Indian-born naturalised Canadian actor and producer (born 1967)For other people named Akshay *ar, see Akshay *ar (disambiguation).

Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia (born 9 September 1967), known professionally as Akshay *ar (pronounced:), is an Indian-born naturalised Canadian actor, film producer, and television personality who works in mainstream Hindi cinema. Over 30 years, *ar has appeared in over 100 films and has won several awards, including a National Film Award for Best Actor and two Filmfare Awards. *ar is among the most prolific actors of Hindi cinema. Having starred in 113 films, 52 of which were commercially successful, he was the first Hindi film actor whose films' domestic net lifetime collections crossed ₹20 billion (US$341.31 million) by 2013, and ₹30 billion (US$446.46 million) by 2016.

*ar began his career in 1991 with Saugandh, but his first commercial success came a year later with the action thriller Khiladi. The film established him as an action star in the 1990s and was the first of several films starring *ar which would later become commonly known as the Khiladi film series, in addition to a string of other action films. Although his early tryst with romance in Yeh Dillagi (1994) was positively received, it was in the next decade that *ar expanded his range of roles. He gained recognition for the romantic films Dhadkan (2000), Andaaz (2003) and Namastey London (2007), as well as drama films such as Waqt (2005) and Patiala House (2011). His comic performances in films such as Hera Pheri (2000), Mujhse Shaadi Karogi (2004), Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2007) and Singh Is Kinng (2008) met with acclaim.

*ar won Filmfare Awards for his negative role in Ajnabee (2001) and his comic performance in Garam Masala (2005). While his career had fluctuated commercially, his mainstream success soared in 2007 with four consecutive box-office hits in India; it was consistent until a short period of professional setbacks between 2009 and 2011, after which he reinforced his status with several films, including Rowdy Rat* (2012) and Holiday (2014). Moreover, around this time the critical response to several of his films improved; after favourable reviews came his way for his work in Special 26 (2013), Baby (2015) and Airlift (2016), he won the National Film Award for Best Actor for his performance in the crime thriller Rustom (2016). He earned further notice for the social films Toilet: Ek Prem Katha (2017) and Pad Man (2018) and the war film Kesari (2019).

Apart from acting, *ar has worked as a stunt actor; he has often performed many dangerous stunts in his films, which has earned him the sobriquet "Indian Jackie Chan". In 2008, he hosted the show Fear Factor: Khatron Ke Khiladi. In 2008, the University of Windsor conferred an honorary doctorate on *ar. In 2009, he was awarded the Padma Shri the fourth-highest civil honour by the Government of India. In 2009, he founded the Hari Om Entertainment production company and Grazing Goat Pictures production company in 2012. In 2014, *ar launched the TV reality show Dare 2 Dance. He also owns the team Khalsa Warriors in the World Kabaddi League. As of 2015 and 2019, *ar was on the Forbes list of highest paid entertainers in the world, ranking 52nd with earnings of $48.5 million. and the only Bollywood actor on the list. In 2020, he was ranked as the highest paid Bollywood actor by Forbes.

Sometime during or after the 2011 Canadian federal election, the Conservative government granted Canadian citizenship to *ar by invoking a little-known law which allowed cir*venting the usual residency requirement for Canadian immigrants. According to a former Conservative Party minister, Tony Clement, the citizenship was awarded in return for *ar's offer of putting his "star power to use to advance Canada-Indian relations", and Canada's "trade relations, commercial relations, in the movie sector, in the tourism sector".

Contents

• 1 Early life and background
• 2 Film career
  • 2.1 1991–1999
  • 2.2 2000–2006
  • 2.3 2007–2011
  • 2.4 2012–2015
  • 2.5 2016–present
• 3 Personal life and off-screen work
  • 3.1 Citizenship
• 4 Filmography
• 5 Production
• 6 Awards and nominations
• 7 References
• 8 External links

Early life and background

*ar was born in Amritsar, Punjab, India, to Hari Om Bhatia and Aruna Bhatia in a Punjabi family. His father was an army officer. From a young age, *ar was very interested in sports. His father too enjoyed wrestling. He lived and grew up in Delhi's Chandni Chowk and later he moved to Bombay (present-day Mumbai) when his father left Army to become an accountant with UNICEF. Soon, his sister was born and the family lived in Koliwada, a Punjabi dominated area of Central Bombay.

He received his school education from Don Bosco High School, Matunga, simultaneously learning Karate. He enrolled in Guru Nanak Khalsa College for higher education, but dropped out as he was not much interested in studies. He requested his father that he wanted to learn martial arts further, and his father somehow saved money to send him to Thailand. *ar went to Bangkok to learn martial arts and lived in Thailand for five years learning Thai Boxing. *ar also has a sister, Alka Bhatia. When *ar was a teenager, his father asked him what he aspired to be. *ar expressed his desire to become an actor.

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 chef and waiter. After Thailand, *ar went to work in Calcutta (present-day Kolkata) in a travel agency, in Dhaka in a hotel as a chef and Delhi where he sold Kundan jewellery. Upon his return to Bombay, he commenced the teaching of martial arts.

During this time, the father of one of his students, himself a model co-ordinator, recommended *ar into modelling which ultimately led to a modelling *ignment for a furniture showroom. *ar effectively made more money within the first two days of shooting than in his entire month's salary, and therefore chose a modelling career path. He worked as an *istant for photographer Jayesh Sheth for 18 months without payment to shoot his first portfolio. He also worked as a background dancer in various films. One morning, he missed his flight for an ad-shoot in Bangalore. Disappointed with himself, he visited a film studio along with his portfolio. That evening, *ar was signed for a lead role by producer Pramod Chakravarthy for the movie Deedar.

Film career

1991–1999

See also: Khiladi (film series)

*ar made his first appearance as the lead actor opposite Raakhee and Shantipriya in Saugandh (1991). In the same year, he acted in Kis* Vyas-directed Dancer, which received poor reviews. The following year he starred in Abbas Mustan-directed suspense thriller, Khiladi, widely considered his breakthrough role. A review in The Indian Express called the film "an engrossing thriller" and described *ar as impressive in the lead part, noting his physical appearance, strong screen presence, and commending him for being "perfectly at ease". His next release was the Raj Sippy-directed detective film Mr. Bond, based on James Bond. His last release of 1992 was Deedar. It failed to perform well at the box office.

In 1993, he acted in the Keshu Ramsay-directed bilingual film Ashaant alongside Dr. Vishnuvardhan and Ashwini Bhave. All of his films released during 1993, including Dil Ki Baazi, Kayda Kanoon, Waqt Hamara Hai and Sainik did not perform well commercially. In 1994, he appeared in 11 feature films. He played a police inspector in two films: Sameer Malkan's Main Khiladi Tu Anari and Rajiv Rai's Mohra, both among the highest-grossing films of the year. Further success came later that year when he starred in Yash Chopra-produced romance Yeh Dillagi, opposite Kajol. One of the year's biggest mainstream successes, both the film and his performance were received well by critics, with The Indian Express describing him as "always dependable" and singling out his performance. His work in the film earned him his first nomination for Best Actor at the Filmfare Awards and Star Screen award. During the same year, *ar also had success with films like Suhaag and the low-budget action film Elaan. All these achievements established *ar as one of the most successful actors of the year, according to Box Office India.

*ar proved to have success with what later became known as the Khiladi series. He starred in the fourth and fifth action thriller films with Khiladi in the *le: Sabse Bada Khiladi (1995) and Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi (1996), both directed by Umesh Mehra and released to commercial success. He played a dual role in the former. Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi co-starred Rekha and Raveena Tandon. During the film's shooting *ar was injured, and went on to receive treatment in United States. Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express wrote in a year-end review, "It was Akshay *ar in Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi who packed the aisles, no doubt about it... He shoved his hair back in a slick little ponytail, much like Steven Segal, wore ankle-length great coats, wrestled with the fearsome Undertaker, and walked away with the film."

*ar played a supporting role in Yash Chopra-directed romance, Dil To Pagal Hai (1997), co-starring Shah Rukh Khan, Madhuri Dixit and Karisma Kapoor, for which he received his first nomination for the Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award. In the same year, he starred opposite Juhi Chawla in David Dhawan-directed comedy Mr. and Mrs. Khiladi, fifth instalment of the Khiladi series. Unlike his previous films of the series, it failed commercially. Considerable success, however, came with another dual role in the romantic action film Aflatoon. Critic Khalid Mohamed, while critical of the film, approved of *ar's effort: "Akshay *ar comes to life. Given something even slightly different to do, he does rise to the occasion." His following releases failed commercial and this caused a setback to his film career. In 1999, *ar played opposite Twinkle Khanna in International Khiladi. The film turned out to be an average grosser at the box office. He 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 commercial success and marked his comeback.

2000–2006

In 2000, *ar starred in the Priyadarshan-directed comedy Hera Pheri alongside Paresh Rawal and Suneil Shetty. The film which was a remake of Malayalam film Ramji Rao Speaking, became a commercial success and proved to be a turning point in *ar's career. Hindustan Times noted the film's "intense portrayal of the surreality of the human condition". He also starred in the Dharmesh Darshan-directed romantic drama Dhadkan later that same year. The film performed moderately at the box office but *ar was praised for his acting. Rediff.com's review stated that he had proved that he is "director's actor" and that "he has worked hard on his role is apparent." That same year, he performed some of his most dangerous stunts in Neeraj Vora-directed action thriller Khiladi 420, where he climbed a running plane, stood on top of the plane flying a thousand feet in the air, and jumped from the plane onto a hot air balloon. In a later scene, he is also seen being chased by a car, dodging bullets, jumping off buildings, and climbing walls. His character in the film had two names and his role received mixed reviews. Sukanya Verma wrote "Negative roles and Akshay *ar don't go hand-in-hand. Akshay is ridiculously over the top and irritating to the core. However, he manages a decent performance as the sober and suave Anand." Padmaraj Nair of Screen, however, believed it was "the best performance of his career".

His first release in 2001 was Suneel Darshan-directed drama Ek Rishtaa: The Bond of Love. *ar was praised for his performance in the film. Next, he played a negative role in the Abbas Mustan-directed film Ajnabee. While reviewing the film for Rediff.com, Sarita Tanwar termed *ar the "surprise package" of the film. She added that he was "in total control as the bad guy." The film won him his first Filmfare Award for Best Villain and IIFA award 2002 for Performance in a Negative Role.

*ar on the sets of Heyy Babyy in Sydney, 2007

His first release in 2002 was Dharmesh Darshan-directed romantic drama Haan Maine Bhi Pyaar Kiya. He played the role as a blind man in Vipul Amrutlal Shah and Shaarang Dev Pandit-directed heist film Aankhen, co-starring Amitabh Bachchan, Arjun Rampal, Aditya Pancholi, Sushmita Sen and Paresh Rawal. His performance in the film was critically acclaimed. Next, he starred in the Vikram Bhatt-directed comedy Awara Paagal Deewana. Rediff.com's review of the film mentioned that his sincerity and intensity seen in Hera Pheri, Ek Rishtaa – The Bond of Love and Aankhen "seems missing". His last film of the year was Raj*ar Kohli-directed supernatural horror film Jaani Dushman: Ek Anokhi Kahani alongside Manisha Koirala, Sunil Shetty, Sunny Deol, Aftab Shivdasani, Arshad Warsi, Aditya Pancholi and Armaan Kohli. The film was a remake of Kohli's former film Naagin and received mostly negative reviews from critics. Taran Adarsh wrote "only Munish Kohli and Akshay *ar leave an impact." In 2003 he starred in Suneel Darshan's action film Talaash: The Hunt Begins... opposite Kareena Kapoor. While reviewing the film, Taran Adarsh wrote "Akshay *ar is plain mediocre. The role hardly offers him scope to try out anything different." Next, he starred in Raj Kanwar-directed romantic drama Andaaz alongside Priyanka Chopra and Lara Dutta. The film received mixed reviews from critics, but turned out to be a commercial success at the box office and the first universal hit of 2003.

In 2004 *ar starred in Raj*ar Santoshi's action drama thriller Khakee alongside Amitabh Bachchan, Ajay Devgn and Aishwarya Rai. *ar played the role of Inspector Shekhar Verma, a corrupt, morally bankrupt cop who changes himself during a mission to transfer an accused Pakistani spy Dr. Iqbal Ansari (played by Atul Kulkarni) from a remote town in Maharashtra to Mumbai. The film and *ar's acting were positively reviewed by critics. He was nominated for the Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for his role in the film. His other releases included Dileep Shukla's crime film Police Force: An Inside Story. He starred alongside Raveena Tandon, Amrish Puri and Raj Babbar. The film's production was delayed following the break-up of the lead actors Tandon and *ar. Upon release it received negative reviews from critics. Next, *ar played Hari Om Patnaik, an IPS officer in Madhur Bhandarkar-directed Aan: Men at Work. He starred in David Dhawan-directed romantic comedy Mujhse Shaadi Karogi alongside Salman Khan and Priyanka Chopra. He played the role of Sunny, Sameer (played by Khan)'s roommate who pursuits Rani (played by Chopra)-Sameer's love interest. The film received positive reviews. Taran Adarsh praised *ar and wrote "Akshay *ar is a revelation he surp*es his previous work. His timing is fantastic and the conviction with which he carries off the evil streak in his personality is bound to be talked-about in days to come." His performance in the film earned him his third nomination for supporting actor at the Filmfare Awards as well as a nomination for best comic role. His other films included Abbas-Mustan directed Aitraaz and S M Iqbal's Meri Biwi Ka Jawaab Nahin. In the former, *ar played against type as a worker wrongly accused of sexual har*ment by his female boss played by Chopra. According to the directors, Aitraaz was inspired by National Basketball *ociation player Kobe Bryant (who was accused of rape by a fan); and the film's development began when they read about his sexual-*ault case in the newspapers. Talking about the character *ar said that it is realistic and could be described as a "new-age metrosexual" man. He added that Aitraaz was the boldest film he had done. In the latter he starred opposite Sridevi. The film was shot in 1994 but was released in 2004 after a delay of 10 years.

The next year *ar starred in Dharmesh Darshan-directed romantic drama musical film Bewafaa opposite Kareena Kapoor. He played the role of Raja, an aspiring musician who pursues his love interest Anjali (played by Kareena Kapoor) even after she is married to Aditya Sahai (played by Anil Kapoor). The film received mixed reviews from film critic but *ar was praised for his acting. Anupama Chopra of India Today wrote that "Kareena Kapoor and *ar stand out." Taran Adarsh wrote "Akshay *ar does well in a role that fits him like a glove." Later that year he acted in Vipul Amrutlal Shah's family drama Waqt: The Race Against Time alongside Amitabh Bachchan, another Priyadarshan-directed comedy Garam Masala alongside John Abraham. Waqt: The Race Against Time was a family drama film. The film and *ar's acting received mixed reviews. Vishal D'Souza wrote "Akshay shoulders an author-backed role, carrying more of the film's emotional baggage though he is distinctly uncomfortable in the soppy-weepy scenes." The films succeeded at the box office and his performance in the latter earned him his second Filmfare Award, for Best Comedian. His other films included Vikram Bhatt-directed action comedy romance film Deewane Huye Paagal and Suneel Darshan directed romantic drama Dosti: Friends Forever. In the former he starred alongside Shahid Kapoor, Sunil Shetty and Rimi Sen while in the latter he starred alongside Kareena Kapoor and Bobby Deol. Both of these films received positive reviews.

*ar's first release of 2006 was Raj*ar Santoshi-directed drama Family – Ties of Blood followed by Suneel Darshan's Mere Jeevan Saathi and Raj Kanwar's Humko Deewana Kar Gaye. Next, he starred in a sequel to Hera Pheri *led Phir Hera Pheri. As was the former, the sequel became a huge success at the box office. Later that year he starred alongside Salman Khan and Preity Zinta in the Shirish Kunder-directed romantic musical film Jaan-E-Mann. The film was a well anticipated release, and despite receiving positive reviews from critics, did not do as well as expected at the box office. The film received mostly negatively reviews. Vidya Pradhan of Rediff.com called it a "bizarre movie." Though the film under-performed, his role as a shy, lovable nerd was praised. He ended the year with Priyadarshan's comedy murder mystery film Bhagam Bhag. He starred alongside Lara Dutta, Govinda and Paresh Rawal and played the character of a theatre actor. The film received mixed reviews and Rediff.com called *ar the real hero of the film. The film was commercially successful. The same year, he led the Heat 2006 world tour along with fellow stars Saif Ali Khan, Preity Zinta, Sushmita Sen and Celina Jaitley.

2007–2011

*ar with actress Katrina Kaif on the sets of the film Namastey London in 2007 *ar with Katrina Kaif on the sets of Welcome in 2007

2007 proved to be *ar's most successful year during his career in the industry, and as described by box office *ysts, "probably the best ever recorded by an actor, with four outright hits and no flops." His first release, Vipul Amrutlal Shah-directed Namastey London, was critically and commercially successful, and his performance earned him a Best Actor nomination at the Filmfare. Critic Taran Adarsh wrote of his performance in the film, "he's sure to win the hearts of millions of moviegoers with a terrific portrayal in this film." *ar's chemistry with lead actress Katrina Kaif also generated immense appreciation, with Nikhat Kazmi of The Times of India describing their pairing as "refreshing." His next two releases, Sajid Khan-directed Heyy Babyy and Priyadarshan's Bhool Bhulaiyaa, were box office successes as well. In both of these films he starred opposite Vidya Balan. *ar's last release of the year, the Anees Bazmee-directed Welcome, did extremely well at the box office, receiving a blockbuster status and simultaneously becoming his fifth successive hit. All of *ar's films which released that year did well in the overseas market as well. *ar appeared in a cameo role in Farah Khan directed Om Shanti Om. His role was listed as no. 3 on the Top 10 Cameos in Bollywood list of MensXP.com.

*ar's first film of 2008, Vijay Krishna Acharya-directed action thriller Tashan, marked his comeback to the Yash Raj Films banner after 11 years. Although a poll (conducted by Bollywood Hungama) named it the most anticipated release of the year, the film under-performed at the box office grossing ₹279 million (US$5.76 million) in India. His second film, Bazmee-directed Singh Is Kinng in which he starred opposite Kaif was a huge success at the box office and broke the first-week worldwide record of Om Shanti Om, the previous highest figure. His next film was the animated film Jumbo, directed by Kompin Kemgumnird. The year also saw *ar making his small screen debut as the host of the successful show Fear Factor:– Khatron Ke Khiladi. He later returned to host the show's second season in 2009.

In 2009, *ar featured opposite Deepika Padukone in the Warner Bros. and Rohan Sippy production Chandni Chowk to China. Directed by Nikhil Advani, the film was a critical and commercial failure at the box office. *ar's next release was 8 x 10 Tasveer, an action-thriller directed by Nagesh Kukunoor that failed commercially. His next release was Sabbir Khan's battle-of-the-sexes comedy Kambakkht Ishq. Set in Los Angeles, it was the first Indian film to be shot at Universal Studios and featured cameo appearances by Hollywood actors. The film was poorly received by critics but became an economic success, earning over ₹840 million (US$17.35 million) worldwide. *ar's film Blue was released on 16 October 2009. Blue received negative reviews and collected about ₹ 420:million at the box office. His last release in 2009 was Priyadarshan's De Dana Dan. He starred alongside Katrina Kaif, Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal. *ar played a servant who plans to kidnap his owner's dog. The film received mixed reviews.

He then appeared in the 2010 comedy, Housefull, directed by Sajid Khan which garnered the second-highest opening weekend collection of all time. *ar's next release was Khatta Meetha, directed by Priyadarshan which was an average grosser. The film received negative reviews. Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN called it a schizophrenic film.He also appeared in Vipul Shah's Action Replayy, which was a box office failure. The film received mostly negative reviews. His last film of 2010 was Tees Maar Khan. Directed by Farah Khan, the film received poor critical reviews but became moderately successful.

In 2011 he starred in Patiala House and Thank You. His last film of 2011 was Rohit Dhawan-directed Desi Boyz (2011), which co-starred John Abraham, Chitrangada Singh and Deepika Padukone. He also co-produced a film with Russell Peters *led Breakaway (dubbed into Hindi as Speedy Singhs) which is reminiscent of his own Patiala House. Breakaway became the highest-grossing cross-cultural movie of 2011 in Canada. *ar dubbed for the role of Optimus Prime in the Hindi version of Hollywood, action blockbuster, Transformers: Dark of the Moon. He took the dubbing role for his son, Aarav, and did so for free.

2012–2015

*ar with his Housefull film series co-star Jacqueline Fernandez at the launch of the song "Taang Uthake" of Housefull 3 in 2016

His first release of 2012 was Housefull 2, a sequel of his earlier comedy film Housefull. *ar's next film was the Prabhudeva-directed action drama Rowdy Rat* in which he played a double role opposite Sonakshi Sinha. The film earned more than ₹1.3 billion (US$24.33 million) in India. Both of these films grossed over ₹1 billion (US$18.71 million) at the box office. In 2012, he founded another production company called Grazing Goat Pictures Pvt Ltd.

Joker was reportedly promoted as *ar's 100th film, but later Akshay *ar clarified that the 100th film landmark had been crossed long before he even signed up for Joker. "It was a miscalculation on Shirish's part. OMG is my 116th film," he said. *ar kept himself away from the film's promotion due to differences with Kunder. Reacting to *ar's backing out from the film's promotion Kunder tweeted "A true leader takes responsibility for his team and leads them through thick and thin. Never abandons them and runs away." He later deleted the tweet. His later release Oh My God which he produced and starred along with Paresh Rawal. It had a slow opening but because of word of mouth it picked up.

His last release in 2012 was Khiladi 786, the eighth instalment in his famous Khiladi series as well as the comeback of the series after 12 years. Although film was panned by critics it grossed 700:million at the domestic box office. His first release in 2013 was Special Chabbis which earned a positive critical reception and was moderately successful at the box office. Although the movie earned him positive reviews and commercial success, trade *ysts noted that the movie could have done much better business due to its good content and *ar's high-profile. Milan Luthria chose *ar to play the character of Shoaib Khan (based on Dawood Ibrahim) in the gangster film Once Upon ay Time in Mumbai Dobaara!, sequel to Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai. It proved to be a below average at the box office. The film was declared a "flop" by Box Office India. It received mixed reviews however *ar's acting was praised by a majority of critics. In a review for Hindustan Times, Anupama Chopra wrote that *ar "makes a stellar killer". Madhureeta Mukherjee of The Times of India praised *ar's performance and said that "Bhai act with flamboyance and mojo ... He gets a chance to do what he does best – herogiri (albeit less menacing, more entertaining), with charisma and clap-trap dialoguebaazi." Al Pacino saw the film's trailer and promos and admired *ar's portrayal of Shoaib Khan, a gangster. He said that the promos and posters reminded him of his own The Godfather. *ar said of Pacino's response: "A touch of appreciation is always held dearly in an actor's arms, even if it's from the simplest of people like our beloved spot boys. But to have your work spoken of so kindly by the world's most admired gangster Al Pacino himself – I had goose-bumps thinking about him watching the promo! I was so humbled, not only as an actor but as a fan of his legendary work." Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN criticised *ar for his "in-your-face flamboyance". After the film's mainly negative reviews, *ar lashed out at critics, accusing them of lacking an understanding of the audience and the basic ideas of filmmaking. Built on an approximate budget of ₹1 billion (US$18.71 million), it was the first major Hindi language film to be shot in Oman. *ar received a nomination for Best Actor in a Negative Role at Zee Cine Awards.

His next release was Anthony D Souza's Boss alongside Shiv Panditt and Aditi Rao Hydari. The movie received mixed reviews; it performed poorly at the box office netting ₹540 million (equivalent to ₹730:million or US$9.6:million in 2020) domestically. *ar came back strongly with Holiday: A Soldier Is Never Off Duty, the Hindi remake of the 2012 Tamil film Thuppakki. This action drama earned both critical and commercial success entering the 1:billion elite club and became the highest grosser of 2014. The film received critical acclaim and is *ar's third film to gross over ₹1 billion (US$17.07 million) at the box office. He then starred in Entertainment and has sung a song for this film It's Entertainment. Making of the song has been uploaded on YouTube. His last film of 2014 was The Shaukeens. He appeared as himself in it and produced it. He then played the lead role in the thrillers Baby and Gabbar is Back. *ar's first collaboration with Karan Johar, Brothers was released on 14 August 2015. His next release was Singh is Bling, a quasi sequel to 2008's Singh is Kinng was released on 2 October 2015 and is produced by Grazing Goats Pictures.

2016–present

His first release was Airlift released on 22 January 2016 was critically and commercially successful, and second was Housefull 3 which released on 3 June 2016. Rustom which was produced by Neeraj Pandey and marked his 3rd release of 2016. Akshay was praised for his performance in Rustom which garnered him numerous award nominations. Rustom grossed more than 2:billion at the box office. Both Airlift and Rustom earned him the National Film Award for Best Actor.

His second film release in 2017 was Toilet: Ek Prem Katha. This film depicted the serious social issue of toilets in certain regions of the country. Akshay's performance was praised. Akshay *ar dug a toilet in Madhya Pradesh to promote the film. The movie trailer was released on 11 June 2017. PM Modi called it a good effort to further the message of cleanliness, as per Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

In 2018, Akshay starred in another social drama film Pad Man alongside Sonam Kapoor and Radhika Apte. He later made his Tamil cinema debut in the science fiction thriller 2.0, a standalone sequel to the 2010 film Enthiran, co-starring Rajinikanth, in which he played an evil ornithologist named Pakshirajan.

In 2019, *ar appeared in Karan Johar's film Kesari opposite Parineeti Chopra, based on the story of the Battle of Saragarhi. The film grossed over ₹2 billion (US$28.4 million) worldwide. He next featured in Mission Mangal with an ensemble cast of Vidya Balan, Taapsee Pannu, Nithya Menen, Sharman Joshi and Sonakshi Sinha. The film is about the story of scientists at Indian Space Research Organisation who contributed to the Mars Orbiter Mission, which marked India's first interplanetary expedition. Housefull 4, directed by Farhad Samji, was released in October 2019. His next release in December 2019 was Karan Johar's and his own production Good Newwz, a romantic comedy about surrogacy, opposite Kareena Kapoor Khan.

His only release in 2020 was the horror comedy Laxmii, directed by Raghava Lawrence, an official remake of the Tamil film Kanchana opposite Kiara Advani. It was released on 9 November on Disney+ Hotstar, and was not released theatrically in India due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The film revolves around a man who gets possessed by the ghost of a transgender. It received mixed to negative reviews from critics, praising the performance of *ar, but criticised the writing and screenplay of the film.

In 2021, *ar had three releases, namely, Bell Bottom, a spy thriller inspired from real life hijacking events in India by Khalistani separatists during the 1980s, directed by Ranjit M Tewari, Sooryavanshi, a Cop Universe continuation of Singham and Simmba, directed by Rohit Shetty and Aanand L. Rai's Atrangi Re along with Sara Ali Khan in dual roles opposite him and Dh*h on Disney+ Hotstar, were released in 2021.

In 2022, *ar's first release was Bachchhan Paandey, where he played the *ular role of a gangster, a name derived from *ar's character in the 2008 film Tashan. The film paired him with Kriti Sanon, and also features Jacqueline Fernandez and Arshad Warsi. Despite an ensemble cast and hype among fans, Bachchhan Paandey gathered negative critical reception and was not successful at the box office.

Personal life and off-screen work

*ar with his wife Twinkle Khanna and mother-in-law Dimple Kapadia in 2014

*ar married Twinkle Khanna, the daughter of actors Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia, on 17 January 2001. Together they have a son, and a daughter. He is known as a protective father and keeps his children away from the media. He stated that he wants to "give them a normal childhood." In 2009, while performing at a show for Levis at Lakme Fashion Week, *ar asked Twinkle to unbutton his jeans. This incident sparked a controversy which led to a police case being filed against them.

*ar stays in shape with a combination of kickboxing, basketball, swimming and Parkour as well as working out. While in standard eighth he had started practising Karate. He intended to open a martial arts school and the state government of Maharashtra allotted land for the school in Bhayandar. In 2004, he was honoured with the Rajiv Gandhi Award for his outstanding achievements in Bollywood. In the same year, he presented the television series Seven Deadly Arts with Akshay *ar for free. The following year *ar was awarded the highest *anese honour of "Katana" and a sixth degree black belt in Kuyukai Gōjū-ryū karate.

*ar with his wife Twinkle Khanna at the launch of Khanna's book Mrs Funnybones in 2015

*ar was initially a religious, practising Shaiva Hindu who regularly visited shrines and temples across the country, including the famed Vaishno Devi Mandir, but in March 2020 he stated, "I don’t believe in any religion. I only believe in being Indian". He is a teetotaller but has endorsed for a liquor brand in the past. Half of the sum was given for daan (charity work), of which he has been doing more of in recent times. He has also donated ₹5 million (US$93,567.08) to Salman Khan's Being Human Foundation. As of 2013, *ar has been the Hindi film industry's highest advance taxpayer for six consecutive years. He paid ₹190 million (US$3.24 million) as advance tax payment in that year.

On 9 August 2014, *ar performed at his 500th live show. The show was held in O2 Arena in London as part of the inaugural function of the World Kabaddi League. His first live show was held in 1991 in Delhi. *ar owns Bengal Warriors a team in the Indian Kabbadi League. He helped Khanna with editing the drafts of her debut book Mrs Funnybones. *ar also had donated a sum of ₹9:million to drought hit farmers in Maharashtra in 2015. He has also donated ₹5:million to aid drought affected people through the Maharashtra government's Jalyukt Shivar Abhiyan. In March 2013, he started a 30-bed cancer shelter for policemen in Naigaon.

On 9 April 2017, *ar and Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh promoted a mobile phone app, Bharat Ke Veer, which allows users to donate money to families of people who sacrificed their lives for India. Again on 20 January 2018, he participated in the launch of an Anthem for the initiative. In an event in Delhi he appealed for people to donate to the Bharat Ke Veer cause, and ₹129.3 million (US$1.89 million) was collected. In 2021, *ar donated ₹1 crore for construction of a school building in Neeru Village of Bandipora district in Jammu and Kashmir.

Citizenship

Sometime during or after the 2011 Canadian federal election, the Conservative government there granted Canadian citizenship to *ar by invoking a little-known law which allowed cir*venting the usual residency requirement for Canadian immigrants. According to a former Conservative Party minister, Tony Clement, the citizenship was awarded in return for *ar's offer of putting his "star power to use to advance Canada-Indian relations," and Canada's "trade relations, commercial relations, in the movie sector, in the tourism sector." Although *ar had earlier appeared in a campaign event for Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper in Brampton, Ontario, a city with a large Indo-Canadian population, and praised Harper, Clement denied that the citizenship was a reward for partisan support. *ar had received an honorary doctorate degree from the University of Windsor, and in a 2010 interview with the Economist claimed he had "dual citizenship." He was one of the 15 international celebrities invited for the Olympics torch-bearer rally to Canada.

In December 2019, *ar stated that he has applied for an Indian p*port and plans to give up his Canadian citizenship.

Filmography

Main article: Akshay *ar filmography

Production

Main articles: Hari Om Entertainment and Grazing Goat Pictures

Awards and nominations

Main article: List of awards and nominations received by Akshay *ar

*ar has been recipient of two Filmfare Awards from 13 nominations: Best Villain for Ajnabee (2002) and Best Comedian for Garam Masala (2006), and a National Film Award for Best Actor for the films Rustom and Airlift (both 2016). In 2008, the University of Windsor conferred an honorary Doctorate of Law on *ar in recognition of his contribution to Indian cinema. The following year, he was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India. In 2011, The Asian Awards honoured *ar for his outstanding achievement in Cinema.

References

1. Baker, Steven (16 February 2013). "Akshay *ar beats Salman Khan, Shah Rukh Khan to 2,000 crore – Bollywood News". Digital Spy. Archived from the original on 18 February 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
2. Times News Network (18 February 2013). "Akshay *ar creates history with 2000 crore league!". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 19 February 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
3. "Forget mighty Khans, Akshay *ar is the first actor to earn Rs 2000 crore in his lifetime". India Today. 18 February 2013. Archived from the original on 18 February 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
4. "Akshay *ar now worth Rs 2,000 crore". Hindustan Times. 18 February 2013. Archived from the original on 19 February 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.
5. "Has Akshay *ar really earned Rs 2000 crore from his films?". CNN-IBN. 18 February 2013. Archived from the original on 20 February 2013. Retrieved 9 March 2013.

Portals:BiographyIndiaBollywood

External links

• Akshay *ar at IMDb:
• Akshay *ar on Twitter
• Akshay *ar at Bollywood Hungama
• Akshay *ar at DNA India
• Collected news and commentary at The Times of India