Akshaye Khanna, who was last seen in Dhurandhar, has enjoyed a major resurgence in 2025. With powerful negative roles in Chhaava and Dhurandhar, his stardom has multiplied manifold. (Image: Instagram)
Yet, the actor has been part of the industry for nearly three decades, and in an earlier interview, he was asked why his solo hero films hadn’t matched the success of contemporaries like Abhishek Bachchan and Hrithik Roshan. (Image: Instagram)
“I have gotten much success as a solo hero, I have seen some success, but not as much. But you are saying like… You are trying to say that unless I become as successful as Aamir Khan, Shah Rukh Khan or Salman Khan, you won’t consider me a success. That’s a little odd,” he told Prabhu Chawla in 2007, just before the release of Gandhi, My Father. (Image: Instagram)
He explained that such comparisons were unfair, likening them to measuring businessmen against giants like JRD Tata or Dhirubhai Ambani. “You are saying that I am not a success,” he said, visibly amused. The interviewer pressed further, pointing out that actors like Abhishek Bachchan, John Abraham, and Hrithik Roshan were appearing in solo-hero films and enjoying success. (Image: Instagram)
By this point, Akshaye chose to play along, remarking with a smile, “Everyone is ahead, and I am the last one in this race.” The interviewer continued to probe, asking if he felt a complex about not doing solo films. Akshaye responded calmly, “I am trying that in future, I will also be a star of that level, and for that, I am working hard.” (Image: Instagram)
When asked about cliques in Bollywood and why filmmakers like Karan Johar and Yash Chopra weren’t casting him in solo hero projects, Akshaye simply replied, “You should ask them.” (Image: Instagram)
