Vinod Khanna
Vinod Khanna is an Indian actor, best known for Tamil cinema. Vinod Khanna began their career in 1979 and has been a prominent figure in the industry for over 47 years. With over 90 credits to their name, Vinod Khanna remains one of the most prolific and celebrated talents in the industry. Spanning 40+ years, Vinod Khanna's career remains one of the longest and most celebrated in Tamil cinema.
- Born
- Age
- 79
Biography
Vinod Khanna was a veteran Hindi cinema actor known for his commanding screen presence across five decades, beginning in the 1970s as one of Bollywood's biggest action stars alongside Amitabh Bachchan. He starred in iconic films such as Hera Pheri (1976), Muqaddar Ka Sikandar (1978), and Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), and made a celebrated comeback in the 1990s with Dayavan (1988) and later Kshatriya (1993) and Eena Meena Deeka (1994). In his later career he took on antagonist and patriarch roles in blockbusters like Wanted (2009), Dabangg (2010), and Dabangg 2 (2012), opposite Salman Khan. He also served as a member of Parliament representing the BJP from Gurdaspur constituency, and received the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award in 1999.
Iconic Roles
Dabangg 2
Salman Khan's onscreen father, a beloved and dignified patriarch in the Dabangg franchise; Vinod Khanna's portrayal was so iconic that after his death in 2017, the role was passed to his real-life brother for Dabangg 3.
99
A wealthy, smooth-talking businessman and powerful bookie whose understated menace anchored the film's crime-comedy narrative.
Risk
A Bangkok-based crime lord operating within the Mumbai underworld, showcasing Vinod Khanna's commanding screen presence in a villain-adjacent role.
Defining Moments
As Shyamu, a vulnerable but volatile young man, in a gripping face-off with Shatrughan Sinha — friends-turned-rivals dynamic that displayed raw emotional range rarely seen from him before
His breakout performance that established his dramatic credentials and launched him as a serious actor beyond mere action-hero roles
As a military officer on death row who killed his wife and her lover — a slow-burn performance that conveyed guilt, resignation, and moral complexity without melodrama
Based on the real-life Nanavati case; widely cited as one of Khanna's finest dramatic performances and a landmark of 1970s realistic Hindi cinema
Playing Amar, the no-nonsense Hindu police inspector, in this multi-starrer blockbuster alongside Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi Kapoor — his commanding screen presence held its own against Bachchan at the peak of the latter's superstardom
One of the highest-grossing films of 1977; proved Vinod Khanna was a true equal to Amitabh Bachchan as a box-office draw, cementing his status as a top-tier star
As the tragic, doomed protagonist Sikandar in a parallel lead role alongside Amitabh Bachchan — his portrayal of unrequited love and quiet dignity became one of the film's most emotionally resonant threads
Third highest-grossing Hindi film of the 1970s after Sholay and Bobby; Khanna's restrained performance in a Bachchan-dominated film is widely praised as a masterclass in underacting
Returning to the screen after years away as Prajapati Pandey, Chulbul Pandey's father — his weathered gravitas and brief but memorable scenes gave the franchise an emotional anchor
His late-career comeback in blockbuster commercial cinema showed his enduring screen authority and introduced him to a new generation of audiences
View film →Vinod Khanna by the Numbers
If you watched every Vinod Khanna film back-to-back, you'd be at it for roughly 6 days and 12h. Most-paired with Dimple Kapadia — 7 films together.
Filmography
See all 90 credits →
Collaboration Network
The Constellation
Top 10 most-paired collaborators. Bubble size and line thickness reflect how many films they share with Vinod Khanna.
Career Analytics
Genre Breakdown
Language Distribution
Films by Decade
Top Co-Actors
See all →Vinod Khanna has worked most frequently with K.C. Bokadia (3 films), Mukul S. Anand (3 films), Prabhu Deva (2 films), Yash Chopra (2 films), and J.P. Dutta (2 films).
Did You Know?
Vinod Khanna was born on October 6, 1946, in Peshawar, British India (now Pakistan).
He made his acting debut in the 1968 film 'Man Ka Meet'.
Vinod Khanna took a spiritual break from his acting career in the early 1980s to follow Osho (Rajneesh).
He returned to acting in 1987 with the film 'Insaaf'.
Vinod Khanna served as a Member of Parliament for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Gurdaspur, Punjab.
Legacy & Influence
Vinod Khanna was a pivotal figure in Indian cinema, renowned for his charismatic screen presence and transition from a popular villain to a leading hero. He debuted in 1968 and quickly gained attention as a formidable antagonist in films like 'Mera Gaon Mera Desh' (1971) and 'Mere Apne' (1971), often portraying stylish, complex characters that challenged the conventional hero. His career trajectory shifted in the mid-1970s as he successfully ascended to leading man status, starring in a series of successful action and dramatic films such as 'Inkaar' (1977), 'Amar Akbar Anthony' (1977), and 'Qurbani' (1980). Khanna was celebrated for his understated intensity, physicality, and ability to hold his own alongside contemporaries like Amitabh Bachchan, contributing significantly to the 'angry young man' era and the multi-starrer genre. His performances often blended rugged masculinity with a quiet dignity. A notable aspect of his legacy is his principled hiatus from cinema in the early 1980s to follow spiritual teacher Osho (Rajneesh), a move that fascinated the public and industry. He returned to acting in 1987 and continued to work in character roles, demonstrating his enduring appeal. His later work included notable performances in films like 'Dabangg' (2010) and 'Red Alert: The War Within' (2010). Beyond acting, he served as a Member of Parliament for the Bharatiya Janata Party, reflecting his engagement in public life. Vinod Khanna's contribution lies in his unique persona that bridged the archetypes of the anti-hero and the mainstream hero, expanding the range of male leads in Hindi cinema and leaving a lasting impression for his depth and conviction on screen.