After graduating with a degree in English literature, she completed a workshop on theatre in Mumbai. She made her acting debut in Phir Milenge (2004), a film that was based on the subject of AIDS. She then appeared in the Telugu film Anand also in 2004.
Early life
Kamalinee was born 4 March 1980[1] and brought up in Kolkata, India. Her father is a marine engineer and her mother is a jewellery designer.[citation needed] She is the eldest of the three siblings in the family.[2] Owing to her "love for being on the stage"[2] since childhood, she acted in all sorts of amateur and professional stageplays while in school and college. Incidentally, she always portrayed masculine characters in these plays.[2] Besides theatre, she developed a love for reading, painting and writing.[3] She also underwent several years of training in Bharatanatyam.[3]
After a chance meeting, actor-director Revathi offered her a role in her second directorial venture, Phir Milenge, a film about AIDS. Though initially apprehensive about her entering into the acting profession, her parents were very supportive.[3] In the film, she plays a radio jockey, and the younger sibling to Shilpa Shetty's character.[4][5]
Around the same time, Sekhar Kammula, a national award-winning director from the Telugu film industry, was in the process of casting for his next Telugu film, Anand. After noticing her in an advertisement, Kammula selected her for the role. Mukherjee said that the role of an independent and modern woman, which was just like her own personality, appealed to her.[3][6] The film won six prestigious 2004 Nandi Awards bestowed by the Government of Andhra Pradesh. Among these, Mukherjee won the Nandi Award for the Best Leading Actress.[7] She also won two awards for being the best debutante actress of the year.[8][9]
2005–present
After receiving appreciation for her portrayal of a strong-willed, independent and modern woman in Anand, her next film was Meenakshi, in 2005. Despite the film not finding much commercial success, Mukherjee said that she did not regret doing the film and that it was a big learning curve.[2] Film reviewers praised Mukherjee for her acting skills.[10] In 2006, she appeared in two Telugu language films (Style and Godavari) and one Tamil language film (Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu). Style is a dance-based film with actor-choreographersPrabhu Deva, Raghava Lawrence, Charmee Kaur and Raja.[11]
Godavari, which was Sekhar Kammula's next film, starred Sumanth and Mukherjee in the lead roles. This drama film, which had the Godavari River in the backdrop, dealt with a romantic love story between the lead characters. Mukherjee portrayed the role of a woman with independent thinking and tremendous inner strength,[12] under the "backdrop of middle/upper middle class sensibilities, new aspirations, identity crisis, independence, yearnings and moreover, parental concerns".[13] The film received predominantly positive reviews, and Kamalinee's role was particularly praised. While one reviewer said that she was "beautiful ... both in looks and in her measured acting style,"[14] another reviewer praised her for the "intense yet cool portrayal".[12]
She made her Tamil debut in 2006 in Gautham Vasudev Menon's Vettiyadu Velliyadu starring Tamil superstar Kamal Haasan. Following this, came Gamyam by Krish, a film widely praised by critics and audiences alike and subsequently remade in Tamil and Kannada, both of which featured Kamalinee in the lead role. Gamyam was the only regional film from the south to be in the running for India's entry to the Academy Awards apart from sweeping both the Nandi and Filmfare Awards.[citation needed]
In 2009, she played the role of Latin Christian woman, Pemenna, in Kutty Srank, directed by Cannes award-winning director, Shaji N. Karun, and starring Malayalam matinee idol, Mammooty. The film swept the National Awards, winning in six categories including Best Film. In the same year, she worked in veteran director Vamsi's musical Gopi Gopika Godavari,.
Kamalinee is a supporter of the non-profit organizations CHORD India and World Vision, which are both involved in rehabilitation, welfare and the education of children.[19][20] She produces beauty tutorial videos along with her two younger sisters, Mrinalinee and Shohinee, for Mrinalinee's YouTube channel Mirror Mirror.[21] In 2014, she launched Chinese-American poet Wand Ping's anthology Ten Thousand Waves in Hyderabad, India at a poetry reading event. Kamalinee was also part of the poets panel at the Bengaluru Poetry Festival in August 2016 where she read a selection of her poems alongside award-winning poet Dr. Neal Hall. She is an avid baker and cook and enjoys experimenting with cuisines from around the world.[22]
