 | This articleneeds additional citations forverification. Please helpimprove this article byadding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Mukherjee-Samarth family" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(November 2013) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
TheMukherjee-Samarth family is aBengali-Marathi Hindu family that has been involved in the Hindi film industry since the 1930s, Shobhana Samarth having first acted in a film in 1935. The Mukherjee family was connected to the Samarth family byTanuja's marriage toShomu Mukherjee in 1973.[1]
TheMukherjee side of the family is aBengali HinduKulin Brahmin family which was originally headed bySashadhar Mukherjee's father Haripada Mukherjee, a lawyer hailing from the present-day state ofWest Bengal, who established a successful practice in the city ofJhansi. Sashadhar, who went on to become one of the pioneers of Indian cinema and the founder of Filmalaya studios, was Haripada's second son.[2] Sashadhar would later go on to marryAshok Kumar's sister Satirani Ganguly.
Their five sons, Rono Mukherjee,Joy Mukherjee,Deb Mukherjee,Shomu Mukherjee and Shubir Mukherjee followed him into the industry. Rono was the director and composer of a single movie. He is the father of actorsSharbani Mukherjee andSamrat Mukherjee. Joy and Deb were both actors. Deb's son is directorAyan Mukerji and daughter Sunita is married to directorAshutosh Gowariker. Shomu became a director and producer, and is the father of actressesKajol andTanishaa. Shubir is also a producer.
Sashadhar's elder brother was Ravindramohan Mukherjee, a renowned magistrate in Jhansi. He had 3 sons and 5 daughters. His eldest son Lalit Kishore Mukherjee (d. October 1991) was married to Monica Mukherjee (d. July 27, 2009) and had 5 children (3 sons and 2 daughters) - Surjoe Mukerji, Gauri Chakravarty, Bina Chatterjee, Shakti Mukerji and Satyajit Mukerji. Ravindramohan's second son,Shyam Mukherjee, worked as a film editor, and remained a bachelor till his death in 2015.
Ravindramohan's youngest son,Ram Mukherjee, was a film director and one of the founders of Filmalaya Studios. He died on 22 October 2017. He had two children with his wife Krishna Mukerji, the actressRani Mukerji,[3] and Raja Mukerji, who is a producer.[4]
Sashadhar's younger brother, Prabodh Mukherjee, was a film producer. He died on 3 May 2008, leaving behind his wife Parul Rani Mukherjee, and their sons Tapan and Basudeb. Both sons work in the film distribution business.
Sashadhar's other younger brother,Subodh Mukherjee, was a director. He died on 21 May 2005. He is survived by his wife Kamala, sons Subhash and Sanjay and daughter Gitanjali. None of Subodh's children, unlike their cousins, are involved in show business.
Filmalaya Studios is currently owned and managed by the surviving Mukerji brothers.
The Samarth family is a MarathiChandraseniya Kayastha Prabhu (CKP) family. Their legacy in films began withRattan Bai, who acted primarily in Hindi cinema. Her daughterShobhna Samarth (1916–2000), was an actress and appeared in the filmRam Rajya (1943 ) as Sita. Later she acted in supporting role in films likeLove in Simla (1960), which also featured Joy Mukherjee. Shobhna's husband was the film directorKumarsen Samarth. Her cousin,Nalini Jaywant, was also an actress.
Shobhna's daughters are Chatura,Tanuja andNutan. Tanuja and Nutan became actresses in Hindi films. Tanuja was a moderate success, but it was Nutan (1936–1991) who became a huge star. She is tied for the record for the mostFilmfareBest Actress awards won with her nieceKajol.
Tanuja and Nutan's children have also entered the film industry; they are the fourth generation of Samarths to do so. Nutan's sonMohnish Bahl is an actor and his daughterPranutan Bahl is an actress; Tanuja and Shomu's daughtersKajol andTanishaa are also actresses.[5]
The daughter of actressTanuja Samarth and filmmakerShomu Mukherjee, Kajol is one of the most popular actresses inHindi cinema. She has won six Filmfare awards among them five for Best Actress and one for Best Villain. She was the first woman to win theFilmfare best villain award. She has numerous blockbusters and hits to her name such asBaazigar (1993),Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995),Gupt: The Hidden Truth (1997),Ishq (1997),Pyaar To Hona Hi Tha (1998),Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998),Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham (2001) andFanaa (2006). Her films withShah Rukh Khan have been huge hits.
Kajol is married to actorAjay Devgn; the couple has a daughter, Nysa, and a son, Yug. For a few years, she focused on her marriage and motherhood, sidelining films. Her comeback filmFanaa (2006) withAamir Khan was hugely successful as was her 2010 releaseMy Name is Khan. She has also acted in her husband's directorial debutU Me Aur Hum (2008).
Her younger sisterTanishaa, auntNutan, grandmotherShobhna, great-grandmotherRattan Bai and cousinsSharbani, Mohnish and Rani are also actors inHindi cinema, while another cousin, Ayan, is a director, and grandfather,Kumarsen, was a poet.
Ajay Devgan (born:Vishal Veeru Devgan on 2 April 1969[6]) isKajol's husband, and also an Indian actor, director, and producer, who has established himself as one of the leading actors ofHindi cinema.[7][8][9] Devgan has won numerous awards in his career, including twoNational Film Awards. He is the son of the late director and action choreographerVeeru Devgan.
Rani Mukerji is also one of the most popular actresses inHindi cinema. She is the daughter of filmmakerRam Mukherjee and playback singer Krishna Mukherjee. Her brother is producer Raja Mukherjee.[10] She worked with Kajol in the 1998 hitKuch Kuch Hota Hai and the 2001 blockbusterKabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. Rani has been nominated for and won various awards. She won eight Filmfare awards - two for Best Actress, three for Best Actress (Critics) and three for Best Actress in Supporting Role. She is the first and only actress to receive Best Actress and Best Actress in Supporting Role awards in the same year (50th Filmfare Awards) as well as Best Actress and Best Actress (Critics) in the same year (51st Filmfare Awards). As an actress, she won the highest number of Filmfare Awards. She is best known for her performance in 2005 cult classicBlack for which she won several awards. She has several blockbusters to her credit such asGhulam (1998),Saathiya (2002),Chalte Chalte (2003),Hum Tum (2004),Veer-Zaara (2004),Bunty Aur Babli (2005)Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna (2006) andNo One Killed Jessica (2011). Rani is married to film director, producer, screenwriter and distributorAditya Chopra. Her comeback women centric filmsMardaani (2014),Hichki (2018) andMardaani 2 (2019) were also successful.
Aditya Chopra is an Indian film director and producer, and the CEO of theYash Raj Films. He is the son of director and producerYash Chopra and comes from theChopra-Johar family. He marriedRani Mukerji in 2014. He is the director ofDilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge,Mohabbatein andRab Ne Bana Di Jodi for which he won numerous awards including Filmfare Awards and National Awards. Chopra's cousinsKaran Johar andVidhu Vinod Chopra are also notable members of his family.
Mohnish Bahl is an Indian actor working in theIndian film industry and onIndian television. He is a member of the Mukherjee-Samarth family. His parents were actressNutan and Rajnish Bahl, a lieutenant commander in theIndian Navy. He is the grandson of actressShobhna and poetKumarsen, great-grandson of actressRattan Bai, nephew of actressTanuja and cousin of actressesKajol andTanishaa. A frequent collaborator ofSooraj Barjatya, Bahl has appeared in Barjatya's blockbustersMaine Pyar Kiya (1989),Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994),Hum Saath-Saath Hain (1999), andVivah (2006).
Ayan Mukerji (Bengali:অয়ন মুখার্জি), born inKolkata,West Bengal, is an Indian film director. He is the son of actorDeb Mukherjee and made his directorial debut withKaran Johar producedWake Up Sid (2009), and won theFilmfare Award for Best Debut Director. He directed his next film, the highly successfulYeh Jawaani Hai Deewani in 2013. His most ambitious filmBrahmāstra: Part One - Shiva released on 9 September 2022.
Ashutosh Gowariker is anIndian film director, actor, writer and producer, known for films such asLagaan (2001),Swades (2004) andJodhaa Akbar (2008) among others. He is married to Sunita,Deb Mukherjee's daughter from his first marriage.[11][12]
Pranutan Bahl is an Indian actress and daughter of actorsMohnish Bahl andEkta Sohini. She is known for films includingNotebook (2019) andHelmet (2021).[13]