Akshaye Khanna

Biography

Akshaye Khanna is a two-time Filmfare Award-winning Indian actor celebrated as one of the most naturally gifted, intellectually subtle, and enigmatic character actors in contemporary Hindi cinema. The younger son of legendary Bollywood superstar Vinod Khanna, Akshaye made his debut in Himalay Putra (1997) before delivering an electrifying, emotionally charged breakthrough as the young soldier Dharamvir in J.P. Dutta's patriotic war classic Border (1997), winning the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut. Demonstrating extraordinary understated nuance and emotional depth, Khanna delivered a career-defining performance as the sensitive, artistic Siddharth 'Sid' Sinha in Farhan Akhtar's seminal youth drama Dil Chahta Hai (2001), winning the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor. He showcased sparkling versatility across comedy and psychological thrillers, starring as the cunning antagonist in Abbas-Mustan's Humraaz (2002) and Race (2008), Priyadarshan's classic comedies Hungama (2003) and Hulchul (2004), and Feroz Abbas Khan's biographical drama Gandhi, My Father (2007 as Harilal Gandhi, screened at international film festivals). In recent years, Khanna has earned immense critical acclaim for his razor-sharp portrayals of investigative officers and defense attorneys in Mom (2017 opposite Sridevi), Ittefaq (2017), Section 375 (2019 opposite Richa Chadha), and Drishyam 2 (2022 as IG Tarun Ahlawat). Known for his aversion to celebrity glamour and total dedication to realistic acting, Akshaye Khanna is widely respected as an actor's actor.