Farhan Akhtar was born January 9, 1974 is an Indian film actor, director, screenwriter, play singer, producer and television host. Born in Mumbai to screenwriters Javed Akhtar and Honey Irani, he grew up influenced by the Hindi film industry. He started his career in Bollywood working as an assistant director in Lamhe (1991) and Himalay Putra (1997).
Akhtar, after setting up a production company named Excel Entertainment with Ritesh Sidhwani in 1999, made his directorial debut with Dil Chahta Hai (2001) and received critical acclaim for portraying modern youth. The film also won a national award. for which he wrote the lyrics. He went on to make Don’s commercial success (2006). He made a short film called Positive (2007), to raise awareness of HIV-AIDS.
Although he first started his acting career with The Fakir of Venice, his official debut was with Rock On !! (2008), for which he won a second national award for Best Hindi Feature Film as a producer, and engaged in further experimentation before writing the screenplay (dialogues), produced and acted for success critic and commercial Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara (2011)), which won him four Filmfare Awards.
He married Adhuna Bhabani in 2000, after being in a relationship with her for 3 years. They first met while filming her directorial debut Dil Chahta Hai in 2001, which also marked Adhuna’s debut as a Bollywood hairdresser. The couple have two daughters named Shakya and Akira. On January 21, 2016, the couple officially announced their separation after 16 years of marriage.
Farhan Akhtar Biodata and Biography |
|
Name
|
Farhan Akhtar
|
Nick-name
|
Bulbul
|
Sex
|
Male
|
Date Of Birth
|
9 January 1974
|
Age
|
49 Years (as in 2023)
|
Profession / Occupation
|
Actor, Producer, Director, Screenwriter, Singer (Hindi)
|
Mother Tongue
|
Hindi
|
Religion
|
Atheist
|
Nation
|
Indian
|
Zodiac Sign
|
Capricorn
|
Height / Weight
|
5′ 9” / 70kg
|
First Movie |
Rock On!! (2008, Hindi)
|
First Debut |
Director: Dil Chahta Hai (2001, Hindi)
Producer: Don (2006, Hindi) Lyricist: Bride and Prejudice (2004, Hindi) Playback Singer: Rock On (2008, Hindi) |
Money Factor |
10 crore/TV show season, Net Worth: Rs.140 Crore ($22 million)
|
Farhan Akhtar Family and Relatives |
|
Father
|
Javed Akhtar (Lyricist and Scriptwriter)
|
Mother
|
Honey Irani (Actress & Screenwriter), Shabana Azmi (Stepmother)
|
Brothers
|
None
|
Sisters |
Zoya Akhtar (Director & Screenwriter)
|
Marital Status
|
Married
|
Wife |
Adhuna Bhabani (m.2000-div.2017)
Shibani Dandekar (m.2022-present)
|
Daughters |
Shakya Akhtar & Akira Akhtar
|
Sons | None |
Girlfriends/ Affairs | Adhuna Bhabani (Hairstylist) Shraddha Kapoor (Actress) Shibani Dandekar (Actress, VJ) |
Read More:
Farhan Akhtar Favorites |
|
Favorite Colour
|
Not Known
|
Favorite Actor
|
Bollywood: Guru Dutt, Bimal Roy, Raj Kapoor, Vijay Anand
Hollywood: Robert De Niro, Martin Scorsese, Ridley Scott, Woody Allen, Billy Wilder |
Favorite Actress
|
Preity Zinta |
Favorite Food | Homemade food, Vada Pao, Kebabs, Mutton Biryani |
Hobbies | Collecting Gadgets, Singing |
Favorite Director | Alfred Hitchcock |
Favorite Movies | The Wizard of Oz (1939) |
Favorite Genre | Action |
Favorite Sports | Football, Tennis |
Favorite Destination | Not Known |
Favorite Car Collections | Range Rover Red Edition, M350 CDI SUV, Porsche Cayman, Honda CRV |
Farhan Akhtar worked as an apprentice in film distribution & direction for Lamhe in 1991. At that time, he was only 17 years old.
Later, before launching as distributor & writer, he moved to an advertisement production house named ‘Script Shop’.
In 2001, he made his writing & directional debut with Dil Chahta Hai. It was a turning point in his career.
The film won National Film Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi for 2002. During the same year he along with sister Zoya assisted his father in writing the English lyrics of a song in film Lagaan.
In 2004, he did a movie Lakshya, in that movie he acted with Hritik Roshan & Preity Zinta. In the same year, he wrote the English lyrics of Bride and Prejudice along with sister Zoya.
In 2006, Farhan Akhtar directed, produced and wrote the screenplay of Don starring Shah Rukh Khan. In 2007, he produced the film Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd.
In the same year, he directed Positive, a film with Boman Irani and Shabana Azmi. It was a short film running for 12 minutes.