Renuka Shahane was born into a Maharashtrian family and her mother tongue is Marathi. Her father, Lt. Cdr. Vijay Kumar Shahane, was an officer in the Indian Navy. Her mother, Shanta Gokhale, is a theatre personality and film critic who works mainly on Marathi theatre. When Renuka was very young, her mother divorced her father and married a man named Arun Khopkar, who was a film-maker. However, this second marriage soon ended in another divorce, after which Shanta Gokhale began a long-term friendship with Jerry Pinto, also a film journalist like her. Renuka and her only sibling, Girish Shahane, who is her full brother, grew up with their mother in Mumbai. Renuka did her B.A. in Psychology from St. Xavier's College and her Post graduation in Clinical Psychology from Mumbai University. Her brother Girish Shahane is a contemporary writer, art critic, and artist who has been associated with several art fairs and is a columnist with Scroll.in. Renuka has been married twice. Her first marriage was to Vijay Kenkare, a Marathi theater writer and director, but the marriage did not last long and they were soon divorced. She then married Ashutosh Rana, who is also a Bollywood actor. They have two sons, namely Shauryaman Neekhra and Satyendra Neekhra.
Career
Renuka Shahane started her career with the Marathi filmHach Sunbaicha Bhau. She then worked as one of the two anchors of the vastly popular Hindi language TV show, Surabhi, and this is what made her a household name. Her broad smile became a byword for charm in the era when Doordarshan was the only TV channel in India, and Renuka was certainly one of the most popular TV personalities of the 1980s. In 1994, at the height of her fame while hosting Surabhi, Renuka got the opportunity to act in the movie Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, that soon became the highest grossing Indian movie. Her role in the film was much appreciated and added to her image of a storehouse of wholesome, traditional values. Renuka Shahane has acted in many Marathi Films. She released her first Marathi film as a director, called Rita. Adapted from her mother Shanta Gokhale's novel, Rita Welingkar, Renuka plays the pivotal role of a friend, guide and philosopher of Rita, the protagonist. Rita had Jackie Shroff, Pallavi Joshi, Suhasini Mulay and Mohan Agashe in the cast. She also acted in a Telugu movie Money, produced by Ram Gopal Varma, which was a big hit. Circus was one of the initial Indian television serials that she starred in. She portrayed the love interest of then relatively unknown Shah Rukh Khan's character. Her role as a strong-willed woman in another television serial, Imtihaan was widely appreciated.
