John Abraham | |
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 Abraham in 2013 | |
| Born | (1972-12-17)17 December 1972 (age 52) Bombay,Maharashtra, India |
| Occupations |
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| Years active | 1999–present |
| Organisation | JA Entertainment |
| Works | Full list |
| Spouse | |
| Awards | Full list |
| Website | johnabraham |
John Abraham (born 17 December 1972)[1][2] is an Indian actor, writer and film producer who works inHindi films. Known for hisstoicaction hero persona, he is a recipient of oneNational Film Award along with fourFilmfare Awards nominations. Abraham has appeared inForbes India'sCelebrity 100 list since 2017.[3]
After a successful modelling career, Abraham made his acting debut with the erotic thriller filmJism (2003), asleeper hit.[4][5] In the same year, he appeared in the supernatural romantic thriller filmSaaya and crime thriller filmPaap which received mixed reviews. He rose to prominence with the action filmDhoom (2004) and the comediesGaram Masala (2005),Taxi No. 9211 (2006), andDostana (2008). He then starred in the critically acclaimed dramasWater (2005),Kabul Express (2006) andNew York (2009), the last of which also turned out to be a commercial success. Despite several commercial failures in the subsequent decade, Abraham achieved success with the 2013 action thrillersRace 2 andShootout at Wadala, and dramaMadras Cafe; along with the ensemble comediesHousefull 2 (2012) andWelcome Back (2015). Abraham then had his biggest commercial successes with the action dramasDishoom (2016),Parmanu (2018),Satyameva Jayate (2018),Batla House (2019),Satyameva Jayate 2 (2021) andPathaan (2023) being the last of which ranks as his highest-grossing release.[6]
Abraham ventured into film production under his banner J.A. Entertainment withVicky Donor (2012), which won him theNational Film Award for Best Popular Film Providing Wholesome Entertainment. He has since produced several of his films and also wrote the story ofAttack: Part 1 (2022). Outside of his film career, he is the co-owner of theIndian Super League football teamNorthEast United FC.[7][8] He is also a vegetarian bodybuilder and is an advocate foranimal rights.[9]
Abraham was born inBombay (now Mumbai),Maharashtra, on 17 December 1972 into a family of mixed religious and ethnic heritage. His father is aMalayaliSyrian Christian fromKerala and his mother is anIraniZoroastrian,[10][11][a] who has many relatives living inIran.[13] Abraham's Zoroastrian name is "Farhan", but he was baptised with the name "John."[10][16][11] He has a younger brother named Alan Abraham.[17] He considers himself a spiritual person but does not follow any particular religion.[18][10] Abraham grew up in Mumbai and studied at theBombay Scottish School there. He attendedJai Hind College,University of Mumbai, and then got anMBA degree fromNMIMS, Mumbai.[19][20][21] His cousin Susy Matthew is anauthor and has written novels likeIn a Bubble of Time.[22]
Abraham started his modelling career appearing in the music video of the song 'Jhanjar' of Hans Raj Hans and 'Surma' by Punjabi singerJazzy B.[23][24] He then joined the media firm and Time & Space Media Entertainment Promotions Ltd., which however got closed because of financial crisis. Later, he worked for Enterprises-Nexus as amedia planner.[25] In 1999, he won theGladrags Manhunt Contest and went to the Philippines forManhunt International, where he won second place.[26] He later modelled inHong Kong,London andNew York City, and appeared in a number of commercial advertisements and other music videos for singers includingPankaj Udhas,Hans Raj Hans andBabul Supriyo. To improve his acting skills, Abraham joined Kishore Namit Kapoor Acting Institute and completed an acting course while juggling modelling assignments.[27]
Considered "the top model of India before he ventured into films",[28] Abraham made his acting debut withJism in 2003, anerotic thriller film that, according to Box Office India, was "Hit" grossing 1,32,50,000 Rs.[29] He portrayed the role of Kabir Lal, a poor, alcoholic and wayward lawyer who falls in love with Sonia Khanna (played byBipasha Basu), a wife of a travelling millionaire, who plots to kill her own husband with the company of Kabir. The film met with mixed to positive reviews.Taran Adarsh ofBollywood Hungama commented: "Supermodel John Abraham makes a confident debut. The actor rises beyond his looks and registers a strong impact with his performance, more so towards the second half. His dashing looks and excellent physique only add to his persona".[30]
In the same year, Abraham appeared inAnurag Basu's horrorparanormal romance filmSaaya alongsideTara Sharma andMahima Chaudhry. The film garnered mixed to negative reviews and underperformed at the box office.Taran Adarsh wrote: "Saaya clearly belongs to John. No two opinions on that! Enacting a very difficult role, the newcomer actually performs like a veteran and delivers a performance that's bound to win him nominations in the awards categories. His growth as an actor is tremendous!"[31]
In 2003, he appeared inPooja Bhatt's directorial debut filmPaap alongsideUdita Goswami. He portrayed the role of Shiven, a police officer, who falls for aBuddhist girl, Kaaya. The film underperformed at the box office, receiving mixed reviews, and also was premiered at the Kara Film Festival.[32][33] That same year, he appeared inAhmed Khan's filmLakeer – Forbidden Lines, co-starringNauheed Cyrusi with other stars such asSunny Deol,Sunil Shetty andSohail Khan, which also underperformed at the box office.[34]
In 2004, Abraham played Kabir, the main antagonist inDhoom, anaction film directed by Sanjay Gadhvi, and produced byYash Raj Films, multi-starringAbhishek Bachchan,Esha Deol,Uday Chopra andRimi Sen. The film was the third highest-grossing film of the year,[35] which gained him aFilmfare Award for Best Performance in a Negative Role nomination.
In 2005, he starred in the action thrillersElaan andKaram, both of which failed at the box office. He followed with the supernatural thrillerKaal and the comedyGaram Masala, both of which did well at the box office.[36] Later that year, he had a role inWater, which portrayed the tragic fate of Hindu widows inBritish India of the 1930s. The film was written and directed by independent Canadian film-makerDeepa Mehta. It was popular internationally, and was nominated for the 2006Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film at the79th Academy Awards. Abraham attended the ceremony along with the film's crew and makers but the film lost to Germany'sThe Lives of Others.[37][38]
In the summer of 2006, Abraham performed at the "Rockstars Concert" along with fellow Bollywood actorsSalman Khan,Zayed Khan,Kareena Kapoor,Esha Deol,Shahid Kapoor andMallika Sherawat. In that same year, he starred in the filmsZinda,Taxi No. 9211,Baabul andKabul Express.[39] Among theseTaxi No. 9211 andKabul Express were substantially successful. Abraham's performance inTaxi No. 9211 was praised by critics, noting that his performances to be maturing with each new film.Nikhil Advani's multi-starrerSalaam-e-Ishq was Abraham's first release in 2007. The movie failed to do well at the Indian box office,[40] though it did well in the overseas markets.[41] His last two 2007 releases included the thrillerNo Smoking, and the sports filmDhan Dhana Dhan Goal, which emerged as a commercial failure at the box office.[42]
In 2008, Abraham starred alongsideAbhishek Bachchan andPriyanka Chopra inDostana, his only release that year. Produced byDharma Productions, the film was a financial success with worldwide revenues of over₹860 million (US$10 million).[43] His only release of 2009 was a production byYash Raj Films,New York. CostarringKatrina Kaif andNeil Nitin Mukesh, the film follows the lives of three friends when one of them iswrongly detained after9/11.[44]New York performed well at the box office and received favourable reviews.[45][46]
In 2010, he was seen in the filmsAashayein andJhootha Hi Sahi. Both of the films turned out to be box office failures.[47][48] Later on, Abraham appeared in the filmsForce (2011),Desi Boyz (2011) andHousefull 2 (2012).Force collected₹347.2 million (US$4.1 million) in India and was declared "Above Average" by Box Office India.[49]Housefull 2 grossed₹1,140 million (US$13 million) in India.[50] His first film of 2013 was the multi-starrerRace 2, an action thriller that served as a sequel toRace (2008). The film received predominantly negative reviews,[51] but grossed a successful total of₹1.62 billion (US$19 million).[52] The coming-of-age romantic comedyI, Me Aur Main, underperformed at the box office and received unfavorable reviews.[53] His next release wasShootout at Wadala, in which he portrayed the role of a gangsterManya Surve, which gained mixed to positive reviews. Commercially, the film performed moderately well.[54] Then his movieMadras Cafe, which was also a second movie for him as a producer, garnered much critical acclaim.[55] His next release wasWelcome Back, which was successful at the box office, earning₹168.76 crore (US$20 million) worldwide.[56]
In 2016, his first release wasRocky Handsome which was an average grosser at the box office.[57] His second release of the year wasDishoom, and despite mixed to negative reviews, the film proved to be successful at the box office grossing over₹1.2 billion (US$14 million) worldwide.[58] His next release of the year wasForce 2, the sequel to the 2011 filmForce.Force 2 became the highest opening film for Abraham and opened with mixed to positive reviews.[59][60][61] Abraham's performance received praise from the audience and critics. His next films in 2018 were the action filmsParmanu: The Story of Pokhran withDiana Penty andBoman Irani andSatyameva Jayate withManoj Bajpayee andNeha Sharma's younger sisterAisha Sharma.Satyameva Jayate was commercially successful earning₹1.08 billion worldwide.[62] In 2019, he starred in the action thrillerRomeo Akbar Walter and playedMrunal Thakur's husbandDCPSanjeev Kumar Yadav inNikkhil Advani'sBatla House, based on the 2008Batla House encounter case. The latter grossed over₹1.11 billion (US$13 million) worldwide becoming a commercially successful venture.[63]
Abraham said in 2016 that he had spurned multiple offers forHollywood films since 2006. He told an interviewer he wanted to focus on making "world standard" Indian films, though he did not rule out international films if an interesting offer came along.[64] In 2018, he produced the Marathi filmSavita Damodar Paranjpe. In 2022 his fourth venture, was aMalayalam movieMike.[65]
In 2021, Abraham appeared inMumbai Saga andSatyameva Jayate 2, both of which were box office disasters.[66] He did a cameo in his own productionSardar Ka Grandson alongsideArjun Kapoor andAditi Rao Hydari, that streamed onNetflix.[67] He produced, wrote and acted in the story of science-fiction actionerAttack: Part 1 (2022), where he co-starred withRakul Preet Singh andJacqueline Fernandez.[68] The film released threatically in April 2022 with mixed reviews from critics who praised the action sequences while criticising the screenplay,Taran Adarsh ofBollywood Hungama wrote, "Attack: Part 1 works due to the novel concept, action, VFX and John Abraham's first-rate performance".[69] The film grossed₹19.20 crore in India and₹3.50 crore overseas, for a worldwide gross collection of₹22.70 crore eventuallybombing at the box office.[70]
In his second release of 2022, he starred as Bhairav Purohit co-starringDisha Patani,Arjun Kapoor andTara Sutaria inMohit Suri's psychological thrillerEk Villain Returns.[71] The film released theatrically in July 2022 and opened to mixed reviews from critics. Sukanya Vema ofRediff wrote, "Ek Villain Returns falls back on the popularity of the Galliyan track to boost its appeal".[72] It grossed₹49.63 crores in India and₹19.01 crore overseas, for a worldwide gross collection of₹68.64 crore (US$8.1 million) and was a box office flop.[73] In November 2022, he produced along withBhushan Kumar andKrishan Kumar theromantic comedy filmTara Vs Bilal starringHarshvardhan Rane and Sonia Rathee.[74]
His first release of 2023 came withSiddharth Anand's mass action thrillerPathaan produced byYRF, co-starringShah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone.[75] It is the fourth instalment in theYRF Spy Universe. Principal photography forPathaan began in November 2020. The film was shot over various locations.Pathaan was released in India on 25 January 2023, coinciding with theRepublic Day. It received positive reviews from critics and broke several box-office records, including the biggest opening day and opening weekend for a Bollywood film. Abraham's performance was highly praised with critics calling him one of the biggest highlights in the movie .[76]Taran Adarsh ofBollywood Hungama termed the film a "complete entertainer replete with action, emotions, patriotism, humour, thrill, and of course, the star power of Shah Rukh Khan".[77]Pathaan had a worldwide gross collection of₹1,050 crore (US$120 million).[78]
Vedaa (2024) is a crime-action thriller directed byNikkhil Advani, featuring John Abraham as a grieving officer supporting a young Dalit woman's fight for dignity, blending intense action with a poignant social message.[79] Abraham's subsequent releases includedTehran directed by Arun Gopalan and produced byDinesh Vijan,[80] andThe Diplomat, released on 14 March 2025.[81][82]
During the filming ofJism in 2002, Abraham began to date his co-starBipasha Basu.[83] While together, the two were often referred to as asupercouple in the Indian media. Abraham once stated, "I have always kept quiet about my personal life and will continue to maintain a dignified silence. It's just the way my parents raised me. I rather leave it at speculation." The couple broke up in 2011.[84]
Abraham is married to Priya Runchal, an Indian-American financial analyst and investment banker from the United States but native toMcLeod Ganj, whom he met in Mumbai in December 2010. They married on 3 January 2014.[85][86] Runchal is also the chairperson ofNorthEast United FC.[87]
Off-screen, Abraham is abodybuilder andfitness model and he abstains fromsmoking, consumingalcohol,[88] and anyintoxicants,[89] although he did smoke as part of filmingNo Smoking (2007) andDishoom (2016) but later quit the habit after filming ended.[90] Due to this, he often avoids many parties and functions.[91] Abraham is asport bike collector.[92][93]
Abraham is widely known as one of the most popular "Action Heroes" in Bollywood.[94][95]Rediff.com noted that Abraham is an actor who is "well aware of his limitations and scores high on both -- disarming modesty and sharp career moves".[96]Forbes India noted, "Abraham has had an unconventional but successful career."[97]Filmfare stated, "John's macho charm, sculpted body and a dynamic screen presence hasn’t faded over the years." It termed him a "reliable draw at the box office".[98]Verve termed him "good-natured, down-to-earth star" and stated, "John has reinvented himself to emerge as a stronger performer on celluloid".[99]
Abraham made his debut inForbes India'sCelebrity 100 list of 2017, ranking 52nd with an annual income of₹141.3 million (US$1.7 million).[100] He peaked to 42nd place in 2018 with an annual income of₹193 million (US$2.3 million)[101] and in 2019, he ranked 46th with an annual income of₹285 million (US$3.4 million).[102] Abraham topped the "Sexiest Asian Men" list compiled byEastern Eye in 2008.[103] In the same list, he ranked 7th in 2011 and 8th in 2012.[104][105] In theTimes' 50 Most Desirable Men list, he ranked 29th in 2017[106] and 17th in 2018.[107] InRediff.com's "Top Bollywood Actors" list, Abraham was placed 11th in 2006.[108]
Abraham also takes an active interest in theUnited Way, based inDenver, United States. In January 2009, he flagged off theMumbai Marathon, an annual event organised to benefit theUnited Way. He did not run the marathon, but encouraged the participants by waving at them from the start line.[109][110] Abraham is an animal lover and takes an interest inPETA andHabitat for Humanity.[111][112] In April 2013, on behalf ofPETA, Abraham wrote a letter to the Minister for Environment and Forests,Jayanthi Natarajan, asking that she make all circuses in India animal-free.[113] Abraham is also thecelebrity supporter ofUNHCR India, and promotes the cause of refugees in India.[114] According to his website, he donated₹10lakh (US$12,000) to theLilavati Hospital and Research Centre, Mumbai.[115] He has a fashion line – branded JA Clothes – which primarily features his favourite article of clothing, jeans.[116] In 2024, Abraham was placed 28th onIMDb's List of 100 Most Viewed Indian Stars.[117]
0:19 He (father) is a Syrian Christian. My father is a Malayali, My mother is an Irani.
I always love visiting Gujarat because the Parsi community (my mother is a Parsi) has its roots in south Gujarat
See between 1:42 and 1:53
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