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<\/picture><\/div>\nBy making decisions on her own terms, Renuka Shahane created a distinct identity from theatre to films, TV, and direction.<\/span><\/p>\n We all know and love Renuka Shahane as the graceful Pooja from Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!<\/em> or the smiling face of Surabhi<\/em>. But there is so much more to her! Her journey took her from psychology classrooms and theatre stages to director’s chairs and movie sets. Renuka didn’t just wait for opportunities\u2014she created them. Her journey goes far beyond one blockbuster film or a popular television show. From studying psychology and discovering theatre to becoming an actress, television host, and director, Renuka has built her career largely on her own terms.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Even after achieving popularity, she never treated stardom as her ultimate goal. Instead, she chose projects that offered her something new to learn. This meant turning down several film offers and choosing television when the roles offered on the small screen were more challenging. Her career reflects a simple philosophy: good work matters more than fame.<\/p>\n Psychology student who found her calling in theatre<\/strong><\/p>\n Born in Mumbai on 7 October 1966, Renuka grew up in a family surrounded by literature, art and culture. Her father, Vijay Kumar Shahane, served as an officer in the Indian Navy, while her mother, Shanta Gokhale, is a noted writer, theatre personality and film critic. Her brother, Girish Shahane, is also a writer and art critic.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Renuka initially studied psychology at St Xavier\u2019s College and had no plans to become an actress. During her second year, she became involved with the college production of Andher Nagari<\/em>. She was initially part of the music group and worked on background vocals, but the experience exposed her to the entire process of taking a script to the stage.<\/p>\n That experience changed her perspective. She realised that she wanted to be associated with theatre, even though acting was not yet a career plan. Slowly, theatre became a passion.<\/p>\n Satyadev Dubey\u2019s question changed everything<\/strong><\/p>\n Renuka\u2019s mother\u2019s close friend, veteran theatre director Satyadev Dubey, often visited their home. He had repeatedly asked Renuka whether she would consider acting, but she initially declined because she wanted to concentrate on her studies.<\/p>\n After her experience with Andher Nagari<\/em>, however, her answer changed. When Dubey asked her again, she agreed. She subsequently attended workshops with him and became associated with the Marathi experimental theatre group Antarnatya.<\/p>\n Her training went far beyond acting. She learnt about set design, costumes, make-up and lighting, gaining an understanding of almost every aspect of theatre production. This experience would later shape the way she approached acting and direction.<\/p>\n \u2018Circus\u2019 made acting a profession<\/strong><\/p>\n Renuka made her television debut with PC Aur Mausi<\/em> and later appeared in Circus<\/em>, the show starring Shah Rukh Khan. The series became an important turning point in her life.<\/p>\n At the time, Renuka had completed her MA in Clinical Psychology and was considering pursuing a PhD. However, Circus<\/em> director Aziz Mirza encouraged her to take acting seriously. He made her realise that something she had initially considered a passion could become a profession.<\/p>\n Renuka eventually chose acting over the academic path she had imagined for herself.<\/p>\n \u2018Surabhi\u2019 made her a household name<\/strong><\/p>\n After Circus<\/em>, Renuka became associated with Surabhi<\/em>, the popular programme hosted with Siddharth Kak. Her natural screen presence, short hair, sarees and understated personality connected strongly with viewers across the country.<\/p>\n The success of Surabhi<\/em> transformed her into a familiar face. Yet Renuka did not allow popularity to define the kind of work she wanted to do. She continued to believe that acting should allow her to explore different characters and learn something new.<\/p>\n A warning before \u2018Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!\u2019 came true<\/strong><\/p>\n In 1994, Renuka played Pooja in Sooraj Barjatya\u2019s Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!<\/em>. She portrayed Madhuri Dixit\u2019s elder sister and Salman Khan\u2019s sister-in-law, becoming one of the film\u2019s most remembered characters.<\/p>\n Interestingly, before she accepted the role, Rajkumar Barjatya had warned her that playing a sister-in-law could lead to the industry repeatedly offering her similar characters. Renuka accepted the part anyway because she was more interested in playing a good character than in establishing herself as a conventional heroine.<\/p>\n The film became a massive success, but the warning soon became a reality.<\/p>\n Success brought offers, but not enough variety<\/strong><\/p>\n Following Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!<\/em>, Renuka received numerous film offers. However, many of them involved similar characters \u2014 the hero\u2019s sister, sister-in-law or the stereotypical \u2018good Indian woman\u2019.<\/p>\n Rather than accepting films simply because they were commercially attractive, she chose to step back when she felt the roles were not allowing her to grow as an actress. Television, meanwhile, offered her more varied and challenging characters.<\/p>\n For Renuka, appearing in a film was never an achievement in itself. The role mattered more than the size of the project.<\/p>\n A television role that surprised viewers<\/strong><\/p>\n Renuka went on to work in shows including Sailaab<\/em>, Junoon<\/em>, Ghutan<\/em>, 9 Malabar Hill<\/em> and Kora Kagaz<\/em>. These projects allowed her to move away from the image created by Pooja in Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!<\/em><\/p>\n In Sailaab<\/em>, she played a woman involved in an extramarital relationship \u2014 a character very different from the cultured and traditional image audiences associated with her.<\/p>\n The role surprised viewers, with many telling her that they had never expected to see her in such a character. For Renuka, however, this was precisely the point. She wanted to demonstrate that the actress behind the popular image was capable of portraying a wide range of emotions and personalities.<\/p>\n She considers herself fortunate rather than a struggler<\/strong><\/p>\n Renuka has also spoken differently about the idea of struggle in her career. She believes she was fortunate because she was born in Mumbai and had a supportive family and a secure home.<\/p>\n If she failed to get a role or returned from an unsuccessful audition, she still had a roof over her head and a family to return to. That financial and emotional security gave her the freedom to reject work she did not believe in.<\/p>\n She has often suggested that this privilege allowed her to make choices based on interest rather than financial desperation. As a result, she does not view her career simply through the conventional lens of struggle and success.<\/p>\n A difficult casting couch experience<\/strong><\/p>\n Renuka has also spoken openly about an uncomfortable experience from the early years of her career. In a 2025 interview with Zoom, she recalled how a married producer once visited her home and offered her a professional opportunity as the brand ambassador for a saree company.<\/p>\n The conversation, however, took an inappropriate turn. According to Renuka, the producer offered her a monthly payment in exchange for staying with him. Renuka and her mother were shocked by the proposal, and she firmly rejected it.<\/p>\n She later acknowledged that refusing an influential person could carry professional consequences in the industry. An actor could potentially lose work or be excluded from projects after saying no. Despite knowing the possible cost, Renuka chose not to compromise on her boundaries.<\/p>\n Her personal life also shaped her perspective<\/strong><\/p>\n Renuka\u2019s personal life has had its share of challenges. Her first marriage was to Marathi theatre writer and director Vijay Kenkre, but the relationship ended in divorce.<\/p>\n She had already experienced the impact of separation as a child. Her parents separated when she was eight, and she has recalled how some people even discouraged their children from playing with her because she came from a \u2018broken family\u2019.<\/p>\n These experiences influenced her understanding of relationships and family, themes that would later appear in her creative work.<\/p>\n Finding love again with Ashutosh Rana<\/strong><\/p>\n Renuka later found love with actor Ashutosh Rana. The two dated for around three years before getting married on 25 May 2001. Their relationship brought together two performers with very different screen images.<\/p>\n Renuka was known for her graceful and relatable roles, while Ashutosh had established himself through powerful and often intense characters. The couple have two sons, Shauryaman and Satyendra.<\/p>\n Although they have rarely worked together on screen, their personal partnership has remained an important part of Renuka\u2019s life.<\/p>\n From actress to director<\/strong><\/p>\n Renuka\u2019s creative ambitions eventually took her behind the camera. She worked as an assistant director on Lifeline<\/em> before making her directorial debut with the Marathi film Rita<\/em>, based on her mother Shanta Gokhale\u2019s novel Rita Welingkar<\/em>.<\/p>\n In 2021, she directed the Hindi film Tribhanga<\/em>, starring Kajol, Tanvi Azmi and Mithila Palkar. The film explored complicated mother-daughter relationships, family conflicts, ambition and emotional estrangement \u2014 subjects that had personal resonance for Renuka.<\/p>\n More recently, she directed her husband Ashutosh Rana in the short film Tarpan<\/em>, bringing another dimension to her long creative journey.<\/p>\n \u2018I have received a lot\u2019: Renuka\u2019s idea of success<\/strong><\/p>\n Looking back at her career, Renuka does not appear to measure success through awards, fame or milestones. She has said that she never stood in front of a mirror holding an imaginary award and practised an acceptance speech.<\/p>\n Her approach has always been to take up the work that comes her way, learn from it and enjoy the experience. She has described what she has received in life as far more than she ever expected.<\/p>\n Perhaps that is the most defining aspect of Renuka Shahane\u2019s journey. She never appeared to be chasing stardom. Instead, she followed curiosity \u2014 from psychology to theatre, television and films, and eventually direction.<\/p>\n Her biggest achievement is not simply becoming the face audiences remember from Surabhi<\/em> or Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!<\/em>. It is the fact that she continued to make choices according to her own principles. She walked away from roles that felt repetitive, refused an inappropriate professional proposition, rebuilt her personal life after a failed marriage and eventually expanded her creative identity by becoming a director.<\/p>\n For Renuka, success was never about becoming the biggest star. It was about doing meaningful work, learning along the way and remaining true to her decisions. That journey, rather than any single role, is what has given her a lasting place in the audience\u2019s memory.<\/p>\n Read last week’s success story\u2026<\/strong><\/p>\n Sai Pallavi was a junior artist in Kangana’s film: Was eliminated from a dance show, today became Sita in India’s biggest film Ramayana<\/strong><\/p>\n
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