About Imran Khan

Imran Khan (pronounced  born Imran Pal 13 January 1983) is an Indian film actor who appears in

Hindi-language films. He is the nephew of actor Aamir Khan and director-producer Mansoor Khan, and the grandson of director-producer Nasir Hussain. He appeared as a child actor in the films Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988) and Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander (1992).

Khan made his adult acting debut in 2008 with the romantic comedy Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na, which was a critical and commercial success. His performance in the film won him the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut. After the failure of his next two films, Khan was written off by the media, calling him a "one film wonder". He then starred in a number of commercially successful films like I Hate Luv Storys (2010), Delhi Belly (2011), Mere Brother Ki Dulhan (2011) and Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu (2012).

Khan is regarded as one of the most popular, good-looking and stylish celebrities in India. He is a social activist, and has written columns for The Hindustan Times. He is a supporter of PETA, having appeared in events organised for the group. He married Avantika Malik in January 2011, after a ten-year relationship.

Early life and background

Imran Khan was born Imran Pal on 13 January 1983 in Madison, Wisconsin, United States to Anil Pal (a software engineer) and Nuzhat Khan (a psychologist). He is the nephew of actor Aamir Khan and director-producer Mansoor Khan, and the grandson of director-producer Nasir Hussain. Khan is of Hindu Bengali descent on his father's side, and on his mother's side he is a Muslim.

Khan and his mother moved to Mumbai, India after his parents divorced. He appeared in the films Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988) and Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander (1992) as a child artist, both times playing the role of a young Aamir Khan. He was educated at Bombay Scottish School, where he developed a bad stammer due to corporal punishments such as caning. According to Khan, his grades fell and his academic career went into a "strong decline" due to his inability to cope with his environment; he became nervous and developed facial tics. As a result, his parents transferred him to Blue Mountain School (a boarding school) in Coonoor. Khan described his experience there as "phenomenal"; when the principal left to start his own school, he and several other students followed him to a Gurukul in the jungles of Ooty, with no electricity where the students washed their clothes in a creek and grew some of the food they ate. Khan later admitted that frequently changing schools made him independent but also a loner.

Khan then moved to Sunnyvale, California, where he lived with his father and attended Fremont High School. Upon graduation he aspired to become a film director, and went to Los Angeles to pursue a degree in filmmaking at the Los Angeles branch of the New York Film Academy. Studying direction, writing and cinematography, Khan was inspired by writer Roald Dahl. After receiving his degree, he ventured into market research and advertising. He eventually returned to Mumbai and trained to become an actor at Kishore Namit Kapoor's acting institute.

Acting career

2008–10: Debut and breakthrough

While training at the acting institute, Khan began networking and met writer-director Abbas Tyrewala, who offered him the lead role in Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na (2008). After producer Jhamu Sugandh experienced financial difficulties they offered the script to Aamir Khan, who agreed to finance the film. The romantic comedy received positive reviews and was a commercial success, earning 830 million (US$15 million) worldwide. Khan's portrayal of Jai Singh Rathore (Rats)—a boy who does not believe in violence—was praised by critics. Khalid Mohammed mentioned that "the enterprise belongs to debutant Imran Khan who comes up with an intelligent and restrained performance." Rajeev Masand of CNN-IBN called him "the best young actor" of the time, calling his performance as "unconventional and vulnerable" and stating that it created "a lasting impression."Khan won the Best Male Debut at the 54th Filmfare Awards, sharing the award with Farhan Akhtar.

Khan at the screening of I Hate Luv Storys

Following Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na, Khan starred in Sanjay Gadhvi's thriller Kidnap. He was cast as Kabir Sharma, a kidnapper who abducts a girl to settle an old score with her father, portrayed by Minissha Lamba and Sanjay Dutt, respectively. The actor was initially hesitant to play the part (calling it "tricky and tough") because he couldn't relate to the character; according to him, he would not have been able to do it without Gadhvi's support and backing. In preparation for his role, Khan listened to metal and rock music for a year in order to become aggressive. While the film was a critical failure, his performance was generally well received by critics. Gaurav Malani, in a review for The Economic Times, wrote: "Imran Khan is effective as the intelligent abductor who's always two steps ahead of his opponent. However, the natural actor could go easy on his lip movements that appear synthetic at times." Kidnap was also a commercial failure, despite a strong opening at the box office.

In 2009, Khan featured alongside an ensemble cast including Dutt, Shruti Hassan, Mithun Chakraborty and Danny Denzongpa in Soham Shah's action thriller Luck, playing Ram Mehra—an average middle-class man in dire need of money and ready to do anything for it. In an interview he said that the stunts (and the "unusual" concept of human betting) inspired him to sign the film. He burnt his eyelashes while shooting for the climax scene. The film was a commercial failure and generated negative reviews from critics, as did Khan's performance. Rediff.com's Raja Sen stated that the performance lacked the charm of his earlier performances.

After the failure of Kidnap and Luck, Khan received less film offers, until Karan Johar approached him for the lead role in I Hate Luv Storys (2010). Directed by Punit Malhotra, the romantic comedy saw him portray Jai Dhingra, a young Casanova who does not believe in the concept of love and romance. The film garnered mixed reviews from critics; Khan's performance was generally well received. Komal Nahta wrote, "Imran Khan is endearing and does well for a good part of the film. But he does need to improve in emotional scenes. He  is is free and lovable in the light scenes. I Hate Luv Storys was a domestic and international box-office success, earning over 730 million (US$13 million). Khan expressed his gratitude that Johar gave him the opportunity. His next appearance was in Danish Aslam's coming-of-age romantic comedy Break Ke Baad. A commercial failure, the film (and his performance) received mixed reviews; while Namrata Joshi of Outlook labelled his performance "earnest", Anupama Chopra said that "Imran is saddled with a bland, supporting role".

2011–present: Commercial success

In 2011, Khan earned positive reviews for his role in Abhinay Deo's English languageblack comedy Delhi Belly. He was cast as Tashi, a journalist caught up in a hunt for diamonds—smuggled for a crime boss in Delhi—he and his roommates (Kunaal Roy Kapur and Vir Das) have mistakenly taken. The film opened to critical acclaim and was a commercial success, with a worldwide revenue of over 920 million (US$17 million).[38] A review in Mid Day described his performance as "refreshingly good"[39] and Nikhat Kazmi of The Times of India called it his best work to date. Khan said about the film, "It is the kind of film that I have always wanted to do, and it is very different to what has been done before in Hindi cinema."

Later that year, Khan acted in Ali Abbas Zafar's romantic comedy Mere Brother Ki Dulhan. The film received mixed reviews, but was a domestic and international box-office success (with a worldwide gross of 940 million (US$17 million)).Khan played Kush Agnihotri, a man who falls in love with his brother's bride, played by Ali Zafar and Katrina Kaif, respectively. His performance was praised by critics; Sify's Sonia Chopra referred to him as "instantly likeable".

For his next feature film, Khan starred as Rahul Kapoor, an uptight architect, in Shakun Batra's directorial debut Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu (2012) with Kareena Kapoor. The romantic comedy, set in Las Vegas, is the story of two strangers who get married one night after they get drunk. Khan described his character as "a guy who lives his life according to his parents' wishes." The film (and his performance) received positive reviews from critics, with Rajeev Masand writing that "Imran Khan slips comfortably into his role". Karan Anshuman of Mumbai Mirror opined, "Imran Khan is superbly cast and he doesn't let down. His body language slackens in progression as the script demands and he is absolutely spot on with his comic timing." Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu was a modest commercial success, earning a total of 530 million (US$9.7 million) in India and abroad.

The following year, Khan appeared in Vishal Bhardwaj's Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola, a political satire set in the rustic surroundings of a village in Haryana. Co-starring with Pankaj Kapur, Anushka Sharma and Shabana Azmi, Khan played Hukum Singh Matru, an educated community activist, and Kapur's right-hand man. To prepare for the role, he lived in Delhi for three months and learned to speak Haryanvi from theatre group Act One. The film (and his performance) generated mixed reviews from critics and its eventual box-office profit was poor. Reuters' Shilpa Jamkhandikar wrote, "Imran Khan goes red in the face trying to muster up a Haryanvi accent and act tough. You can actually see the effort in his acting and that's why it jars all the more." Subhash K Jha described it as a good effort, at best. Khan also sang for the film's soundtrack in "Chaar Dina Ki".

As of April 2013, Khan is due to appear in Milan Luthria's action drama film Once Upon a Time Again (a sequel to the 2010 film Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai) with Akshay Kumar, Sonali Bendre and Sonakshi Sinha; in Punit Malhotra's romantic comedy Gori Tere Pyaar Mein with Kareena Kapoor, and in Tigmanshu Dhulia's romance Milan Talkies with Priyanka Chopra.