Arjun Rampal

Arjun Rampal (born 26 November 1972) is an Indian actor, model, film producer and television personality who works in Hindi films.

Rampal was born on 26 November 1972 in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, India, in a family with military background.

His maternal grandfather, Brigadier Gurdayal Singh, designed the first artillery gun for the Indian Army post-independence.

His father is a Brahmin while his mother is part Sikh and part Dutch.

He grew up in a multicultural environment where the family celebrated Christmas, Diwali and Eid.

He stayed with his mother after the separation of his parents and attended St. Patrick School (Devlali, Nashik) where his mother was a teacher.

He then attended the Kodaikanal International School.

Later, he graduated with a degree in economics with honours from Hindu College, Delhi.

He went on to become a model.

Actress Kim Sharma is Arjun Rampal's first cousin.

He made his acting debut in Rajiv Rai's romance film Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat (2001) and has since gone on to act in more than 40 films.

He has received several awards including the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor and the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance in Rock On!!.

He has enacted lead roles in romance films including Deewaanapan (2001), Dil Hai Tumhaara (2002), Dil Ka Rishta (2003), Vaada (2005) and I See You (2006), action films Asambhav (2004) and D-Day (2013), thrillers Yakeen (2005) and Roy (2015), socio-political Chakravyuh (2012), crime drama Inkaar (2013) and biopic Daddy (2017).

Rampal made his acting debut in Rajiv Rai's Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat (2001) opposite Sunil Shetty, Aftab Shivdasani and Kirti Reddy.

Rampal gave a show stealing performance and earned all the attention.

He earned critical acclaim for his performance in the movie.

Taran Adarsh of indiaFM wrote "Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat is a showcase for Arjun Rampal to exhibit his talent. The guy looks dashing and emotes with utmost sincerity. He's handled the emotional moments with maturity, which is so rare for a first-timer. A confident debut!"

This established Rampal as a leading actor in the Indian film industry.

He was nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut but swapped the awards in the Best Male Debut category at the Star Screen and IIFA ceremonies.

His next release was Ashu Trikha's Deewaanapan, in which Rampal was paired with Dia Mirza.

He earned critical acclaim for his performance, but the film flopped at the box office.

Taran Adarsh of IndiaFM wrote: "Arjun Rampal carries the film on his broad shoulders and comes up with a sincere performance that is consistent throughout. He is wonderful in action sequences and springs a pleasant surprise in the emotional moments by delivering the apposite expressions."

Ashish Magotra of Rediff gave negative reviews on Rampal, writing: "Among the actors, Arjun Rampal as the hero does pretty much what he has been known to do. He models. His acting capabilities leave a lot to be desired."

His last release of the year was Ashok Mehta's Moksha.

It was actually his first film, but was released after Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat.

Rampal was paired with famous actress Manisha Koirala in a lead role in Moksha.

This film marked Rampal's third consecutive flop at the box office, but Rampal earned critical acclaim.

Taran Adarsh of IndiaFM wrote: "Arjun Rampal excels in a role that was difficult to portray. He takes giant strides as a performer and proves that he's an actor with an amazing range."

Priyanka Bhattacharya of Rediff considered the movie to be "more a 70-mm portfolio for Arjun Rampal than a story."

The year 2002 marked a turning point for Rampal when he was cast in Aankhen, proving to be his first commercial success.

Rampal's first release of 2002 was Vipul Amrutlal Shah's Aankhen, in which Rampal starred in an ensemble cast featuring Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Sushmita Sen, Paresh Rawal and Aditya Pancholi.

He played the role of a blind person.

The film was ranked above average at the box office and became the fourth-highest grossing Bollywood film of 2002.

His next release was Kundan Shah's Dil Hai Tumhaara opposite Rekha, Preity Zinta, Mahima Chaudhry and Jimmy Shergill.

The film was a flop.

In 2003, Rampal played a lead role in Naresh Malhotra's Dil Ka Rishta opposite Aishwarya Rai.

Rampal earned critical acclaim for his performance.

Ronjita Kulkarni of Rediff wrote: "Arjun Rampal shakes off his wooden image and comes up with a good performance. He is subtle and convincing in the emotional scenes. He has certainly moved on from Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat."

His other commercially successful films include Don (2006), Om Shanti Om (2007), Housefull (2010), Raajneeti (2010), Ra.One (2011), Kahaani 2: Durga Rani Singh (2016) and Nail Polish (2021).

Rampal became a film producer with I See You (2006) under his banner, Chasing Ganesha Films, and produced the biopic Daddy (2017), for which he also co-wrote the screenplay.