Bollywood actor Akshaye Khanna has been trending across the internet since the past two weeks, ever since his film Dhurandhar arrived in theatres. Directed by Aditya Dhar, the spy action thriller also stars Ranveer Singh, Arjun Rampal, Sara Arjun and Sanjay Dutt in never-seen-before avatars. But Akshaye managed to shine the brightest with his unmatchable aura. Fans can’t get enough and are now revisiting his old performances. Well, today we got our hands on a resurfaced interview of Akshaye from many years ago. In this video, Akshaye reveals how he told his father and late superstar Vinod Khanna that he wanted to be an actor at the age of 18.
In the viral clip, Akshaye Khanna begins by opening up about the beginning of his career in the film industry. He shared, “Success shuruaat mein bohot kum mili mujhe. Bohot kum mili. Galat filmein maine ki, galat scripts maine chuni. Toh, gadbad hua tha. Par main kabhi kisi ki nakal karne ki koshish nahi karta.” When asked if his father encouraged him to become an actor, Akshaye revealed, “Nahi, kisi ne encourage nahi kiya. Woh chahte the ki main aage jaake aur bhi padhu. Lekin, mere khayal se, main jab 15-16 saal ka tha, tab se main decide kar chuka tha ki main... agar mujhe kuchh karna hai life mein, toh main yahi kar sakta hun. Toh main yahi karunga. Aur yahi se mujhe khushi milegi aur satisfaction milega.”
Sharing how he told his father he wanted to be an actor, Akshaye recalled, “Actually, J.P. Dutta sahab jo the woh mere pitaji ke ghar pe aaye the khaane ke liye. Main uss wakt boarding school mein tha aur meri umar kuchh 18 saal ki thi. Toh unhone mujhe kaha, woh ek kone mein baithe the, unhone kaha, ‘Main ek picture bana raha hun, Border. Tu kaam karna chahega? Ek aisa hai mere paas ek role.’ Toh, kyunki main bolna chahta tha apne pitaji se, thodi si ghabrahat hoti thi ki main kab bolu, kaise bolu ki main kaam karna chahta hun filmon mein. Toh yeh mujhe laga ki sabse sahi mauka hai, isko aap matlab dono haath se pakad lo. Toh maine kaha ki, ‘Haan, main karunga kaam. Kab shuru ho rahi hai picture?’ Ek saal ke baad. Toh tab tak main chhootne waala tha school se. Toh mere pitaji ne kaha, ‘Kya? Filmon mein kaam karna chahte ho?’ Maine bola, ‘Haan, dekhte hain. Ek chhota sa role hai, multi-star cast film hai, J.P. sahab ne poocha toh maine bola chalo main koshish karta hun.’ Toh wahan se unko pata chala. Toh unhone kaha, ‘Nahi, agar tu karna chahta hai toh mujhe bol.’ Maine kaha, ‘Haan, main karna chahta hun.’ Toh he’s like, ‘Phir main ek picture banata hun tere liye’.”
{{/usCountry}}Sharing how he told his father he wanted to be an actor, Akshaye recalled, “Actually, J.P. Dutta sahab jo the woh mere pitaji ke ghar pe aaye the khaane ke liye. Main uss wakt boarding school mein tha aur meri umar kuchh 18 saal ki thi. Toh unhone mujhe kaha, woh ek kone mein baithe the, unhone kaha, ‘Main ek picture bana raha hun, Border. Tu kaam karna chahega? Ek aisa hai mere paas ek role.’ Toh, kyunki main bolna chahta tha apne pitaji se, thodi si ghabrahat hoti thi ki main kab bolu, kaise bolu ki main kaam karna chahta hun filmon mein. Toh yeh mujhe laga ki sabse sahi mauka hai, isko aap matlab dono haath se pakad lo. Toh maine kaha ki, ‘Haan, main karunga kaam. Kab shuru ho rahi hai picture?’ Ek saal ke baad. Toh tab tak main chhootne waala tha school se. Toh mere pitaji ne kaha, ‘Kya? Filmon mein kaam karna chahte ho?’ Maine bola, ‘Haan, dekhte hain. Ek chhota sa role hai, multi-star cast film hai, J.P. sahab ne poocha toh maine bola chalo main koshish karta hun.’ Toh wahan se unko pata chala. Toh unhone kaha, ‘Nahi, agar tu karna chahta hai toh mujhe bol.’ Maine kaha, ‘Haan, main karna chahta hun.’ Toh he’s like, ‘Phir main ek picture banata hun tere liye’.”
{{/usCountry}}In 1997, Akshaye Khanna made his acting debut with Himalay Putra, co-starring and produced by his father Vinod Khanna. Later that year, he was seen in Border. For his performances in both films, Akshaye was honoured with the Most Promising Newcomer award.