 In 2005, Outlook magazine published that Mukerji had established herself as the most successful actress of contemporary Hindi cinema. Her first film role that year was opposite Amitabh Bachchan in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's highly acclaimed Black, a drama about an alcoholic man who dedicates his life to teach a blind and deaf girl how to communicate. Bhansali wrote the part of the blind-deaf girl specifically for Mukerji, who was initially hesitant to take on the role due to its "challenging" subject matter. Once Bhansali enforced his faith in her, she agreed and began intensely studying sign language with professionals at the Helen Keller Institute in Mumbai. Black won several awards including two National Film Awards and eleven Filmfare Awards, and Richard Corliss of TIME featured it as the fifth best film of the year. Mukerji's performance met with unanimous acclaim; Empire called the performance "astonishing", Filmfare included her work in their listing of Indian cinema's "80 Most Iconic performances" and wrote, "Rani has left an indelible mark with this role that usually comes once in a lifetime for most". She became the only actress to win both the Best Actress and Best Actress – Critics trophies at the Filmfare Awards ceremony.
