This
week, caught under the spotlight, we have the multi-talented and a very
successful film director, producer, actor, writer, playback singer,
lyricist and television host:
Farhan Akhtar.
Akhtar was born to
the critically acclaimed lyricist and scriptwriter,
Javed Akhtar and
Honey Irani, on January 9th,

1974, in Mumbai. His sister is
Zoya Akhtar,
also a film director, while
Farah Khan and
Sajid Khan are his talented
cousins. Akhtar attended school and college in Mumbai, but his attention
shifted to film making at the age of 17 when he started assisting the
late
Yash Raj Chopra with his film
Lamhe.
Akhtar's directorial debut was in 2001 with the launch of the international award-winning film,
Dil Chahta Hai.
The overwhelming success of the film proved to be the turning point in
Akhtar's life. The passion and freshness with which he directed the
movie was the starting point of a journey that was yet to make him reach
new heights and levels of success.
Farhan's next venture was
Lakshya
in 2004 starring Amitabh Bachchan, Hrithik Roshan and Preity Zinta. The
film dealt with the topic of youth and managed to make the audience
connect well with the concept but failed to do well at the box office.
He next tried his hands with
Don - The Chase Begins in
2006, which was the first remake among Akhtar's directions. This King
Khan starrer was a superhit at the box office and became a favorite of
many, despite being the remake of the 1978 classic of the same title. In
2007, Akhtar produced
Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd., an average performer at the box office. In the same year, he directed
Positive, a short 12-minute documentary to bring about an awareness of HIV/AIDS.
2011 proved to be the year for a sudden rise in Akhtar's career with the production of
Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.
This film was a commercial success at the box office as well as a huge
hit overseas. The movie bagged four Filmfare awards, two Apsara Film
& Television Producers Guild awards, and two awards at the
International Indian Film Academy Awards.
The same year, Farhan produced
Don 2, the sequel to the 2006's
Don. Owing to the immense success of the prequel,
Don 2 also managed to become a box office hit.
Besides producing and directing, Farhan has starred in several movies including
Rock On!!,
for which he was the playback singer as well. The film bagged five
awards, four of which won Farhan the Best Male Debut, Star Debut, Super
Star of Tomorrow and the Most Promising Newcomer awards.
Did you know?
- Farhan was one of the judges in Nach Baliye season 1.
- Farhan is the founder of the 2013 social campaign named "Men Against Rape and Discrimination" (MARD).
- Farhan owns the production company Excel Entertainment Pvt Ltd.
- Farhan wrote Dil Chahta Hai after his mother threatened to throw him out of the house if he didn't do something productive with his life
Writer: Fariha L.
Editors: Khushi P. and Jenifer Y.
Graphics: Komal P.
Copyright BollyCurry
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