In addition to his acting career, Aaryan endorses several brands and products, and has co-hosted award ceremonies.
Early life and work
Kartik Tiwari (later Aaryan)[a] was born on 22 November 1990 inGwalior,Madhya Pradesh.[3][4] Both his parents are doctors; his father, Manish Tiwari, is apaediatrician, and his mother, Mala Tiwari, is agynaecologist.[5][6] Aaryan did his schooling at St. Paul's School, Gwalior.[7] He later pursued an engineering degree in biotechnology from DY Patil University,Navi Mumbai,Maharashtra, while secretly harbouring ambitions for a career in film.[6][5] He has said that he would skip his classes and travel for two hours to attend auditions.[8][9]
Aaryan began a modelling career while in university and after three years of unsuccessfully auditioning for films, he did an acting course from the Kreating Charakters institute. He informed his parents of his desire to become an actor only after he signed his first film.[6][10] He later completed his engineering degree at the insistence of his mother, after the release of his first film.[9][11][12]
Career
Early work and struggle (2011–2017)
While still in his third year of college, Aaryan made his acting debut withLuv Ranjan'sbuddy filmPyaar Ka Punchnama (2011), co-starringDivyendu Sharma, Raayo S Bakhirta, andNushrat Bharucha, which revolves around the romantic tribulations faced by three young men.[13][14] He found a casting call for the film on Facebook and secured the role after auditioning for six months.[6] As he had limited financial means at that point, he lived in an apartment with 12 other aspiring actors and earned money by cooking for them.[6][15] InPyaar Ka Punchnama, his character's four-minutemonologue was one of the lengthiest single shots done for a Hindi film to that point.[16] Reviewing it forRediff.com, Shaikh Ayaz found Aaryan's "bursting soliloquy on why women are the way they are and can never be understood [to be] riotously funny".[17]Namrata Joshi ofOutlook criticised the film for portraying each of the female characters as a "hard-hearted bitch" but was appreciative of Aaryan's monologue and the chemistry between the three men.[18] The film emerged as asleeper hit and he received a nomination for theProducers Guild Film Award for Best Male Debut.[19][20]
His next film release came two years later when he collaborated once again with Ranjan and Bharucha in the romanceAkaash Vani (2013), which is about the titular lovers who are separated when Vani is married off to an abusive husband.[21][22]Sudhish Kamath ofThe Hindu praised the film for exploring chauvinism in India, a rare concept for Hindi film, and praised the chemistry between the two stars, writing that "you can tell how much they are in love, even when they don't have any lines".[23] Sudhir Chaudhary, the cinematographer in Aaryan's previous films, showed his work toSubhash Ghai, who was impressed by Aaryan and cast him in his directorialKaanchi (2014).[10] It is a drama about a woman's quest for justice when her husband is murdered by politicians, in which Aaryan played the love interest of the title character (played byMishti). Despite a brief role, Aaryan agreed to the project to work with Ghai.[10] Saibal Chatterjee ofNDTV disliked the film but wrote that Aaryan "exudes strong screen presence and shows flashes of qualities needed to be a mainstreamBollywood lover boy".[24] BothAkaash Vani andKaanchi did not perform well commercially, leading Aaryan to question his career prospects.[25][11]
In 2015, Aaryan starred in Ranjan's comedy sequelPyaar Ka Punchnama 2, which retained some of the original's cast, including him and Bharucha, and added the actorsOmkar Kapoor andSunny Singh. In it, he delivered an even longer, seven minute single-shot monologue.[26][27] Mike McCahill ofThe Guardian criticised the film's poor handling of female roles, but considered the banter between Aaryan and Bharucha's characters to be its highlight.[28] Shubha Shetty-Guha ofMid-Day too took note of the misogynistic themes but found parts of it "uproariously funny".[29] When asked about the sexism in the film, Aaryan said that as a proponent of gender equality his character did not reflect his personal beliefs.[30] With earnings of over₹880 million (US$10 million) against a budget of₹220 million (US$2.6 million),Pyaar Ka Punchnama 2 emerged as a major financial success.[31] For his performance, Aaryan won aStardust Award for Best Actor In A Comic Role.[32]
The following year, Aaryan featured as a young Muslim boy who falls in love with an older woman inTanuja Chandra's short filmSilvat, which was made as part of the Zeal For Unity initiative to bridge cultural barriers between India and Pakistan.[33][34] As he enjoyed working in comedies, Aaryan next starred alongsideParesh Rawal andKriti Kharbanda inGuest iin London (2017), which is about a young couple troubled by unwelcome guests.[35] A few scenes between Rawal and him were improvised on set.[35] In a scathing review, Rohit Vats ofHindustan Times criticised the film's reliance onflatulence humour, and wrote that Aaryan "looks good, dances well, does his gags well, but eventually ends up playing the second fiddle to Rawal. Kartik has a likeable vibe, but that gets drowned in Rawal's perennial farting."[36] It did not perform well commercially.[37]
Breakthrough (2018–2021)
Aaryan's breakthrough came in 2018 when he collaborated with Ranjan and Bharucha for the fourth time inSonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety, which also reunited him with Singh.[38][39] The film tells the story of Sonu (Aaryan) who plots to separate his best friend Titu (Singh) from his fiancée Sweety (Bharucha) as Sonu considers her to be agold digger. As with thePyaar Ka Punchnama films, reviewers criticised the film'smisogyny;[40]Anna M. M. Vetticad ofFirstpost took note of the film's homosexual undertones but panned it as a "dreary woman-hate-fest" and thought that Aaryan was "tiresome and hammy" in it.[41]Rajeev Masand too disliked the "objectionable stereotyping" of women but found it to be "unquestionably funny" and credited Aaryan for making his character a "relatable, likeable figure despite his misdeeds".[42] Once again addressing the criticisms, Aaryan said that portraying women as negative characters did not amount to misogyny just as casting men in villainous roles did not amount to misandry.[4][43] With earnings of₹1.5 billion (US$18 million), the film emerged as Aaryan's biggest success.[44][45] He won theZee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Comic Role.[46]
Aaryan believed that the success ofSonu Ke Titu Ki Sweety allowed him to choose from a wider variety of roles. He was drawn toLuka Chuppi (2019), a satire on live-in relationships in small-town India, for depicting social issues through comedy.[47] Co-starringKriti Sanon, it was filmed in his hometown of Gwalior.[48] Shubhra Gupta ofThe Indian Express criticised the writing for failing to subvert the issues raised in the film, and thought that both Aaryan and Sanon "come off standard-issue Bollywood".[49] He next starred alongsideBhumi Pednekar andAnanya Panday in the comedyPati Patni Aur Woh, a remake of the 1978film of the same name. He took on the part of a philandering husband, which was played bySanjeev Kumar in the original film.[50]Anupama Chopra considered the film to be less misogynistic than the original; she wrote that Aaryan "enthusiastically commits" to his part but added that he had been overshadowed by his leading ladies.[51] BothLuka Chuppi andPati Patni Aur Woh were commercially successful, each grossing over₹1 billion (US$12 million) worldwide.[52][53] For the latter, he won his second consecutive Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Comic Role.[54]
Imtiaz Ali's romantic dramaLove Aaj Kal, aspiritual successor to Ali's2009 film of the same name was Aaryan's sole film release of 2020.[55] He played dual roles of young men in 1990 and 2020, oppositeArushi Sharma andSara Ali Khan, respectively, after working on the mannerisms and body language of the characters to differentiate them from each other.[56][57] In a negative review of the film, Nandini Ramnath ofScroll.in wrote that Aaryan "nails the diffidence and callowness of his characters" but bemoaned that he lacked "brooding quality and simmering intensity" in certain scenes.[58] It emerged as abox office bomb.[59]
Aaryan was cast byDharma Productions in the comedy sequelDostana 2, but after filming for 20 days, he was fired.[60]Bollywood Hungama reported that it was due to creative differences between him and producerKaran Johar.[61][62] In 2021, Aaryan starred inRam Madhvani's thrillerDhamaka, a remake of the Korean filmThe Terror Live (2013). Filmed entirely in 10 days, it was released onNetflix.[63][64] Stutee Ghosh ofThe Quint believed Aaryan's dark, against-type performance to be among the film's positive aspects.[65]
Bhool Bhulaiyaa franchise and dramatic expansion (2022–present)
In 2022, Aaryan starred as Rooh Baba, a fraudulent psychic, inAnees Bazmee's horror comedyBhool Bhulaiyaa 2 withTabu andKiara Advani.[66] He temporarily lost his voice while filming its climax sequence.[67] In a mixed review, Shalini Langer ofThe Indian Express noted that Aaryan's "cockiness [and] enthusiasm... lends some much-needed energy to the film".[68] The film emerged as his biggest commercial success to that point, with worldwide earnings of over₹2.67 billion (US$32 million).[69][70] He won theZee Cine Critics Award for Best Actor – Male and received a nomination for theFilmfare Award for Best Actor.[71][72] He next played the titular role of a socially awkward dentist with a dark past in the psychological thrillerFreddy, which released onDisney+ Hotstar.[73] In preparation, he gained 14 kg, observed a dentist at work, and lived in isolation.[74] Reviewers forIndia Today andHindustan Times were appreciative of Aaryan for playing against his comic and romantic image.[75][76]
In 2023, Aaryan starred in a remake of theTelugu action filmAla Vaikunthapurramuloo (2020), titledShehzada.[77] When the film's producers suffered a financial crisis, Aaryan returned his salary, and was thus credited as producer.[78] The film was a critical and commercial failure.[79] Reacting to its reception, Aaryan said that he would not work in a remake again.[80] He reunited with Kiara Advani inSatyaprem Ki Katha, a romantic drama about a troubled marriage.[81] Although Nandini Ramnath wrote that "Aaryan puts visible effort" into a complex role andSukanya Verma believed that he "sparkles in certain moments of vulnerability", they both opined that he had been overshadowed by Advani.[82][83] It emerged as a modest commercial success.[84]
Aaryan starred asMurlikant Petkar, an army man who became aParalympic gold medalist, inKabir Khan's biographical dramaChandu Champion (2024).[85] In preparation, he underwent extensive diet and exercises, and trained in swimming and boxing.[86]Film Companion's Rahul Desai was pleased with his physical transformation and found his performance to be "nearly bereft of vanity".[87] It did not perform well commercially but earned Aaryan his firstFilmfare Award for Best Actor.[88] He reprised his role as Rooh Baba in the spiritual sequelBhool Bhulaiyaa 3.[89][90] In a mixed review forThe Hindu, Anuj Kumar lauded him as the "lifeline of the franchise" and appreciated his "natural flair for family comedy".[91]Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3 grossed₹4.17 billion (US$49 million) worldwide to rank as thesecond highest-grossing Hindi film of 2024 and Aaryan's highest-grossing release.[92][93] His performance earned him theIIFA Award for Best Actor.[94]
The following year, Aaryan reunited with Panday and Vidwans in the romantic comedyTu Meri Main Tera Main Tera Tu Meri, about a couple whose holiday romance is strained by their respective careers.The Hindu's Anuj Kumar felt that Aaryan's character was simply a variant of those he had played in his collaborations with Ranjan but felt that the actor had "clearly outgrown this silly-to-sincere journey".[95]WION's Shomini Sen dubbed this pattern of mocking women's agency before repositioning a male character as a self-sacrificing enabler the "Kartik Aaryan brand of feminism", which she noted has become a recurring theme in his filmography.[96] Aaryan will next star in an as-yet untitled romantic drama film directed byAnurag Basu and co-starringSreeleela.[97]
Personal life
Despite media speculation, Aaryan is reluctant to speak about his romantic relationships in the media. He has said, "I've never spoken about my relationships, and I expect the same from my partner".[98] He is aneggetarian.[99]
Kartik Aaryan with his family at his sister Kritika's wedding in Gwalior
In 2016, Aaryan became a member of the All Stars Football Club, which organises football matches for charity.[105] He participated with several other celebrities, includingRanbir Kapoor, for a tournament held in New Delhi the following year.[106] Aaryan was scheduled to take part in the club's next tournament, held in Singapore in 2018, but had to back out after dislocating his toe during practice.[107] In 2018, Aaryan raised awareness onplastic pollution duringWorld Environment Day.[108] The following year, theElection Commission of India appointed him to raise awareness on voter participation in his home state of Madhya Pradesh.[109]
Aaryan is one of the highest paid actors in India.[110][111] He was placed eighth inThe Times of India's listing of the country's most desirable men of 2018.[112] He held the 12th spot in the next two years.[113] In 2019, he appeared inForbes India'sCelebrity 100 list, ranking 67th with an estimated annual income of₹103.8 million (US$1.2 million).[114][115] In 2020,Eastern Eye featured him in their listing of the dynamic dozen for the decade.[116] In 2021, he ranked 20th inDuff & Phelps's listing of the country's most valuable celebrity brands.[117] In 2022, he was ranked 15th inGQ India's "30 most influential young Indians" list.[118]
Filmography
Films
Key
†
Denotes film or TV productions that have not yet been released
Aaryan has received twoFilmfare nominations –Filmfare Award for Best Actor forBhool Bhulaiyaa 2 (2023) andChandu Champion (2025) and twoIIFA nominations – forBhool Bhulaiyaa 2 (2023) andBhool Bhulaiyaa 3 (2025) winning the latermost.[145]
Notes
^abHe began using the last name Aaryan in 2013.[11][146]
Media from Commons
Quotations from Wikiquote
Data from Wikidata
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