Vinod Khanna birth anniversary: A look at the life, career of the handsome Bollywood actor

Vinod Khanna was a legendary actor, film producer and politician who was best known for his roles across various genres. He won everyone's hearts through his lead roles and became one of the most successful actors in Bollywood. His movies like Kuchhe Dhaage, Imtihaan, Muqaddar Ka Sikandar, Inkaar, Amar Akbar Anthony, Rajput, The Burning Train, Qurbani, Kudrat, Parvarish, Khoon Pasina, Dayavan, Chandni and Jurm received much fame and recognition. On the occasion of Vinod Khanna's birth anniversary, here is a look at his prolific life and career. 

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Vinod Khanna's early life

Vinod Khanna was born on October 6, 1946, in Peshawar, British India (now in Pakistan). During the India-Pakistan partition, his family shifted to Bombay. He studied at St. Mary's School, Bombay, until he was 8 years old and then his family once again moved to Delhi. In Delhi, he studied at Delhi Public School, Mathura Road. Vinod Khanna once again changed schools a while later and was sent to a boarding school in Nashik. It has been widely reported that from hereon, his love for cinema had begun.

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Vinod Khanna's movies

Vinod Khanna got into movies in 1969. He made his debut with the film Man Ka Meet and played the villain. He started getting recognition from the movies he did in the 1970s. The first movie he did in 1970 was Sachaa Jhutha. The film was directed by Manmohan Desai and produced by Vinod Doshi. It starred Rajesh Khanna as Bhola / Ranjit Kumar, Mumtaz as C.I.D. Inspector Leena / Rita and Vinod Khanna as C.I.D. Inspector Pradhan. This film became quite successful and made Vinod Khanna very famous. After this, all of Vinod Khanna's movies gained much popularity. 

His next film was Mastana (1970). The film was directed by Adurthi Subba Rao and had Mehmood and Vinod Khanna in the lead roles. Many critics noted that the two actors were very entertaining and that they would receive a lot of love in any movie in which they were seen. After this, his movie Ek Hasina Do Diwane in 1972 also gained much fame. The film was produced by Kantibhai Zaveri under the R. G. Films Banner and was directed by S.M. Abbas. It starred Jeetendra, Babita, Vinod Khanna in pivotal roles. 

One of Vinod Khanna's last films was Chooriyan, in 2015. The film was by Sukhwant Dhadda, starring Gracy Singh, Vinod Khanna and Sudhanshu Pandey in the lead roles. The indie film was very much loved by audiences. He also did another movie in 2015. The film was Dilwale, directed by Rohit Shetty. His last movie will be Guns of Banaras, which will be posthumous release. The film is directed by Sekhar Suri. It stars Karan Nath as Guddu, Nathalia Kaur as Hema, Ganesh Venkatraman as Vikram Singh, Abhimanyu Singh as Brijesh Singh, Shilpa Shirodkar as Brijesh Singh's wife, Zarina Wahab as Guddu's mother and Vinod Khanna as Guddu's father.

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Vinod Khanna's family

Vinod Khanna met Gitanjali Taleyarkhan during his college days. They both got married in 1971. Gitanjali and Vinod have two sons- Rahul and Akshaye, who are both actors. In 1975, Vinod started following Osho and moved to Rajneeshpuram. The couple got divorced in 1985. When Vinod returned to India, he married Kavita Daftary in 1990. They both had two children - one son and one daughter. 

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Vinod Khanna's death 

On  April 2, 2017, Vinod Khanna was rushed to Sir H.N. Reliance Foundation Hospital and Research Center in Girgaon, Mumbai. It was reported that he suffered from dehydration. He then breathed his last breath on April 27, 2017. It was revealed then that the actor was facing advanced bladder cancer. Vinod Khanna's family didn't disclose any information about his death. He was cremated at the Worli Crematorium. 

Promo Pic Credit: Still from Akhbar Anthony & Vinod Khanna's Instagram