MUMBAI: Bollywood actress Rani Mukerji says she learnt a lot about humanity essaying roles as the specially-abled Michelle McNally in Black and the Tourette Syndrome patient Naina Mathur in Hichki.

"I learnt a lot about humanity by doing these outstanding, sensitive films like ‘Black' and ‘Hichki'. I think these films contributed to making me a better human being and I'm fortunate that I got to do these films and be a part of such beautiful cinematic visions of Sanjay Leela Bhansali and Siddharth P. Malhotra. I hope these films managed to spark the right conversations in society about the need to treat everyone as an equal," she said.

"I learnt about the resolve of people who are determined to triumph despite the odds stacked up against them, their dreams, their aspirations and essaying these powerful girls on screen, made me a stronger human being. I'm grateful that I can talk, see, hear and I realised that, as human beings, we might be taking these things for granted," she added.

The 42-year-old actress says for her, Black and Hichki were emotional experiences that opened her eyes more towards inclusivity, kindness and gratitude.

"As citizens of this country, we must all do our bit to constantly bring conversations about inclusivity and equality to the fore. Every citizen has rights and I realised that there is a lot of work that we all need to put in individually, to stop discrimination and stereotyping of individuals like those I have portrayed in ‘Black' and ‘Hichki'," she said.