Farhan Akhtar is a versatile Bollywood personality whose works in the Hindi film industry as an actor, director, producer, screenwriter, playback singer and lyricist have won him huge acclamations from viewers as well as critics. This dynamic persona created waves in Bollywood with his directorial venture Dil Chahta Hai in the year 2001. Gradually he moved towards acting and excelled in the same winning a number of prestigious awards. His poignant portrayal of diverse roles has earned him a special place in the film industry.

Early Life of Farhan Akhtar
Farhan Akhtar was born on 9th January 1974 in Mumbai to screenwriters Javed Akhtar and Honey Irani. His sister Zoya Akhtar is also a film personality who works as a writer and director. During his early days his parents divorced and in the year 1984 his father got married to veteran actress Shabana Azmi. Noted Urdu poet Muztar Khairabadi was the great grandfather of Farhan Akhtar whereas Jan Nisar Akhtar was his grandfather. Filmmakers Farah Khan and Sajid Khan are his cousins. Farhan completed his schooling from Maneckji Cooper School in Mumbai and later attended HR College to study law. However he was dismissed from the college in his second year owing to short attendance.

Career of Farhan Akhtar as a Filmmaker
Farhan Akhtar stepped into the entertainment world as an apprentice in cinematography and direction in the year 1991 for Yash Chopra`s Lamhe at the age of 17. Later he shifted to an advertisement production house titled `Script Shop` for about 3 years. In 1997 he worked as an assistant director for the Bollywood movie Himalay Putra. Farhan Akhtar made his debut in direction and writing with the Bollywood chartbuster Dil Chahta Hai in the year 2001 under his own production house Excel Entertainment Pvt. Ltd which he set up in 1999 along with Ritesh Sidhwani. The film featured Aamir Khan, Akshaye Khanna, Saif Ali Khan, Dimple Kapadia and Sonali Kulkarni and went on to become a huge success earning him international critical acclaim and attaining an iconic status. For the film he was accredited for creating a new wave in the Indian cinema. It also won him several prestigious awards including the National Film Award. Subsequently he went on to direct his next film Lakshya starring the Bollywood actor Hrithik Roshan. The film hovered around the theme of finding oneself. Though the film did not become a huge hit but all acclaimed his work and he won many accolades for it. He then wrote the screenplay, produced and directed the remake of the super hit film of the yesteryears titled Don and named it as Don - The Chase Begins. This film starred the Bollywood star Shah Rukh Khan in the lead role. This film again worked wonders for him by rocking the whole nation. Soon after he produced another low budget film Honeymoon Travels Pvt. Ltd in 2007 which again did very well at the box-office and earned him much honour. He also directed a short film titled Positive starring Shabana Azmi and Boman Irani which was made for creating awareness among people about HIV-AIDS. In 2011 he produced and wrote the dialogues for the drama thriller Game featuring Abhishek Bachchan, Jimmy Shergill and Kangna Ranaut.

Career of Farhan Akhtar as an Actor
Farhan Akhtar made his acting and singing debut in 2008 with the Bollywood flick Rock On!! in which he also worked as the producer and dialogue writer. Directed by Abhishek Kapoor, the film met huge critical appreciations. Farhan also sang five songs for the film and his performance was marked as flawless. Although the film performed moderately at the box office it won the actor several accolades for his brilliant debut performance. He next acted in Zoya Akhtar`s directional debut Luck By Chance alongside Konkona Sen and Hrithik Roshan in 2009. Positive reviews from the critics were bestowed on the film as well as Farhan`s performance. The Fakir of Venice was his next film as an actor which was initially supposed to be his acting debut but its release delayed till 2009.

In 2010 Farhan Akhtar starred in the romantic thriller Karthik Calling Karthik along with Deepika Padukone. Although the movie was a below average grosser his acting was praised by the critics. He next appeared in Zoya Akhtar`s Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara in the lead role and also worked as the dialogue writer for the same. His performance in the movie was appreciated and was tagged as sensitive and soulful by the critics. His next venture was the biopic Bhaag Milkha Bhaag in 2013 under the direction of Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. In the movie he essayed the role of Milkha Singh, the renowned athlete of India. Farhan`s performance was incredibly applauded by the critics as well as viewers earning him a number of film awards. In 2014 he acted in Bollywood romantic comedy Shaadi Ke Side Effects opposite Vidya Balan which met with mixed reviews.

Other Ventures of Farhan Akhtar
In the year 2002 Farhan Akhtar judged the beauty pageant Femina Miss India. He also appeared as a judge in the dance-reality show, Nach Baliye in 2005. In the same year he anchored the television show Oye! It`s Friday! He has also endorsed a number of brands. He also launched a social campaign titled Men Against Rape and Discrimination or MARD.

Personal Life of Farhan Akhtar
Farhan Akhtar is married to Adhuna Bhabani since the year 2000. The couple is blessed with two children named Shakya and Akira.

Achievements of Farhan Akhtar