Aamir Khan

Mohammed Aamir Hussain Khan was born on 14 March 1965 in Bombay to Tahir Hussain, a film producer, and Zeenat Hussain. Several of his relatives were members of the Hindi film industry, including his late paternal uncle, the producer-director Nasir Hussain. Outside the movie industry, he is also related to the Indian Islamic scholar, philosopher and politician Abul Kalam Azad through his grandmother. Khan is the eldest of four siblings; he has a brother, the actor Faisal Khan, and two sisters, Farhat and Nikhat Khan (married to Santosh Hegde). His nephew, Imran Khan, is a contemporary Hindi film actor.

Khan married Reena Dutta, who had a small part in Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, on 18 April 1986. They have two children, a son named Junaid and a daughter, Ira. Reena was involved briefly in Khan's career when she worked as a producer for Lagaan. In December 2002, Khan filed for divorce. Reena took custody of both children.

The year 1989 saw the release of Raakh, a crime thriller from Aditya Bhattacharya that was filmed before the production of Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak. The film tells the story of a young man avenging the rape of his ex-girlfriend (played by Supriya Pathak). Despite a poor reception at the box office, the film was critically acclaimed. Khan was awarded a National Film Award – Special Jury Award / Special Mention for his performances in both Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak and Raakh. Later that year, he reunited with Chawla for the romantic comedy Love Love Love, a commercial failure.

Khan had five film releases in 1990. He found no success in the sport film Awwal Number with Aditya Pancholi and Dev Anand, the mythological thriller Tum Mere Ho, the romance Deewana Mujh Sa Nahin and the social drama Jawani Zindabad. However, the Indra Kumar-directed romantic drama Dil (opposite Madhuri Dixit) was a major success. A tale of parental opposition to teenage love, Dil was highly popular among the youth, and emerged as the highest-grossing Hindi film of the year. He followed this success with a leading role alongside Pooja Bhatt in the romantic comedy Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahin (1991), a remake of the American film It Happened One Night (1934), which proved to be a box office hit.

Khan appeared in several other films in the early 1990s, including Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992), Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke (1993) (for which he also wrote the screenplay), and Rangeela (1995). Most of these films were successful critically and commercially. Other successes include Andaz Apna Apna, a comedy film co-starring Salman Khan. At the time of its release, the movie was reviewed unfavorably by critics, but over the years has gained cult status. Less successful films included Isi Ka Naam Zindagi (1992) and Daulat Ki Jung (1992). In 1993, Khan also appeared in Yash Chopra's Parampara. Despite having an ensemble cast which also included Sunil Dutt, Vinod Khanna, Raveena Tandon and Saif Ali Khan, the film failed to find a wide audience and became a critical and commercial failure. Khan was also due to appear in Time Machine, a science-fiction film also starring Rekha, Raveena Tandon, Naseeruddin Shah and Amrish Puri. The movie was directed by Shekhar Kapur. However, due to financial constraints, the film was shelved and remained unreleased.

Khan continued to act in just one or two films a year, then an unusual trait for a mainstream Hindi cinema actor. His only release in 1996 was the Dharmesh Darshan-directed commercial blockbuster Raja Hindustani, in which he was paired opposite Karisma Kapoor. The film earned him his first Filmfare Award for Best Actor, after seven previous nominations, and went on to become the biggest hit of the year, as well as the third-highest grossing Indian film of the 1990s. It was the biggest hit of his career up until that point. Adjusted for inflation, Raja Hindustani is the fourth highest-grossing film in India since the 1990s. Khan's career seemed to hit a plateau at this point of time, and most of the films to follow for the next few years were only partially successful. In 1997, he co-starred alongside Ajay Devgn, Kajol and Juhi Chawla in Ishq, which performed well at the box office. The following year, Khan appeared in the moderately successful Ghulam, for which he also did playback singing.

John Mathew Matthan's Sarfarosh, Khan's first release in 1999, was also moderately successful, gaining an above average box office verdict. The film and Khan's role in it were highly appreciated by movie critics, as was his role in Deepa Mehta's Canadian-Indian art house film Earth (1998). Set during the 1947 partition of India, Earth was internationally acclaimed, by critics such as Roger Ebert, with Khan's negative portrayal of Dil Nawaz ("Ice Candy Man") considered his best performance up until then. His first release for the new millennium, Mela, in which he acted alongside his real-life brother Faisal Khan, was both a box office and critical bomb.

Khan co-wrote the screenplay and script for the 1993 hit romantic comedy film Hum Hain Rahi Pyar Ke, where he also starred in the lead role. Khan began working as a producer after he set up his own production company, Aamir Khan Productions, in 1999. Its first film was Lagaan, which was released in 2001, starring Khan as the lead actor. The film was selected as India's official entry to the 74th Academy Awards in the Best Foreign Language Film category, for which it became India's third nominee ever; it eventually lost the award to Bosnian film No Man's Land. Lagaan won numerous awards at several Indian award functions such as Filmfare and IIFA, and won the National Film Award for Most Popular Film, an award shared between Khan and the film's director, Ashutosh Gowariker. For producing the documentary Madness in the Desert on the making of Lagaan, Khan and director Satyajit Bhatkal were awarded the National Film Award for Best Exploration/Adventure Film at the 51st National Film Awards ceremony. Khan wrote the climax of Rang De Basanti (2006), which he starred in.

Overseas, Lagaan earned an Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film at the 74th Academy Awards in 2002. This made it one of only three Indian films to receive an Oscar nomination, along with Mehboob Khan's Mother India (1957) and Mira Nair's Salaam Bombay! (1988). This also makes Aamir Khan one of the few Indian filmmakers to ever receive an Oscar nomination. Khan later commented on the loss of Lagaan at the Oscars: "Certainly we were disappointed. But the thing that really kept us in our spirits was that the entire country was behind us". In addition to an Oscar nomination, Lagaan received a European Film Award nomination for Best Non-European Film, and won awards at a number of international film festivals, including the Bergen International Film Festival, Leeds International Film Festival, Locarno International Film Festival, NatFilm Festival, and Portland International Film Festival. Taare Zameen Par was also India's submission to the Oscars, but did not receive a nomination. Another Aamir Khan production, Peepli Live (2010), was India's submission to the Oscars, while Dhobi Ghat (2011) was longlisted for the BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language, though neither were nominated. In 2017, Dangal won him the inaugural Best Asian Film award at Australia's 7th AACTA Awards, as well as Movie of the Year and Top Foreign Actor from China's Douban Film Awards, and it is an award nominee for the 68th Berlin International Film Festival.

In addition, Khan has received honorary accolades, including the Government of India's Padma Shri in 2003 and Padma Bhushan in 2010, and an Honorary Doctorate by the Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU) for his distinguished contributions to the Indian cinema and entertainment industry. In 2011, he accepted an invitation from the Berlin Film Festival to be a member of the jury, after having previously turned down their offer three times since 2008. In 2012, he appeared on the Time 100 list of most influential people in the world. In 2017, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences invited Khan for its membership, and he received an award for "National Treasure of India" from the Government of China.

Khan made a comeback in 2005 with Ketan Mehta's Mangal Pandey: The Rising playing the title role of the real-life sepoy and martyr who helped spark the Indian Rebellion of 1857. The film was screened at the Cannes Film Festival.

On 28 December 2005, Khan married Kiran Rao, who had been an assistant director to Ashutosh Gowariker during the filming of Lagaan. On 5 December 2011, Khan and his wife announced the birth of their son, Azad Rao Khan, through a surrogate mother. In 2007, Khan lost a custody battle for his younger brother Faisal to their father, Tahir Hussain. His father died on 2 February 2010.

Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's award-winning Rang De Basanti was Khan's first release in 2006. His performance was critically acclaimed, earning him a Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor and various nominations for Best Actor. The film went on to become one of the highest-grossing films of the year, and was selected as India's official entry to the Oscars. Although the film was not shortlisted as a nominee for the Oscar, it received a nomination for BAFTA Award for Best Film Not in the English Language at the BAFTA Awards in England. In his next movie, Fanaa (2006), Khan co-starred with Kajol. Playing a Kashmiri insurgent terrorist, his second negative role after Earth, the role offered him creative possibilities to try something different. Fanaa became one of the highest-grossing Indian films of 2006.

In 2006, Aamir Khan lent his support to the Narmada Bachao Andolan movement, led by activist Medha Patkar, in their actions against raising the height of Sardar Sarovar Dam. While promoting his film Fanaa in Gujarat, he made some comments regarding the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi's handling of the Narmada Dam and the necessity to rehabilitate the displaced villagers. These comments were met with outrage from the BJP, with the government of Gujarat demanding an apology from Khan. He refused to apologise, saying "I am saying exactly what the Supreme Court has said. I only asked for rehabilitation of poor farmers. I never spoke against the construction of the dam. I will not apologise for my comments on the issue." An unofficial ban of Fanaa was put in place for the entire state of Gujarat. Protests occurred against the film and Khan which included the burning of posters of the star in effigy. As a result, several multiplex owners stated that they could not provide security to customers. Thus, all theatre owners in Gujarat refused to screen the film.

In April 2006, Khan participated in the demonstrations put up by the Narmada Bachao Andolan committee with their leader Medha Patkar after the Gujarat government's decision to raise the height of the Narmada dam. He quoted to support adivasis (tribes), who might be displaced from their homes. Later he faced protests and a partial ban on his film Fanaa, but the Prime Minister of India, Manmohan Singh, supported him by saying, "Everyone has the freedom of expression. If someone says something on a particular subject, that doesn't mean you should start protesting." Aamir also lent his support to the Janlokpal Bill Movement led by Anna Hazare in August 2011.

His 2007 film, Taare Zameen Par, was also produced by him and marked his directorial debut. The film, which was the second offering from Aamir Khan Productions, starred Khan in a supporting role as a teacher who befriends and helps a dyslexic child. It opened to excellent responses from critics and audiences. Khan's performance was well-received, although he was particularly applauded for his directing. Khan received the Filmfare Awards for Best Director and Best Film of 2007, as well as the National Film Award for Best Film on Family Welfare. The film won other awards, including the 2008 Zee Cine Awards and 4th Apsara Film & Television Producers Guild Awards. The film was initially acclaimed as India's official entry for the 2009 Academy Awards Best Foreign Film.

In 2007, he directed and produced the drama Taare Zameen Par, which marked his directorial debut. Khan also played a supporting role in the film, sharing the screen with new child actor Darsheel Safary. The film was conceived of and developed by the husband and wife team of Amole Gupte and Deepa Bhatia. It is the story of a young child who suffers in school until a teacher identifies him as dyslexic. The movie was critically acclaimed, as well as a box office success. Taare Zameen Par won the 2008 Filmfare Best Movie Award as well as a number of other Filmfare and Star Screen Awards. Khan's work also won him the Best Director. In 2008, Khan launched his nephew Imran Khan's debut in the film Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na under his production house. The film was a big hit in India, and earned Khan another nomination for Best Film at Filmfare. He also co-wrote the blockbuster film Ghajini (2008), which he starred in; Khan made alterations to the original 2005 Tamil film and rewrote the climax. In 2010, he released his production Peepli Live, which was selected as India's official entry for the 83rd Academy Awards' Best Foreign Film category.

In 2007, Khan was invited to have a wax imitation of himself put on display at Madame Tussauds in London. Khan declined, saying, "It's not important to me ... people will see my films if they want to. Also, I cannot deal with so many things, I have bandwidth only for that much." Khan also endorsed brands including Coca-Cola, Godrej, Titan Watches, Tata Sky, Toyota Innova, Samsung, Monaco Biscuits and Snapdeal.

In 2008, Khan appeared in the movie Ghajini. The film was a major commercial success and became the highest-grossing Bollywood movie of that year. For his performance in the film, Khan received several Best Actor nominations at various award ceremonies as well as his fifteenth Filmfare Best Actor nomination.

In 2009, Khan appeared in the commercially and critically acclaimed film 3 Idiots as Ranchodas Chanchad. 3 Idiots became the highest-grossing Bollywood film ever at the time, breaking the previous record set by Ghajini, which also starred Khan. 3 Idiots was one of the few Indian films to become a success in East Asian markets such as China and Japan, at the time making it the highest-grossing Bollywood film ever in overseas markets. It was expected to be the first Indian film to be officially released on YouTube, within 12 weeks of releasing in theatres on 25 March 2010, but finally got officially released on YouTube in May 2012. The film won six Filmfare Awards (including Best Film and Best Director), ten Star Screen Awards, eight IIFA Awards, and three National Film Awards. Overseas, it won the Grand Prize at Japan's Videoyasan Awards, and was nominated for Best Outstanding Foreign Language Film at the Japan Academy Awards and Best Foreign Film at China's Beijing International Film Festival.

In a 2009 interview, Khan stated that he tends to take an independent approach to the world of filmmaking, noting that he does not "do different things; I try to do it in a different manner. I think every person should follow his/her dream and try and make it possible to create an ability to achieve it backed by its practicality." He has also indicated that he is more interested in the process of filmmaking than in the end result: "For me, the process is more important, more joyful. I would like to have my entire concentration on the process right from the first step."

In 2011, Khan released his home production Dhobi Ghat, an art house film directed by his wife Kiran Rao. In the same year, Khan co-produced the English language black comedy film Delhi Belly with UTV Motion Pictures, starring Imran Khan, Kunaal Roy Kapur and Vir Das. The film opened to critical acclaim and was a commercial success, with a domestic revenue of over ₹550 million (US$7.7 million). In 2012, Khan starred in Reema Kagti's neo-noir mystery film Talaash, which was a joint production of Excel Entertainment and Aamir Khan Productions. The film was declared a semi-hit in India and accumulated a worldwide gross of ₹1.74 billion (US$24 million).

Around August 2011, Khan started talks with Siddhartha Basu's BIG Synergy to host a talk show similar to The Oprah Winfrey Show.

On 30 November 2011, Khan was appointed national brand ambassador of UNICEF to promote child nutrition. He is part of the government-organised IEC campaign to raise awareness about malnutrition. He is also known for supporting causes such as feminism and improved education in India, which are themes in several of his films. His crossover success in China has been described as a form of Indian soft power, helping to improve China–India relations, despite political tensions between the two nations (such as Doklam and the Maldives), with Khan stating he wants to help "improve India-China ties". Due to Aamir Khan being a household name in China, he is being considered as India's brand ambassador to China by the Indian commerce ministry, which may contribute to reducing the trade deficit with China.

Khan made his television debut with his talk show, Satyamev Jayate. The show dealt with social issues. It started airing on 6 May 2012. Aamir was paid Rs. 30 million rupees per episode to host the Satyamev Jayate, and it made him the highest paid host in Indian television industry as of June 2012. Aamir, speaking on a radio channel, said that in view of phenomenal public response, he may come up with a second season of the show. The show went live simultaneously on StarPlus, Star World and national broadcaster Doordarshan on the 11 am Sunday slot in eight languages, being the first to do so in India.

He has been supporting common causes; when asked about views on the entertainment tax in the 2012 budget, Khan said, "I don't want any reduction in that, all I expect is focus on education and nutrition." He quit the GOI's copyrights panels in February 2010 after facing sharp differences with other members. During the promotion of 3 Idiots, he journeyed to diverse parts of India, mostly to small towns, noting that "film makers from Mumbai don't understand small-town India." This experience of reaching out to "regional India" was extended in his debut TV show, Satyamev Jayate. On 16 July 2012, Khan met the prime minister and the minister for social justice and empowerment and discussed the plight of manual scavengers and sought eradication of manual scavenging in the country.

Khan's next venture was Dhoom 3 with Yash Raj Films. He has considered this to be the most difficult role of his career. The film was released worldwide on 20 December 2013. Box Office India declared Dhoom 3 "the biggest hit of 2013" after two days of release, with the film grossing ₹2 billion (US$28 million) worldwide in three days and ₹4 billion (US$56 million) worldwide in ten days, making it the highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time.

Khan has made a number of appearances on other TV shows. In October 2013, Khan appeared as a guest celebrity contestant in the show Kaun Banega Crorepati for the promotion of his film Dhoom 3. In early 2016, following the intolerance controversy, he made an appearance on Aap Ki Adalat, where he clarified his remarks and views. In 2017, he was the subject of an episode of the Al Jazeera documentary series Witness entitled "The Snake Charmer", focusing on his work on Satyamev Jayate as well as Dangal.

In April 2013, he was among Time magazine's list of the 100 Most Influential People in the World. Khan was featured on the cover of Time magazine Asia edition in the September 2012 issue with title "Khan's Quest" – "He is breaking the Bollywood mold by tackling India's social evils. Can an actor change a nation?" In addition to being highly popular in India, he is also highly popular overseas, particularly in China, the second largest movie market. He is the most followed Indian national on Chinese social media site Sina Weibo, above Indian prime minister Narendra Modi. Khan is also popular in Turkey, Hong Kong, and Singapore, among many other countries.

A practising Muslim, Khan along with his mother Zeenat, performed Hajj, an annual Islamic pilgrimage to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, and a mandatory religious duty for Muslims, in 2013. His wife Kiran Rao is a Hindu. In March 2015, Khan stated that he has quit non-vegetarian food and has adopted a vegan lifestyle after being inspired by his wife.

In 2014, Khan appeared as the eponymous alien in Rajkumar Hirani's comedy-drama PK. It also starred Anushka Sharma, Sushant Singh Rajput, Boman Irani and Sanjay Dutt in pivotal roles. The film received critical acclaim and emerged as the highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time (the fourth time Khan achieved this feat). Khan's performance was unanimously praised by critics including Tamil leading actor Vijay was impressed by Aamir's perfection and dedication and reportedly enjoyed the film with his family on Christmas Eve. Raja Sen called the film a "triumph" and said: "Aamir Khan is exceptional in PK, creating an irresistibly goofy character and playing him with absolute conviction." The film won two Filmfare Awards, and in Japan received a top award at the 9th Tokyo Newspaper Film Awards event held by Tokyo Shimbun newspaper.

Prior to pursuing a full-time acting career, Khan was an avid tennis player. He played professionally in state level championships in the 1980s, becoming a state level tennis champion, prior to entering a full-time acting career. In 2014, Aamir Khan participated in an exhibition match for the International Premier Tennis League, playing doubles with grand slam winners Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, as well as Sania Mirza.

In February 2015, Khan stated his views at a popular online comedy group All India Bakchod for its celebrity Roast episode. He said, "I completely believe in freedom of speech, no issues. But we have to understand that we all have a certain responsibility. When I heard what was being described to me I felt it was a violent event." He further said violence is not just physical but it has verbal aspects to it. Calling the roast a shameless act, Khan did not spare even his friends from the film industry Karan, Ranveer and Arjun.

In November 2015, Khan expressed the feelings that he and his wife Kiran Rao had about rising intolerance in India at an event in New Delhi hosted by The Indian Express newspaper. This was in response to recent political events in India, including violent attacks against Muslims and intellectuals, along with the absence of swift or strong condemnation from the country's ruling BJP Modi government. Khan remarked that his wife Kiran, fearing for her family, suggested to "move out of India", to his surprise. Khan's remark about intolerance in India and his wife suggesting to "move out of India" sparked political controversy, referred to as the "intolerance row" in the Indian media, and started a debate on social media. Khan faced intense backlash for his comments, with certain sections of society branding him "anti-national", while others voiced their agreement about his concerns and applauded him.

Khan later clarified his comments in January 2016, saying that he never said India was intolerant or that he thought about leaving the country, saying he was "born in India and will die in India." He said that his comments were taken out of context and the media was responsible for it to some extent. Despite this, he continued to face backlash later in the year, with calls for protests and boycotts against his film Dangal. In October 2016, the Vishva Hindu Parishad called for protests against the film. Following its release in December 2016, #BoycottDangal was trending on Twitter, and BJP general secretary Kailash Vijayvargiya called for protests against the film. Despite calls to boycott the film, Dangal surprisingly turned out to be a massive hit, grossing more than ₹500 crore (US$70 million) in India.

In 2016, Aamir khan came up with Maharashtra government to make Maharashtra drought free in next five years. He has been doing shramdaan from last 3 years. He even asks people to come join him in this cause and become a jalmitra by doing shramdaan. While explaining to journalists, Aamir said, "the reason why popular TV show Satyamev Jayate did not go on air was not because of Court's verdict, but because all the producers, directors and talents working on this show were busy in this water project. For us, the water conservation project in the State is the most important initiative. Khan is a co-founder of Paani Foundation with his wife Kiran Rao. It's a non-profit, non-governmental organisation which is active in the area of drought prevention and watershed management in the state of Maharashtra, India.

In October 2017, Khan starred in a supporting role in his production Secret Superstar, with his Dangal co-star Zaira Wasim playing the lead role. See Film production and direction section below for further details on the film

In November 2018, he starred alongside veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan in the action adventure film Thugs of Hindostan. The film reunited him with Dhoom 3's director Vijay Krishna Acharya. and also starred Fatima Sana Shaikh and Katrina Kaif. Shaikh also appeared in Dangal while Kaif appeared alongside Khan in Dhoom 3.

In March 2019, on his 54th birthday, Khan confirmed that he will next be seen in Laal Singh Chaddha, an adaptation of the 1994 Hollywood classic, Forrest Gump. The film will feature Khan in the lead and will be directed by Advait Chandan, who previously directed Khan in Secret Superstar. The film will go on floors in October 2019 and is expected to release some time in 2020.

Khan's children have also ventured into the entertainment industry. In September 2019, his daughter Ira announced on social media that she would be directing a theatrical production, her first, a version of Euripides' Medea. Veteran actress Sarika, ex-wife of Kamal Haasan, and her daughter Akshara Haasan produced the play, and Khan's sister Farhat Dutta had painted a poster for its promotion.