Akshay Kumar, The Jackie Chan Of Indian Cinema

Ravi Valluri

Man made Hera Pheri. A block buster featuring three consummate actors, Paresh Rawal, Sunil Shetty and Chandni Chowk area brought up Akshay Kumar. The rib tickling movie could scorch the screens as the triumvirate had audiences glued to their seats and the movie grossed Rs 22 crore worldwide, though it was made at a modest scale.

It appears Lord Kuber himself had the sequel canned briskly. The three artistes teamed up once again for Phir Hera Pheri in a riveting screen display. One can recall the opening scene as Dia Mirza gyrated in an item number with Rajpal Yadav showering bounty on her.

The uproarious comedy garnered Rs 69.15 crore. Fans of the franchise are waiting with bated breaths for the release of Hera Pheri 3, scheduled for release sometime in 2019 where the artistes are to reprise their roles. While the multifaceted Paresh Rawal is known for his timing and comic roles, the real surprise package was Akshay Kumar for his vaudeville performance.

The actor was hitherto known to essay only dramatic, action packed or romantic roles. He went on to earn the sobriquet – Jackie Chan of Indian Cinema, which is certainly no mean achievement. After all the landscape of the entertainment industry is dotted with several clones of Jackie Chan who himself stepped into the arduous shoes of the iconic Bruce Lee.

The fabled Forbes magazine in August 2017, declared Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia, popularly known as Akshay Kumar, to be the tenth most remunerative actor in the world!

It was raining windfall on the trouper as he scorched the tinsel world with his films stockpiling more than Rs 2,000 crore ($ 290 million) in the year 2013 and the collections exceeded Rs 3000 crore ($ 440 million) in circa 2016. The trouper has certainly achieved exalted celebrity status in Bollywood.

This accomplished actor, blessed with a well-chiselled body and a disarming smile was declared by the tabloid, People (India), to be the sexiest person alive. The news would have made his wife, Twinkle Khanna, covetous and thrilled at the same time. But what could be sub rosa behind the physical frame blessed with a mischievous smile and a quintessential tenderness on an innocent face; a combination that allures women of all hues.

Akshay was born in Amritsar on 9 September, 1967 to Om and Aruna Bhatia. Incidentally his father served in the estimable Indian Army. Today though settled in Mumbai, the legend holds Canadian citizenship, a fact that his legion of fans are perhaps unaware of.

Years ago after schooling at Don Bosco, he went on to pursue a degree in commerce from Guru Nanak Khalsa College of Arts, Science and Commerce in Mumbai. But he dropped out and became a student of martial arts. With Zen like precision, attitude and perfection, he went on to learn the craft of Taekwondo and earned a black belt. This reflects the robustness of his mind.

He honed these skills further and sharpened his repertoire through quotidian practice of kickboxing, basketball, swimming, Parkour and regular workouts. For all the hardihood nature has in all its munificence endowed the multi tasking artiste with a brawny figure. It is to the credit of the indomitable spirit and the robust mind of Akshay Kumar that today he is a celebrated artiste, having carved a niche for himself in the Hindi film industry, otherwise dominated by the Khans, the Kapoors besides Hrithik Roshan.

Akshay Kumar’s maiden venture was Saugandh in the year 1991 which starred yesteryear superstar Rakhee and Tollywood actress Shanti Priya. In a career spanning over twenty five years, the macho and sometimes amorous artiste has delivered flops as well as stupendous successes in more than a hundred Bollywood movies.

Apart from Hera Pheri, his other prominent works include the Khiladi series, Rowdy Rathore, Rustom, the Housefull series, Aan: Men at Work, Airlift and OMG-Oh My God!

Akshay Kumar was awarded the reputed National Film Award for his sterling performance in the dramatic thriller Rustom, a fictionalised biopic on the life of naval officer K M Nanavati. He has also won the coveted Film Fare award on two occasions. It must be a matter of immense pride that the University of Windsor has conferred on him an honorary doctorate. The Indian government awarded him the Padma Shri in 2009.

Apart from acting, the actor has established his home production house called Hari Om Entertainment and also set up the Grazing Goat Pictures. Alongside he dabbled in reality shows on the small screen in the year 2009, producing Fear Factor - Khatron Ke Khiladi. More recently in 2014, he initiated a programme called Dare 2 Dance.

Akshay at heart is a sports loving person and owns a team called Khalsa Warriors in the World Kabbadi League. Recently he acted in two socio-political films – Pad Man and Toilet: Ek Prem Katha. The two movies had the feminine gender and its problems at the centrepiece. While the first advocates production of low cost sanitary napkins and their use by women, the latter is a step towards Swachh Bharat Abhiyan and highlights the plight of women who do not have access to toilets.

He has had his shares of controversies too. In 2009 during the Lakme Fashion Week the actor was asked to unzip his Levis jeans, an act that led to a defamation suit and a police complaint. There have been rumours of his affairs with his co stars. But the phenomenon has traversed huge ground to be an enormously successful actor in Bollywood also winning critical appraisal for his performances.

The lead artiste Holiday: A Soldier is Never off Duty was quoted saying, “It’s the best thing if your work is your passion in life. It makes me feel like I’m always on break.”