Akshay Kumar: Films that earned him respect

Bollywood’s Khiladi, Akshay Kumar has been going beyond just entertaining the audience by taking up projects that not only is informative but is helping society in spreading awareness in a broader sense.
After garnering applauds for his last film ‘Toilet: Ek Prem Katha’ from critics and audience alike, Akshay Kumar was pleasantly surprised when American business magnate too appreciated the film’s efforts to educate the audiences about India's sanitation challenge.
Akshay was reportedly overjoyed by the honour. He said that he is overwhelmed that people sitting the US are appreciating Indian content. Speaking about the kind of impact the film has had on the masses, Akshay reportedly feels that they are moving in the right direction.

Akshay Kumar is such a sport when it comes to promoting his films. The actor whose latest film 'Rustom' will be hitting the theatres pretty soon was in for a surprise when Bollywood's 'Bajirao' Ranveer Singh shared a video of his very own 'Rustom' act. In the video that has been shot in a basement parking, Ranveer could be seen playing hide and seek and later dancing to Akshay's popular song, 'Zeher hai ki pyaar hai tera chumma' from 'Sabse Bada Khiladi'. Ranveer, in context to his hide and seek act with the camera, calls himself a 'Chhupa Rustom'. "Aap Rustom ho, aur main Chhupa Rustom," he says. Now, Akki, along with his 'Rustom' co-stars, Esha Gupta and Illeana D'cruz, is seen watching the interesting video on his phone and the trio bursts into laughter with Ranveer's funny antics. Take a look!


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Invited as a guest on Anupam Kher's talk show, The Anupam Kher Show-Kucch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai, Akshay Kumar was asked as to what he thought of the industry insiders when they recognised him as a B-grade actor and the Khiladi Kumar replied saying that he never cared about such remarks. He reiterated that he had always felt blessed that he was in movies, no matter which grade were they. Yes, that's Akshay Kumar for you - grounded and honest. In his career spanning 22 years, Akshay has become a name to reckon with. He never gets into box-office tussle and has been delivering successful films for years now. He is obsessed about fitness and is strictly punctual. Today, as he turns 48, we take a look at some films which earned him respect. Here you go…

Sangharsh: The film, directed by Tanuja Chandra, was far from the kind of films that Akshay is known to do, but his brooding performance won accolades from the critics and the audience alike. The psychological crime-thriller which starred Preity Zinta alongside Akshay, might not have been a hit at the box-office but was surely a winner.

Hera Pheri: When it comes to cult comedies of Bollywood, Priyadarshan's Hera Pheri cannot be missed out. It was a film which redefined the comedy genre in Bollywood and took it to another level altogether. Apart from the hilarious writing, skilful direction and performances by Suniel Shetty and Paresh Rawal, it was Akshay Kumar’s act in the film that had no match. Many claim that Hera Pheri is Akshay’s best comedy film of all time.

Namastey London: Vipul Amrutlal Shah's Namastey London was a film that was right up in Akshay Kumar’s alley. Playing the handsome and charming Punjab da puttar in the film, Akshay was showered with praises for his noteworthy performance in the film. As Arjun Ballu Singh, Akshay made the audience laugh with his amazing sense of comedy and on the other hand, he was equally good at presenting the innocent side of his character.

Holiday: A Soldier Is Never Off Duty: It wasn't about brainless comedy or over-the-top action sequences this time. With Holiday: A Soldier Is Never Off Duty, Akshay Kumar proved that he could also be a part of sensible cinema and be successful at it. Akshay plays the role of an Indian Army Captain with all the swag, which is entertaining as well as hard-hitting. No wonder that Holiday was hugely appreciated by the cinema lovers and is remembered as one of Akshay's finest films ever.

Special 26: Special 26 was Akshay Kumar's first collaboration with A Wednesday director. Rarely do you find an Akshay Kumar film devoid of songs, wacky action sequence and heavyweight dialogue. Special 26 was one of those films. At first, you don't even believe that it is an Akshay Kumar film, but soon his performance bowls you over. As a conman, Akshay not only leaves you in splits, but his super stylish demeanor is whistle worthy.

Baby: Baby was another instance when we got the glimpse of the amazing acting talent that Khiladi Kumar possesses. And it was Neeraj Pandey again, who dared to do it without the quintessential elements of an Akshay Kumar film and still make a film a hit at the box office. Baby, which revolves around the issue of terrorism, is a nail-biting thriller which comes with no dull moment at all. In order to get into the shoes of his character of Ajay Singh Rajput, a counter-espionage agent, Akshay even shed his star image.