From being a Khiladi to being a total superstar, here's how Akshay Kumar AIRLIFTED his career to great heights!

By BollywoodLife
| Updated: January 28, 2016 9:02 AM IST

The Airlift actor has repeatedly stepped out of his comfort zone and experimented with different roles

Two ‘industries’ run simultaneously in the Hindi film business. The bigger of the two that churns out over 300 films every year is popularly known as ‘Bollywood’ and the other–relatively cottage scaled and yet, nothing short of a pro actively dynamic system is called Akshay Kumar! Also Read - Manushi Chillar opens up about the failure of Bade Miyan Chote Miyan at the box office; says ‘I need to be doing…’

After making his debut as a lead actor in Raj Sippy’s Saugandh in 1991, Akshay Kumar played a huge role (along with his contemporaries like Ajay Devgn, Salman Khan etc) in bringing action as a genre back into the limelight in an era that celebrated onscreen romance. Also Read - Bade Miyan Chote Miyan: Manushi Chhillar FINALLY reacts to the huge age gap between her and Akshay Kumar; says 'It wasn't like...'

After stylishly ‘kicking’ his way into the hearts of the masses with the Khiladi series and a bunch of other action flicks, the man transformed into a romantic hero with Dharmesh Darshan’sDhadkan, which was followed by many other films in the genre that did well at the box office! Soon after, the audience saw him partner with film makers like Priyadarshan, David Dhawan, Anees Bazmee and other champions of comedy and thus, transform himself into a ‘comic hero’! The next turn came about with Vipul Shah’s family dramas Namastey London and Waqt, which made him popular with the elder generations. Also Read - Salman Khan, Kannappa, Abhira, BTS and more: Top celebs, TV serials and more trending Entertainment News of the day

If you look back at Akshay Kumar’s career, you’d be amazed by the number of transformations he has undergone when it comes to his perception as an actor and interestingly, there isn’t a single genre or style of filmmaking that he hasn’t delivered successful films under! From an action hero in the Khiladi series to the happy go lucky sardar in Singh Is King, from the victimized husband in Aitraaz to the RAW agent in Baby, from the family man in Dhadkan to the inspiring Ranjit Katiyal in the recently released Airlift – he has done it all and more importantly, displayed his versatility and ability to perform while carefully balancing out the commercial aspects of the entertainment business!

There isn’t another star anywhere in the world & certainly not in India who churns out an average of 4 films every year as a lead actor! Besides generating revenues to the tune of Rs 80 crore to Rs 90 crore for the fraternity at regular intervals (virtually every quarter), the system that Akshay Kumar has set up around himself ensures that hundreds of technicians and employees of the show business are a part of an A league film on a regular basis! The spontaneity with which he moves between genres, the ease with which he decides to work with debutant directors and the fearlessness with which he goes back to working with film makers whose last film may have been a box office dud is what makes him a true blue KHILADI!

Akshay Kumar has been the one of the bravest Hindi film stars, stepping out of his ‘comfort zone’ time and again to achieve success in new horizons and fortune as they say, favours the brave! Courtesy his gutsy attitude and willingness to experiment consistently, there probably isn’t a single genre today that Akshay Kumar cannot call his ‘comfort zone’ and its this hunger to push the envelope that has made him a superstar of the masses as well as a talking point of appreciation for critics simultaneously – a status that only the best of them enjoy!

Text: Akshaye Rathi

( Akshaye Rathi is a film exhibitor & distributor. He tweets from @akshayerathi )

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ByBollywoodLife
Updated: January 28, 2016 9:02 AM IST