Salman Khan

Salman Khan (pronunciation : [səlˈmaːn ˈxaːn]; born Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan on 27 December 1965) is an Indian actor, producer, and television personality. He is the son of actor and screenwriter Salim Khan. Khan began his acting career with Biwi Ho To Aisi but it was his second film Maine Pyar Kiya (1989), in which he acted in a lead role, that garnered him the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut. Khan has starred in several commercially successful films, such as Saajan (1991), Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994), Karan Arjun (1995), Judwaa (1997), Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya (1998), Biwi No.1 (1999), and Hum Saath-Saath Hain (1999), having appeared in the highest grossing film nine separate years during his career, a record that remains unbroken.

In 1999, Khan won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his extended guest appearance in Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998). In 2011, he won the Screen Award for Best Actor for his performance in Dabangg and in 2013, he won the Best Actor Popular Choice for his performances in Ek Tha Tiger and Dabangg 2. Eight of the films he has acted in, have accumulated gross earnings of over 1 billion (US$16 million) worldwide. He has starred in more than 80 Hindi films so far and thus has established himself as one of the leading actors of Hindi cinema.

Early life and background

Khan is the eldest son of screenwriter Salim Khan and his first wife Sushila Charak. His paternal grandfather was a Pathan immigrant from Afghanistan who migrated and settled in Indore, Madhya Pradesh. Khan's mother is a Maharashtrian Hindu. Her father comes from Jammu and Kashmir.

Khan's stepmother is Helen, a former actress, who co-starred with him in a few films. He has two brothers, Arbaaz Khan who is married to actress and VJ Malaika Arora Khan, and Sohail Khan; and two sisters, Alvira who is married to actor/director Atul Agnihotri and Arpita.

Salman finished his schooling at St. Stanislaus High School in Bandra, Mumbai, as did his younger brothers Arbaaz and Sohail. Earlier, he studied at The Scindia School, Gwalior for a few years along with younger brother Arbaaz.

Career

1989â€"93: Debut and breakthrough

Salman Khan made his acting debut with a supporting role in the 1988 film Biwi Ho To Aisi in which his voice was dubbed by someone else. His first leading role in a Bollywood movie was in Sooraj R. Barjatya's romantic family drama Maine Pyar Kiya (1989), one of India's highest grossing films. It earned him his first nomination for a Best Actor at Filmfare, but the much expected Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut was awarded to Sooraj Barjatya only.
Later Filmfare reactified their mistake by presenting the same award after 15 long years. Maine Pyar Kiya was later dubbed in English as When Love Calls, a 125-minute version, was the biggest hit in the Caribbean market at Guyana and also dominated the box-office collections at Trinidad and Tobago. Maine Pyar Kiya had also been dubbed in Spanish as Te Amo, the first experiment of its kind. This 125-minute film also proved its universal appeal with a glorious 10-week premiere run at Lima, capital of Peru. In Telugu as Prema Paavuraalu, it crossed the 25 weeks at Visakhapatnam and had 100 plus day run at six centres in Andhra Pradesh. It was also dubbed in Tamil as Kaadhal Oru Kavithai and in Malayalam as Ina Praavukal.

1990 saw one film release starring Khan, Baaghi: A Rebel for Love,was a box office success. followed by three moderately successful films in 1991, Patthar Ke Phool and Sanam Bewafa, Kurbaan. In the same year, Khan co-starred with Sanjay Dutt and Madhuri Dixit in the Romance Drama film Saajan. The movie was critical and financial success. Despite these early successes, nearly all of his 1992â€"1993 releases resulted in box office failures.

1994â€"2009: Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!! and other films

Khan returned to success in 1994 with his second collaboration with director Sooraj Barjatya in the romance Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! co-starring Madhuri Dixit. During the 1995 awards season, the film won 3 Filmfare Awards for the Best Film, Best Director and Best Actress. It also won the National Award for being the most popular film of the year. Earning over 1.35 billion (US$21 million) worldwide, the film became the biggest Bollywood hit of the year, as well as one of the biggest Bollywood hits ever. It is one of the films on Box Office India's list of "Biggest Blockbusters Ever in Hindi Cinema". This film was the biggest hit of that year, and turned out to be one of Bollywood's highest-grossing films ever, becoming the fourth-highest earner of all time. The film broke all the previous records and maintained itself as the highest-grossing Bollywood film throughout history for 7 years. In 1995 he starred in Rakesh Roshan's Karan Arjun alongside Shahrukh Khan, Karan Arjun is a mix of an upbeat Bollywood musical, religious overtones and an action movie. The film was released on 13 January 1995. The two played brothers who are reincarnated after being killed by family enemies. The film was the second biggest hit of the year, and his role of Karan once again put his name among the nominees for the Best Actor award for Filmfare Awards.

In 1996, Khan performed in two movies, Sanjay Leela Bhansali's directional debut Khamoshi: The Musical, a box office failure but critically acclaimed and Raj Kanwar's action hit Jeet. He had two releases in 1997: Judwaa and Auzaar. The former was a comedy directed by David Dhawan where he played a dual role of twins separated at birth was a commercial success while later, an action thriller was "below average".

Khan worked in five different films in 1998, his first release being the romantic comedy film Pyaar Kiya To Darna Kya opposite Kajol, one of the biggest commercial successes of that year. This was followed by the moderately successful drama Jab Pyaar Kisise Hota Hai where Khan played a young man who has to take a child who claims to be his son, under his custody. Khan's performance in the film earned him several positive notices and favourable reviews from critics. He rounded of the year with an extended cameo in Karan Johar's directorial debut, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai for which he earned a second Filmfare Award under the Best Supporting Actor category.

In 1999, Khan starred in three films: Hum Saath-Saath Hain: We Stand United and Biwi No.1, both were the highest grossing films that year and Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam alongside Aishwarya Rai and Ajay Devgan, which earned another him Best Actor nomination at the Filmfare awards. The film was a critical and commercial success along with its music.

In 2000, Khan acted in films including Har Dil Jo Pyar Karega and Chori Chori Chupke Chupke, which addressed the issue of surrogate childbirth; Khan played the role of a rich industrialist, who hires a surrogate mother after his wife becomes infertile. Critics noted his turn towards a more serious role, which reportedly had more substance in comparison to his previous roles. In 2002 he starred in the delayed release Hum Tumhare Hain Sanam.

For Tere Naam, (2003) Taran Adarsh said of him, "Salman Khan is exceptional in a role that fits him to the T. He breathes fire in sequences that demand uneasiness. But beneath the tough exterior lies a vulnerable person and this facet in particular comes to the fore in the latter reels. His emotional outbursts are splendid..." Tere Naam is to date considered Salman Khan's best film with critically acclaimed performance. He subsequently continued his success at the box office, with comedies like Mujhse Shaadi Karogi (2004) and No Entry (2005). Khan's work in 2006 included Jaan-E-Mann and Baabul, however neither of these films were successful in the box office.

Khan started 2007 with the ensemble film Salaam E Ishq. His next release Partner did very well at the box office, receiving a blockbuster verdict. He next appeared in the Hollywood movie, Marigold: An Adventure in India which told the love story of an Indian man and an American woman. Khan starred in three films throughout 2008, all of which underperformed.

Khan hosted the second season of 10 Ka Dum in year 2009 which turned out to be even more successful than his first season as host of the game show in year 2008. The show got very high TRPs for Sony Entertainment Television and according to reports, the show helped Sony TV regain its third position in the Indian television ratings.

2009â€"present: commercial success

2009 marked a significant turning point in Khan's career. Starting with Wanted, directed by choreographer turned director Prabhu Deva became a box office success and earned superhit status. In the same year, he appeared in two other films, Main Aurr Mrs Khanna and London Dreams. While London Dreams doing average business, only due to the uninspiring music, but Main Aurr Mrs Khanna was a commercial failure. Khan's first release of 2010 was Anil Sharma's commercially and critically unsuccessful film Veer.

His next release, Dabangg was released on Eid, 10 September 2010. Khan played the role of a fearless cop with comic effect in the film. It opened to generally positive reviews and broke several box-office records upon release. The film set another box office record, grossing 808.7 million in its first week, thus becoming the highest opening week grossing Bollywood film, overtaking the previous record of 3 Idiots. Dabangg went on to gross 2.15 billion worldwide and Box office India declared it an all-time blockbuster in the second week of its release. It is the highest-grossing Bollywood film of 2010 and, as of 2012, the fourth highestâ€"grossing Bollywood film of all time. Dabangg went on to win several awards, including the National Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. It was later remade in Tamil and Telugu, The film was produced by his brother Arbaaz Khan, and released on 10 September 2010. It made a record opening at the box office and Box Office India declared it an all-time blockbuster. Dabangg at that time was the second and now the fourth highest-grossing Bollywood film and for his performance, Khan received a Star Screen Award for Best Actor and a Stardust Award for Star of the Year â€" Male and was nominated for his sixth Filmfare Award for Best Actor. Anupama Chopra from NDTV wrote about his performance, "It's the role of a lifetime and Salman Khan bites into it like a starving man devours a feast. He inhabits it fully, strutting and swaggering and even, spoofing himself."

Khan's first release of 2011 was Ready. Upon release, Ready became the second highest opening day grosser, as well as the second highest weekend grossing Bollywood film at that time, after Dabangg. It also held records for being the second highest grossing Bollywood film of 2011. He next appeared in Bodyguard, a remake of the 2010 Malayalam film of the same name. The film was not well received by critics, though became a financial success, with a domestic total of 1,409.5 million (US$26 million)â€"India's highest-earning film of the year.

Khan's first release of 2012 was Ek Tha Tiger where he starred opposite Katrina Kaif and act as Indian Spy. The film garnered positive to mixed reactions from critics whilst opening to extremely strong box office collections. The film went on to break the opening day box office record with a collection of 312.3 million (US$4.9 million) and became the second Bollywood film to gross over 3 billion (US$47 million) worldwide behind only 3 Idiots with an eventual gross of 3.1 billion (US$49 million). It marks his first association with Yash Raj Films. The film also broke the record of Opening weekend net gross (First 3 Days of Release), Opening week net gross (First 7 Days of Release) and entered 100 crore club in just 5 days of release breaking Salman Khan's own record set by Bodyguard in 7 Days.

Salman Khan's 2nd release of 2012 is Dabangg 2 which is a sequel of his blockbuster Dabangg under production of Arbaaz Khan. Upon release, the film netted an excellent 192.1 million (US$3.0 million) on its opening day and became the biggest opener for a non-holiday Friday in India, beating the previous record held by Don 2. and collected 582.6 million (US$9.1 million), beating the previous three-day record set by Ek Tha Tiger. Dabangg 2 eventually emerged as a huge financial success with revenues of 2.5 billion (US$39 million) globally.

Khan's 1st release of 2014, Jai Ho entered 100 crore club while his 2nd release Kick has entered the club of Rs. 200 crore in India on Eid he also sang the "Hangover" song from the movie.

Mentor

Salman Khan has mentored a number of aspiring Bollywood actors. He has also been an inspiration for some Bollywood actors like Hrithik Roshan to get into perfect shape. Saawan Kumar Tak, the director of Sanam Bewafa was helped by Khan as he worked Saawan... The Love Season for free.

Salman has recommended composers like Himesh Reshammiya and Sajidâ€"Wajid. He supported Sanjay Leela Bhansali to make Khamoshi: The Musical and then Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam. Actor Govinda' s career was rescued by Khan as he offered parallel role in Partner. Similarly it was Salman Khan who suggested Mohnish Bahl to Sooraj Barjatya for Maine Pyar Kiya and later in Baaghi: A Rebel for Love after his stinct as hero failed. Bahl has also done important roles in Salman's Hum Aapke Hain Koun..!, Hum Saath-Saath Hain and recently Jai Ho. Similarly he was instrumental in getting Ravi Kishan, the role in Tere Naam.

Khan is also responsible for managing the careers of Katrina Kaif, Sneha Ullal, Mahek Chahal, Zarine Khan, Asin, Sonakshi Sinha, Hazel Keech, Arjun Kapoor, Daisy Shah, Pulkit Samrat and Elli Avram. Khan has also helped to rescue many drowning careers like Jacqueline Fernandez, Vatsal Sheth, Vikas Bhalla, Tulip Joshi, Nauheed Cyrusi, Ashmit Patel, Yash Tonk, Sana Khan and Aashif Sheikh with Dil Ne Jise Apna Kahaa, even though the film flopped.

Salman is now reportedly mentoring Rinzing, son of Danny Denzongpa, Ali, son of Raza Murad and Vaibhav Anand, the son of late Vijay Anand for their Bollywood launch. Similarly Aditya Pancholi’ s son Sooraj Pancholi and Suneil Shetty’ s daughter Athiya Shetty is being launched by Salman in his production Hero. He has also decided to offer Sonu Sood his role in the Hindi remake of Mahesh Manjrekar’s 2010 hit Marathi movie Shikshanachya Aaicha Gho who has lost many offers due to injury happened in CCL while playing. Salman has decided to mentor his longtime loyal bodyguard Shera’s son as well. Armaan Kohli, who had a failed Bollywood career is now playing a major role with Khan in Sooraj Barjatya' s Prem Ratan Dhan Payo.

Other work

Television

In 2008 Khan hosted 10 Ka Dum. The show was extremely popular and was at number one spot in ratings in India. It garnered an average TVR of 2.81 and a peak rating of 4.5, leaving behind Shahrukh Khan's Kya Aap Paanchvi Paas Se Tej hai? with an average rating of 1.37 TVR and a peak rating of 2.3 and Hrithik Roshan's Junoon â€" Kuch Kar Dikhane Ka on NDTV Imagine with an average TVR of 0.76 and a peak rating of 1.1 According to reports, the show helped Sony TV regain its third position in the Indian television ratings. He again hosted the show in 2009 and thus won the Best Anchor Award for 10 Ka Dum in 2008 and 2009. In 2010 Khan hosted Bigg Boss 4. The show was widely accepted and appreciated due to Khan's hosting and surpassing the famous hosting of Amitabh Bachchan. According to data available with aMap, a television viewership monitoring agency, the opening episode of Bigg Boss 4 on Colors got a rating of 3.6. Season 3 had average rating of 2.43 while Bigg Boss 1 and Bigg Boss 2 had average ratings of 1.96 and 2.03. While Bigg Boss 1 was anchored by Arshad Warsi, Shilpa Shetty hosted Bigg Boss 2 and Amitabh Bachchan for Bigg Boss 3. The Grand Finale episode on 8 January 2011, received a TRP of 6.7, which was the highest among the finale of other Indian reality shows such as Kaun Banega Crorepati, Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega, MasterChef and DID â€"Li’l Masters. Due to high TRP Salman Khan again hosted Bigg Boss 5 along with Sanjay Dutt in 2011 and because of huge acceptance also hosted Bigg Boss 6 and Bigg Boss 7 in 2012 and 2013 respectively. In 2013 Khan hosted the Star Guild Award for the first time. Khan is currently hosting Bigg Boss 8.

Brand endorsements

Salman Khan was associated as a brand when he had done the advertisements for Hero Honda bikes and Double Bull shirts, much before he entered film Industry. Even after he became a superstar, he never showed interest in promoting himself as a brand, but he was signed for Thums Up in 2002 and continued until its contract was over. Later Akshay Kumar replaced Khan. Later he was the brand ambassador of soft drink Mountain Dew with whom he ended the contract in December 2010. and now he is once again promoting Thums Up. He has also became the brand ambassador for the travel website, Yatra.com, which also made him a shareholder. He is also the face of the History Channel and the new brand for Suzuki motorcycles, Previously he endorsed Red Tape Shoes and now he is endorsing Relaxo Hawaii Salman Khan is also the brand ambassador of the detergent brand, Wheel He has also appeared for Chlormint, a brand of gum with his brother Sohail Khan. The actor has also done a jewellery brand, Sangini with Kareena Kapoor apart from innerwear brand Dixcy Scott and tablet BlackBerry Playbook. Britannia' s Tiger biscuits is the latest endorsement of Salman. He is also the face of Ranbaxy' s Revital replacing Yuvraj Singh Apart from these brands, he also has Rotomac Pen and SF Sonic Batteries endorsements Now Khan has been roped in as the brand ambassador of Dubai based fashion label Splash Khan has been signed as the brand ambassador for Astral Poly Technik Ltd, the leading manufacturers of plumbing and drainage systems in the country.

Philanthropy

Khan has been involved in several charities during his career. He has started an NGO called Being Human which sells T-shirts and other products online and in stores. A portion of the sales go to a worthy cause supporting the underprivileged. Being Human Foundation is a registered charitable trust set up by Salman Khan for helping the cause of the underprivileged. In its early days, Salman Khan set up and funded the Foundation using his own money. The Foundation has two focus areas: Education and Healthcare. To increase the reach and corpus of the Foundation, Salman Khan has undertaken initiatives such as Being Human Art; Being Human merchandise; and Being Human Gitanjali Gold Coins.

In 2011, he launched his own production company called SKBH Productions (Salman Khan Being Human Productions). Money which will be generated from film productions will be donated to Being Human. First film made under the banner was kids entertainer Chillar Party, which went on to win 3 National Awards, for Best Children's film, Best Original Screenplay and Child Artist's Award .

In January 2012, Khan offered to pay 4 million (US$63,000) for releasing around 400 prisoners from around 63 prisons in the state of Uttar Pradesh via his NGO. The prisoners had completed their term but due to economical reasons, they were unable to pay a legal fine for their charges.

Personal life

He lives in Galaxy Apartments, Bandra, Mumbai. He also has a 150 acre plot in Panvel, which has 3 bungalows, swimming pool and gym. Khan is a dedicated bodybuilder. He has a 42-inch chest, 17-inch biceps and a 30-inch waist.

Khan has never married and his relationships has been of keen interest to the media and his fans. In 1999, he began dating Bollywood actress Aishwarya Rai; their relationship was often reported in the media until the couple separated in 2001. Khan started dating actress Katrina Kaif but after years of speculations, Kaif admitted in an interview in 2011 that she was in a serious relationship with Salman Khan for several years, which ended in 2010. Sangeeta Bijlani and Somy Ali were also in serious relationship with Khan.

In August 2011, Khan admitted he suffers from trigeminal neuralgia, a facial nerve disorder commonly known as the "suicide disease". In an interview, he said that he has been quietly suffering it for the past seven years, but now the pain has become unbearable. It has even affected his voice, making it much harsher.

In popular media

In 2004 Khan was ranked as 7th Best looking man in world - People Magazine, USA. In 2008 his lifelike wax statue was installed in London's Madame Tussauds Museum and so in 2012 once again his another wax statue was installed in New York's Madame Tussauds Museum. In 2010 People Magazine, India declared him the Sexiest Man Alive. In 2011, 2012 and 2013 he was declared Times of India's Most Desirable Man of #2, #1 and #3 respectivelty. In August 2013 he was declared as India's Most Searched Celebrity Online. Khan topped Forbes India charts for 2104, in terms of both fame and revenues.

Acting style and analysis

He is one of the most commercially successful movie stars of India. While reviewing his performance in Tere Naam, Taran Adarsh wrote, "Salman Khan is exceptional in a role that fits him to the T. He breathes fire in sequences that demand uneasiness. But beneath the tough exterior lies a vulnerable person and this facet in particular comes to the fore in the latter reels. His emotional outbursts are splendid...". Adarsh also remarked that "Wanted that it will run only on Salman's star power." Filmfare commenting about him says that "When it comes to a Salman Khan or a Rajnikant film, their performance is not important. It’s the audience performance that counts." He also received rave reviews for his portrayal of colorful cop Chulbul Pandey a.k.a Robinhood Pandey in Dabangg. Anupama Chopra of NDTV said, "It's the role of a lifetime and Salman Khan bites into it like a starving man devours a feast. He inhabits it fully, strutting and swaggering and even, spoofing himself." He has thus established himself as one of the leading actors in Hindi cinema. In August 2012, he was voted no.3 "India's Greatest Actor" in NDTV poll.

Controversies

Khan has been the subject of several controversies, including certain legal troubles.

Hit-and-run case

On 28 September 2002, Khan was arrested for rash and negligent driving. His car had run into a bakery in Mumbai; one person who was sleeping on the pavement outside the bakery died and three others were injured in the mishap. Charges of culpable homicide were laid against him, but later dropped. On 24 July 2013, he was formally charged with culpable homicide in the case, to which he pleaded not guilty. The trial is scheduled to begin on 19 August.

Relationship with Aishwarya Rai

His relationship with actress Aishwarya Rai was a well publicised topic in the Indian media. After their break-up in March 2002, Rai accused him of harassing her. She claimed that Khan had not been able to come to terms with their break-up and was hounding her; her parents lodged a complaint against him. In 2005, news outlets released what was said to be an illicit copy of a mobile phone call recorded in 2001 by the Mumbai police. It appeared to be a call in which he threatened Rai, in an effort to force her to appear at social events held by Mumbai crime figures. The call featured boasts of connections to organised crime and derogatory comments about other actors. However, the alleged tape was tested in the government's Forensic lab in Chandigarh, which concluded that it was fake.

Black Buck hunting case

On 17 February 2006, Khan was sentenced to one year in prison for hunting the Chinkara, an endangered species. The sentence was stayed by a higher court during appeal. On 10 April 2006, he was handed a five-year jail term and remanded to Jodhpur jail until 13 April when he was granted bail. On 24 July 2012, Rajasthan High Court finalised charges against Salman Khan and his other colleagues in the endangered black buck killing case, paving way for start of the trial. On 9 July 2014, Supreme Court issued a notice to Salman on Rajasthan government's plea challenging the HC order suspending his conviction.

Remarks about 26/11 attacks

On September 2010, Khan was reported to have claimed during an interview to a Pakistani channel that the 26/11 attacks got a lot of attention because the "elite" were targeted. During the interview the actor had said â€" "It was the elite that was targeted this time. Five star hotels and stuff. So they panicked. Then they got up and spoke about it. My question is why not before. Attacks have happened in trains and small towns too, but no one talked about it so much." Khan also said that Pakistan was not to be blamed for it, and that the Indian security forces had failed. Khan's comments had drawn strong reactions from Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra Chagan Bhujbal, Shiv Sena, BJP and other political parties. The comments were also condemned by Ujwal Nikam, Special Prosecutor in the 26/11 trial. Khan later apologised for his comments.

Filmography and awards

Khan has won or received nominations at the Filmfare Awards ceremony for the following films: