Happy Birthday Aamir Khan: The legend turns 51

Bollywood megastar Aamir Khan turns 51 today. The actor has had one of the longest careers in Bollywood, as he made his debut back in 1988, a year before Salman Khan and nearly 4 years before Shah Rukh Khan. Even after 27 years in the industry, Aamir remains one of the biggest crowd pullers – if not the biggest. 

Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak marked the acting debut of Aamir, a film where he was cast opposite the beautiful Juhi Chawla. The Mansoor Khan directed film went on to be a blockbuster at the box office and Aamir became a teenage heartthrob. Produced by his father and directed by his uncle, QSQT went on to win 8 Filmfare awards (including Best Debut for Aamir) and two national awards – Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment and Aamir received a ‘Special mention’ certificate.

It was the most prolific period in Aamir’s career as he did 2-4 films every year. In fact, between 1989 and 1992, Aamir did more films than he has done in the most successful phase in his career i.e between 2005 – 2016. Very few films did well at the box office and Aamir’s success ratio during this period was poor.

Post QSQT and until the end of the century, Aamir only had two films that were big hits at the box office – Raja Hindustani (which remains one of the biggest films of his career and arguably his biggest ‘mass’ hit) and Dil. A cult classic like Andaz Apna Apna was a washout at the box office and classics like Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikander weren’t hugely successful.

The founder of the 100, 200, 300 and every other ‘club’ in Bollywood, wasn’t quite the star that he once was. Quality-wise, most of his films during the 90s did not meet the ‘Aamir Khan standard’ and commercially too his success ratio was low.

Reflecting on those films, Aamir says it’s his failures that turned out to be the biggest learnings in his career. It’s those very films that helped him gain the ‘script sense’ that’s currently unmatched by any other star in the country.

“There are a lot of films I did that didn’t make me happy, but it is also true that you don’t always get success despite all efforts. When I look back and see these films, I feel that I’ve learnt a lot from my unsuccessful films. Those are my biggest learnings. My failures have taught me as much as my successful films, and they are equally special to me” Aamir said as he celebrated 25 years in the industry, back in December 2013.

Today, as the legendary Aamir Khan turns 51, the actor remains the biggest inspiration for many in the country, including co-stars and other actors in the industry. The effort that he has put into his latest film ‘Dangal’ is unprecedented and even at the very peak of his career, Aamir spends a year losing and gaining weight for his roles. Putting his health and life at risk to make his characters look convincing on screen.

It’s his hard work, dedication and knowing the pulse of the audience that has taken him several notches above everyone else in the industry – atleast as far as the ‘trust’ and ‘quality’ factors are concerned. Even if Aamir releases a film without a trailer, the audience would still queue up outside theatres in big numbers, expecting no less than a classic.

We wish Aamir Khan a very happy birthday and hope he continues to entertain the audience for many more years to come. We also pray for his good health and happiness.

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