Nearly 30 years after she initially entered the film industry, actor Rani Mukerji, who received her first-ever National Film Award, prayed on Saturday at Mumbai’s Siddhivinayak Temple. Shree Siddhivinayak Ganapati’s official Instagram page shared pictures from her trip. Rani stood close to the alter in the pictures, her hands folded.
For the cameras behind her, she grinned. Rani was dressed in a blue suit for the visit. A scarlet shawl was wrapped about her. Additionally, the actor’s forehead bore a tilak, or holy mark. According to the caption, Rani paid a visit on Saturday.
Rani’s portrayal of a mother battling to bring her children back home earned her the Best Actress award in Mrs. Chatterjee vs. Norway. The real-life situation of Sagarika Chakraborty, whose children were abducted by the Norwegian authorities in 2011, served as the basis for her role in Mrs. Chatterjee v. Norway.
After receiving the honour, Rani called it a big moment in her long cinema career. “I’m overwhelmed to have won the National Award for my performance in Mrs Chatterjee vs Norway. Incidentally, this is the first-ever National Award in my 30-year career. As an actor, I have been fortunate to have some incredible films in my body of work and have received so much love for them,” she said in her statement.
Rani went on to say that the honor is highly “emotional and personal” for her because the film’s theme is near to her heart and that it signifies more to her than just acknowledgment for a single movie.
She also adds, “I dedicate my National Award to all the incredible mothers of this world. There is nothing like a mother’s love and her ferocity to protect her own. The story of this Indian immigrant mother, who went all out for her child and took on a nation, shook me deeply… a mother’s love for her child is unconditional.”