Akshay Kumar

Akshay Kumar (Punjabi: ਅਕਸ਼ੈ ਕੁਮਾਰ, Hindi: अक्षय कुमार; born Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia on 9 September 1967) is an Indian film actor, producer and martial artist who has appeared in over a hundred Hindi films. When he began his acting career in the 1990s, he primarily starred in action films and was particularly known for his appearances in feature films commonly called the "Khiladiseries", which included Khiladi (1992), Sabse Bada Khiladi (1995), Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi (1996), International Khiladi (1999), and Khiladi 420 (2000), as well as other action films such as Waqt Hamara Hai (1993), Mohra (1994), Elaan (1994) and Suhaag (1994).

He later gained more fame for his drama, romance and comedy roles. He started becoming known for his performances in romance films like Yeh Dillagi (1994) and Dhadkan (2000) as well asdrama films such as Ek Rishtaa (2001). His comic performances in comedy films such as Hera Pheri (2000), Mujhse Shaadi Karogi (2004), and Garam Masala (2005) met with acclaim. His success further rose in 2007, when he starred in four consecutive commercial hits. He has thus established himself as one of the leading actors in Hindi cinema.

Apart from acting, Kumar worked as a stunt actor; he often performed many dangerous stunts in his films,which earned him a reputation as the "Indian Jackie Chan". 2008 marked his television debut as the host of the show Fear Factor – Khatron Ke Khiladi. In 2009, Kumar founded the Hari Om Entertainment production company. In 2008, the University of Windsor conferred an Honorary Doctorate of Law on Kumar in recognition of his contribution to Indian cinema. The following year he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India.

Akshay Kumar
Akshay Kumar in 2009
Born	Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia 9 September 1967 (age 44) Amritsar, Punjab, India
Occupation	Film actor, producer, presenter
Years active	1991–present
Spouse	Twinkle Khanna (2001–present)

Early life

Akshay Kumar was born in Ludhiana, Punjab. His father was an army officer. His mother's name is Auna Bhatia. From a very young age, he was recognised as a performer, particularly as a dancer. Kumar was raised in Delhi's Chandni Chowk neighbourhood before moving to Mumbai. In Mumbai, he lived in Koliwada, which was another Punjabi dominated area. He studied at Don Bosco School and then Guru Nanak Khalsa College (King's Circle), where he participated in sports with Janpal Singh.

After having obtained a black belt in Taekwondo while in India, he studied martial arts in Bangkok, Thailand, where he learned Muay Thai and worked as a che and waiter. He then came back to Mumbai, where he started teaching martial arts. One of his students happened to be a photographer and recommended him to do modelling. The student gave him a modelling assignment for a small company. For his two hours posing in front of the camera, Kumar got Rs. 5,000, compared to his previous monthly salary of Rs. 4,000. That was one of the main reasons why he chose to be a model. After a couple of months of modelling, Kumar was offered a lead role by producer Pramod Chakravarthy for the movie Deedar.

[edit]Career

[edit]1990s

Kumar made his Bollywood acting debut with the 1991 film Saugandh, which was followed by the 1992 thriller film Khiladi. In 1994, his action films Main Khiladi Tu Anari and Mohra were among the highest grossing films of the year. Later that year, Yash Chopra signed him for the romantic film Yeh Dillagi which was also a success. He received appreciation for his performance in this film, where he played a romantic role which was different compared to his action roles. He would consequently receive his first nominations for Best Actor award at the Filmfare and Star Screen ceremonies. During the same year, Kumar also had success with films like Suhaag and the low budget action film Elaan. All these achievements, promoted Kumar as one of the most successful actors of the year.

In 1995, along with his share of unsuccessful movies, he starred in the third film in his Khiladi series Sabse Bada Khiladi, which was a hit. He proved to have success with the Khiladi series, as in the next year he starred in the fourth successful film with Khiladi in the title, Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi opposite Rekha and Raveena Tandon. The film became one of the highest grossing films of the year

In 1997, Kumar was seen in a supporting role in Yash Chopra's hit film Dil To Pagal Hai, for which he received a Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award nomination. In the same year, he attempted a comedy role with the fifth film in the Khiladi series, Mr and Mrs Khiladi. Unlike his previous films with Khiladi in the title, the film failed commercially. In the same way as this film, his next Khiladi releases in the following years went on to fail at the box office. In 1999, Kumar received critical acclaim for his roles in the films Sangharsh and Jaanwar. Whilst the former did not make a profit at the box office, the latter turned out to be a success.

Filmography

[edit]Actor

Year	Film	Role	Notes
1991	Saugandh	Shiva
1992	Dancer	Raja
1992	Mr Bond	Mr. Bond
1992	Khiladi	Raj Malhotra
1992	Deedar	Anand Malhotra
1993	Ashaant	Vijay
1993	Dil Ki Baazi	Vijay
1993	Kayda Kanoon	Daud
1993	Waqt Hamara Hai	Vikas Sabkuchwala
1993	Sainik	Suraj Dutt
1994	Elaan	Vishal Chaudhry
1994	Yeh Dillagi	Vijay Saigal	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor
1994	Jai Kishen	Jai Verma / Kishen	Double Role
1994	Mohra	Amar Saxena
1994	Main Khiladi Tu Anari	Karan Joglekar
1994	Ikke Pe Ikka	Rajiv
1994	Amaanat	Amar
1994	Suhaag	Raj
1994	Nazar Ke Samne	Jai Kumar
1994	Zakhmi Dil	Jaidev Anand
1994	Zaalim	Ravi
1994	Hum Hain Bemisaal	Vijay Sinha
1995	Paandav	Vijay
1995	Maidan-E-Jung	Karan
1995	Sabse Bada Khiladi	Vijay Kumar / Lallu
1996	Tu Chor Main Sipahi	Amar Varma
1996	Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi	Akshay Malhotra
1996	Sapoot	Prem
1997	Lahoo Ke Do Rang	Sikandar Davai
1997	Insaaf: The Final Justice	Vikram
1997	Daava	Arjun
1997	Tarazu	Inspector Ram Yadav
1997	Mr. and Mrs. Khiladi	Raja
1997	Dil To Pagal Hai	Ajay	Friendly Appearance Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor
1997	Aflatoon	Rocky / Raja	Double Role
1998	Keemat: They Are Back	Dev
1998	Angaaray	Amar
1998	Barood	Jai Sharma
1999	Aarzoo	Vijay Khanna
1999	International Khiladi	Rahul 'Devraj'
1999	Zulmi	Raj
1999	Sangharsh	Professor Aman Varma
1999	Jaanwar	Badshah / Babu Lohaar
2000	Hera Pheri	Raju
2000	Dhadkan	Ram
2000	Khiladi 420	Dev Kumar/Anand Kumar
2001	Ek Rishtaa: The Bond of Love	Ajay Kapoor
2001	Ajnabee	Vikram Bajaj	Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Negative Role
2002	Haan Maine Bhi Pyaar Kiya	Raj Malhotra
2002	Aankhen	Vishwas Prajapati
2002	Awara Paagal Deewana	Guru Gulab Khatri
2002	Jaani Dushman: Ek Anokhi Kahani	Atul
2003	Talaash: The Hunt Begins...	Arjun
2003	Andaaz	Raj Malhotra
2004	Khakee	Sr. Inspector Shekhar Verma	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor
2004	Police Force: An Inside Story	Vijay Singh
2004	Aan: Men at Work	DCP Ravi Deshmukh
2004	Meri Biwi Ka Jawaab Nahin	Inspector Ajay
2004	Mujhse Shaadi Karogi	Arun / "Sunny"	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Comic Role
2004	Hatya: The Murder	Ravi
2004	Aitraaz	Raj Malhotra
2004	Ab Tumhare Hawale Watan Saathiyo	Major Rajeev
2005	Insan	Amjad
2005	Bewafaa	Raja
2005	Waqt: The Race Against Time	Aditya Thakur
2005	Garam Masala	Makrand / "Mac"	Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Comic Role
2005	Deewane Huye Paagal	Rocky Hiranandani
2005	Dosti: Friends Forever	Raj Malhotra
2006	Family - Ties of Blood	Shekhar Bhatia	Special appearance
2006	Mere Jeevan Saathi	Vicky
2006	Humko Deewana Kar Gaye	Aditiya Malhotra
2006	Phir Hera Pheri	Raju
2006	Jaan-E-Mann	Agastya Rao / "Champu"
2006	Bhagam Bhag	Bunty
2007	Namastey London	Arjun Singh	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor
2007	Heyy Babyy	Arush Mehra
2007	Bhool Bhulaiyaa	Dr. Aditiya Shrivastav
2007	Om Shanti Om	Himself	Special appearance
2007	Welcome	Rajiv Saini
2008	Tashan	Bachchan Pandey
2008	Singh Is Kinng	Happy Singh	Nominated—Filmfare Award for Best Actor Nominated—Asian Film Award for Best Actor
2008	Jumbo	Jumbo (voice)
2009	Chandni Chowk to China	Sidhu Sharma
2009	8 X 10 Tasveer	Jai Puri / Jeet	Double Role
2009	Kambakkht Ishq	Viraj Shergill
2009	Blue	Aarav Malhotra
2009	De Dana Dan	Nitin Bankar
2010	Jaane Kahan Se Aayi Hai	Himself	Special appearance
2010	Housefull	Aarush
2010	Khatta Meetha	Sachin Tichkule
2010	Action Replayy	Kishen
2010	Tees Maar Khan	Tabrez Mirza Khan / Tees Maar Khan
2011	Patiala House	Parghat Singh Kahlon / "Gattu"
2011	Thank You	Kishen
2011	Chalo Dilli	Vikram Rana	Guest appearance
2011	Speedy Singhs	Himself	Special appearance in song Shera Di Kaum
2011	Desi Boyz	Jignesh Patel / Jerry / Rocco
2012	Housefull 2	Jolly	Post-production (Releasing on April 05, 2012)]
2012	Rowdy Rathore	Vikram Singh Rathore/Rowdy	Post-prodcution (Releasing on June 01, 2012)
2012	Joker		Post-production (Releasing on August 30, 2012)
2012	Special Chabbis		Filming
2012	Khiladi 786		Pre-production (Releasing in November 2012)
2012	Hera Pheri 4		Pre-production
2013	Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai 2	Shohaib Khan	Pre-production