Vinod Khanna was a famous Bollywood actor and an Indian Politician. A terrific combination of ruggedness, suave good looks and fine acting skills, Khanna had a huge fan following. Feted as one of the most handsome actors of Bollywood, he made his acting debut in 1968 with "Man Ka Meet". In many of the earlier films, Khanna played a negative or a supporting role of Police Inspector. Vinod Khanna and Amitabh Bachchan, was a popular pair who acted in several films such as "Amar Akbar Anthony", "Hera Pheri" and "Muqaddar Ka Sikandar". He was also an active politician and was the Member of Parliament from the Gurdaspur constituency between 1998-2009 and 2014-2017.

Early Life of Vinod Khanna
Vinod Khanna was born on 6th of October 1946 in Peshawar in a business family. Partition forced the Khanna family to move to India. As a child he had the opportunity to study in some of the best schools of his times. Later, while he was pursuing his Commerce studies at a college in Mumbai, the legendary Sunil Dutt offered him a role in his forthcoming "Man Ka Meet".

Career of Vinod Khanna
The film was a success and his family too reconciled with the choice of his profession. Both he and Amitabh Bachchan acted together in a string of hit films. Their film pairing culminated in the Hindi film classic, `Muqaddar Ka Sikandar` in the year 1979. Incredibly at the height of his acting career Khanna retired from films and became a monk. He turned his back on Bollywood to follow a spiritual path and lived in an ashram commune in Oregon for over 5 years. As a follower of the Guru Osho he worshipped and worked as a common member of the community. Vinod again came back in films in 1987. His other hit films include `Purab Aur Paschim`, `Sachaa Jhutta` and `Mera Gaon Mera Desh`. His big break was in the 1971 film `Mere Apne` directed by Gulzar. His sensitive performance as an army officer facing death row in the film `Achanak` was critically acclaimed. Some of his other popular films throughout the mid 1970s and early 1980s include `Parvarish`, `Amar Akbar Anthony`, `Khoon Pasina`, `The Burning Train` and `Qurbani`. After all these success he left the industry in 1979 for 8 years.

He continued to appear in many notable films from the mid 1980s to the 1990s such as `Dayavan`, `Chandni`, `Kshatriya`, `Eeena Meena Deeka` and `Ekka Raja Rani`. In 1997 he introduced his son Akshaye Khanna in the film `Himalay Putra` which he produced and also starred in.

Career of Vinod Khanna as a Politician
Vinod Khanna also has a strong political side in his career. In 1997, he joined the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and was nominated from Gurdaspur, East Punjab in the next year`s Lok Sabha poll. Later he was moved to the more important Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) as minister of state. In 2004 he won re-election from Gurdaspur. He was the highest taxpayer in Mumbai in 1990-91.

Achievements of Vinod Khanna
Vinod Khanna has been awarded many a times in his career which includes "Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award" for "Haath Ki Safai"` in the year 1974. He was nominated for "Filmfare Best Supporting Actor" for "Hera Pheri" in the year 1976. He got "Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award" in the year 1999 and "Zee Cine Award for Lifetime Achievement" in 2007.

Filmography of Vinod Khanna