Aamir Khan is considered the “serious” actor of the big Khans and widely regarded as the most talented Indian star in terms of sheer acting ability. While he’s been in plenty of commercial hits, he’s always had an artistic bent, and his projects are usually of the highest quality. He started his career as a child actor in 1973, made his first film as an adult in 1984, and after several nominations, won his first Filmfare Best Actor Award in 1996 for his turn in Raja Hindustani—in which he famously kissed his co-star Karisma Kapoor (kissing was a rare enough occurrence then to cause quite a stir). He received international attention for his role in Lagaan (2001), which was the first film he produced. The movie was critically praised around the world and received an Academy Award nod for Best Foreign Film. (It was only the third time in history that an Indian film has been nominated, and no Indian film has ever won the award.) He debuted as a director in 2007 with Taare Zameen Par. His 2009 film 3 Idiots became the highest-grossing Hindi film of all time, breaking the record he set with his 2008 film Ghajini. In 2002, he divorced his wife of 15 years, with whom he has two children, and in 2005, he married an assistant director. He does not attend film award ceremonies.
