Actress Rani Mukherji on Tuesday launched a commemorative stamp in honour of the late filmmaker Yash Chopra in the presence of Australian prime minister Anthony Albanese at the Australian parliament to celebrate 50 years of Yash Raj Films (YRF) ahead of the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.
“Australian PM Anthony Albanese & #RaniMukerji launch the commemorative Yash Chopra stamp at the Australian Parliament House, honouring the legacy of the iconic film-maker & the founder of Yash Raj Films. The event was also attended by Karan Johar and Tim Watts, the Assistant Minister for Foreign Affairs, Australia. This milestone moment was initiated by the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne that is celebrating its 15th year,” the official Instagram page of YRF wrote alongside pictures from the event.
The pictures show Rani, dressed in a white sari with golden motifs, holding the stamp with PM Anthony Albanese in the Australian parliament. Filmmaker Karan Johar and Australian assistant minister for foreign affairs Tim Watts were also present at the launch.
Karan and Rani addressed the Australian parliament on Tuesday about the power of cinema to bring people together regardless of geographical distances. The development comes on the heels of a recently inked co-production treaty between India and Australia.
The special stamp is a tribute to Yash Chopra’s contributions to Indian cinema and his efforts to promote Hindi films outside of the country. Rani, who is the veteran filmmaker’s daughter-in-law, represented the production house at the film festival.
Albanese also shared a picture with Rani and Karan from the launch on Instagram. “Rani Mukerji and @karanjohar are in Canberra promoting the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne. It’s one of the largest Indian film festivals outside of India, and it’s been running for 15 years. A testament to Australia’s relationship with India and the vibrancy of the Indian-Australian community,” he wrote.
Tim Watts said that Karan introduced him at the event “as being worthy of starring in Indian cinema” and that Rani endorsed the idea that he might “have the face for it”. Sharing a picture featuring Karan and Rani, Watts wrote, “It was a thrill to introduce two icons of Indian filmmaking, Karan Johar and Rani Mukerji, to the Prime Minister at Parliament House today as part of the 15th Indian Film Festival of Melbourne.”
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998) marks Karan and Rani’s first collaboration which also starred Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol. The Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani director shared a picture with Rani from the event on his Instagram story and quoted Shah Rukh’s dialogue from the 1998 film with a twist — “Kuch kuch hota hai, Tina! Tum zaroor samjhogi.”
The Indian Film Festival of Melbourne (IFFM) will take place in Melbourne from August 15 to 25. Shah Rukh Khan’s Jawan and Dunki have been nominated in the best film category at IFFM. Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s 12th Fail, Imtiaz Ali’s Amar Singh Chamkila, Kabir Khan’s Chandu Champion, Nithilan Swaminathan’s Maharaja, Girish A. D.’s Premalu and Karan Johar’s Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani will also compete for the best film award.
