Rani Mukerji exclusive: Bollywood superstar on winning Chinese hearts

Published on 14-Apr-2019

Khushboo Razdan

"There are no bad students, but only bad teachers," says the character of Naina Mathur in the Indian comedy-drama Hichki (My Teacher with Hiccups)played by Bollywood superstar Rani Mukerji. The message and the movie got full marks from the Chinese audience in October last year, when it became the only Indian film with a solo female lead to earn over 120 million yuan (17.8 million U.S. dollars) at the Chinese box office.

The emotionally-inspiring movie traced the journey of an aspiring teacher who's suffering from Tourette's syndrome, a neurological disorder that causes involuntary vocalizations. Based on the autobiography of an American teacher Brad Coheh, it showcased how the power of determination can overcome any disability.

Mukerji, in an exclusive interview with CGTN Digital, tells us that she was aware that Indian movies are liked in China, but she did not expect that her film would become such a huge success.

"I obviously did not know that Hichki would release in China. When we started making the film, it was a very sweet film with a great message. It was a film which had a very universal story about teacher-and-student relationship, and of course we knew it was a very special film but where the movie will release and how big it would become, I don't think anyone can ever predict," she said.

"It was a really big surprise because before this there was a film called Dangalwhich had released there and that's a bigger film with a bigger star cast having Aamir Khan in it, and then Hichki going there and doing so well and touching a chord with the Chinese audience was really very special.

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