Roshan.

Controversies

In June 2005, Mukerji was widely criticized following the publication of an interview with British newspaper ''Desi Xpress''. Mukerji was asked to name her idol and she replied, "Adolf Hitler". However, in an interview with ''Times Now'' a year later, she denied ever mentioning Hitler's name.

In November 2006, Mukerji was shooting for the film ''Laaga Chunari Mein Daag'' in Varanasi when avid fans crowded the set. Security personnel beat the crowd back. A media storm followed as various groups insisted that Mukerji should have stopped the security guards. Mukerji later issued an apology.

Other work

In March 2004, Mukerji visited the sandy dunes of Rajasthan to boost the morale of the jawans. It was for a show where entertainers and stars visit Indian troops in far-flung regions to encourage them along with the NDTV team.

In February 2005, Mukerji performed at the ''HELP! Telethon Concert'' to help raise money for the victims of Tsunami in company with other Bollywood stars.

She was highly involved in the ''Temptations 2005'' show in New Delhi. The actress helped to raise funds for the National Centre For Promotional of Employment for Disabled People (NCPEDP), a leading disabled rights' group.

Mukerji donated her prize money, her half-share of 50 lakh rupees from her 2007 appearance on ''Kaun Banega Crorepati'' with Preity Zinta, to the Holy Family Hospital. She said that this institution looks after children with heart problems.

Mukerji is a stage performer and has participated in two world tours. Her first world tour was in the year 1999 with Aamir Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Akshaye Khanna and Twinkle Khanna. It was called the ''Magnificent Five''. Five years later, ''Temptations 2004'' came along. It was the most successful Bollywood concert in its time. Mukerji performed alongside Shahrukh Khan, Saif Ali Khan, Preity Zinta, Arjun Rampal and Priyanka Chopra in nineteen stage shows across the globe.

In 2005, Mukerji was a guest of honour at a state dinner to greet General Pervez Musharraf in company of the Indian prime minister Manmohan Singh. Mukerji was the only Bollywood actress on the elite guest list.

She appeared along with various other Bollywood actors at the Closing Ceremony of the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne, as part of a performance showcasing Indian culture, on behalf of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.

In the media

Rani Mukerji occupied the top slot of Filmfare's 'Top Ten Bollywood Actresses' list for two years in a row (2004–2005). She was also placed number one on Rediff's 'Top Bollywood Female Stars' Rankings for three consecutive years (2004–2006), while in 2007, she was ranked at number five. In February 2006, ''Filmfare Magazine'' placed her eighth amongst the "Ten Most Powerful Names of Bollywood", an achievement she repeated from the previous year, where she was ranked at number ten, the only woman on the list. In 2007, she was ranked at number five. On Women's International Day 2007, Mukerji came in fourth position on the ''All-Time Best Bollywood Actresses Ever'' listing.

She was placed at number #36 by UK magazine ''Eastern Eye'' as one of "Asia's Sexiest Women" (Sept/2006). Mukerji is frequently featured in various lists by Rediff.com, among them, ''Bollywood's Most Beautiful Actresses'', ''Bollywood's Best Dressed Women'' and ''Women of Many Faces''.

Mukerji has made four appearances in Karan Johar's talk show ''Koffee with Karan''. She appeared with Kareena Kapoor, Shahrukh Khan and Kajol, Madhuri Dixit as a surprise guest and with Vidya Balan promoting their film ''No One Killed Jessica'' (2011) Rani made her entry in to the small screen with the dance reality show ''Dance Premier League'' in 2009.

Filmography

{|class="wikitable" style="font-size: 90%;" border="2" cellpadding="4" background: #f9f9f9; |- align="center" ! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Year ! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Film ! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Role ! style="background:#B0C4DE;" | Other notes |- | 1997 || ''Raja Ki Aayegi Baraat'' || Mala || |- | 1998 || ''Ghulam'' || Alisha || |- | 1998 || ''Kuch Kuch Hota Hai'' || Tina Malhotra || Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |- | 1998 || ''Mehndi'' || Pooja || |- | 1999 || ''Mann'' || || Special appearance in the song ''Kaali Naagin Ke'' |- | 1999 || ''Hello Brother'' || Rani || |- | 2000 || ''Badal'' || Rani || |- | 2000 || ''Hey Ram'' || Aparna Ram || |- | 2000 || ''Hadh Kar Di Aapne'' || Anjali Khanna || |- | 2000 || ''Bichhoo'' || Kiran Bali || |- | 2000 || ''Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega'' || Pooja Oberoi || Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |- | 2000 || ''Kahin Pyaar Na Ho Jaaye'' || Priya Sharma || |- | 2001 || ''Chori Chori Chupke Chupke'' || Priya Malhotra || |- | 2001 || ''Bas Itna Sa Khwaab Hai'' || Pooja Shrivastav || |- | 2001 || ''Nayak: The Real Hero'' || Manjari || |- | 2001 || ''Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham...'' || Naina Kapoor/Cameo || |- | 2002 || ''Pyaar Diwana Hota Hai'' || Payal Khuranna || |- | 2002 || ''Mujhse Dosti Karoge!'' || Pooja Sahani || |- | 2002 || ''Saathiya'' || Dr. Suhani Sharma/Sehgal || Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actress |- | 2002 || ''Chalo Ishq Ladaaye'' || Sapna || |- | 2003 || ''Chalte Chalte'' || Priya Chopra || Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actress |- | 2003 || ''Chori Chori'' || Khushi Malhotra || |- | 2003 || ''Calcutta Mail'' || Reema/Bulbul || |- | 2003 || ''Kal Ho Naa Ho'' || || Special appearance in the song ''Mahi Ve'' |- | 2003 || ''LOC Kargil'' || Hema || |- | 2004 || ''Yuva'' || Sashi Biswas || Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |- | 2004 || ''Hum Tum'' || Rhea Prakash || Filmfare Award for Best Actress |- | 2004 || ''Veer-Zaara'' || Saamiya Siddiqui || Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |- | 2005 || ''Black'' || Michelle McNally || Filmfare Award for Best Actress Filmfare Critics Award for Best Performance |- | 2005 || ''Bunty Aur Babli'' || Vimmi Saluja (Babli) || Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actress |- | 2005 || ''Paheli'' || Lachchi Bhanwarlal || |- | 2005 || ''Mangal Pandey: The Rising'' || Heera || |- | 2006 || ''Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna'' || Maya Talwar || Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actress |- | 2006 || ''Baabul'' || Malvika "Milli" Talwar/Kapoor || |- | 2007 || ''Ta Ra Rum Pum'' || Radhika Shekar Rai Banerjee (Shona) || |- | 2007 || ''Laaga Chunari Mein Daag'' || Vibhavari Sahay (Badki)/ Natasha || Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actress |- | 2007 || ''Saawariya'' || Gulabji || Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actress |- | 2007 || ''Om Shanti Om'' || Herself || Special appearance in the song ''Deewangi Deewangi'' |- | 2008 || ''Thoda Pyaar Thoda Magic'' || Geeta || |- | 2008 || ''Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi'' || Herself || Special appearance in the song ''Phir Milenge Chalte Chalte'' |- | 2009 || ''Luck by Chance'' || Herself || |- | 2009 || ''Dil Bole Hadippa!'' || Veera Kaur/Veer Pratap Singh || |- | 2011 || ''No One Killed Jessica'' || Meera Gaity || |- | 2012 || ''Reema Kagti's Untitled Project'' || || Filming |- | 2012 || ''Koochie Koochie Hota Hain'' || Tina || Post-production |}

See also

List of Indian film actresses

List of Bengali actresses

References

External links

Category:1978 births Category:Indian actors Category:Indian film actors Category:Bengali actors Category:Bengali people Category:Living people Category:People from Kolkata Category:Filmfare Awards winners Category:Indian Hindus Category:Hindi film actors Category:Mithibai College alumni

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