Actor Akshaye Khanna, who celebrates his 47th birthday today, is not someone who makes a lot of public appearances these days unless necessary. However, there was a time when his popularity was soaring. Son of yesteryear star Vinod Khanna, he made a promising debut with Himalaya Putra, a movie Vinod Khanna made as a launchpad for his son.
Akshaye followed it up with the immensely popular war film Border, which instantly catapulted him to the top league of Bollywood actors. With powerful roles in films like Taal and Dil Chahta hai, his acting capabilities impressed both the audience and the critics. He also won a Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for Dil Chahta hai.
Although he faced issues with a receding hairline, he chose to not ponder over it and kept receiving meaty roles until at least the mid-2000s. However, post that, the offers started drying up and the few movies he did during this time like Mere Baap Pehle Aap and Tees Maar Khan failed to revitalise his earlier popularity.
One aspect of his life that is talked about a lot apart from his career graph is his bachelor status. The actor never married. However, Akshaye’s name has been linked to some leading actresses during his heyday. According to reports, actor Randhir Kapoor wanted his daughter Karisma Kapoor to marry Akshaye. He had reportedly even sent word to Vinod Khanna about his desire.
However, Karisma’s mother Babita did not approve of it as her daughter was at the peak of her career at the time. She did not want her daughter to quit the entertainment business, sit at home and start a family at that point. If she had not disapproved of the match, Akshaye and Karisma would have most likely ended up married to each other.
Karisma Kapoor later married industrialist Sanjay Kapoor in 2003 but the couple ended their marriage through mutual consent and their divorce was finalised in 2016. Akshaye Khanna, who has remained unmarried, was last seen in a cameo appearance in last year’s Hungama 2, which was released on the OTT platform.
