Anupam Kher (born 7 March 1955) is an Indian actor, director and producer who has appeared in more than 500 films, most of them in Hindi. He made his name in Saaransh (1984), playing a grieving old man when he was only 28, and went on to become one of Bollywood’s most versatile character actors, equally at home in comedy, villainy and drama. He has also worked in international films such as Bend It Like Beckham and Silver Linings Playbook. He received the Padma Bhushan in 2016.
Quick Facts
| Full name | Anupam Kher |
| Born | 7 March 1955, Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India |
| Age | 71 |
| Occupation | Actor, director, producer, author |
| Education | National School of Drama, New Delhi (1978) |
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Spouse | Kirron Kher (m. 1985) |
| Honours | Padma Shri (2004), Padma Bhushan (2016) |
| Known for | Saaransh, Karma, Daddy, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, A Wednesday |
Early Life
Kher was born in Shimla into a Kashmiri Pandit family. His father, Pushkar Nath Kher, was a clerk in the forest department, and the large joint family lived on a modest income. He studied at D.A.V. School in Shimla, took up theatre at Panjab University in Chandigarh and graduated from the National School of Drama in 1978. He taught drama for a while before moving to Mumbai, where he struggled for work and at times slept on a railway platform.
Career
Mahesh Bhatt cast Kher in Saaransh (1984) as a retired teacher mourning his son. The performance won him the Filmfare Award for Best Actor. He quickly became one of Hindi cinema’s busiest actors, playing the terrorist Dr. Dang in Karma (1986) and comic and serious roles in Tezaab (1988), Ram Lakhan (1989) with Anil Kapoor, and Daddy (1989), for which he received a special National Film Award.
In the 1990s Kher was a regular in family blockbusters, often as a warm or eccentric father: Dil (1990), Lamhe (1991), Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994) and Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995), in which he played Shah Rukh Khan‘s father. He directed Om Jai Jagadish (2002) and gave acclaimed performances in Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara (2005), Khosla Ka Ghosla (2006), A Wednesday (2008) and Special 26 (2013).
Kher played the father in Bend It Like Beckham (2002) and later appeared in Bride and Prejudice (2004), Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution (2007), Silver Linings Playbook (2012), The Big Sick (2017) and Hotel Mumbai (2018). He was a lead in the American medical series New Amsterdam from 2018 to 2021.
He played former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in The Accidental Prime Minister (2019) and a Kashmiri Pandit teacher in The Kashmir Files (2022), one of the biggest hits of that year. He also starred in Uunchai (2022) with Amitabh Bachchan and directed Tanvi the Great (2025).
Other Roles
Kher has been chairman of the Central Board of Film Certification, director of the National School of Drama and chairman of the Film and Television Institute of India. In 2005 he founded the acting school Actor Prepares in Mumbai. His one-man autobiographical play, Kuch Bhi Ho Sakta Hai, has been staged hundreds of times, and he has written several motivational books.
Personal Life
Kher married the actress Kirron Kher in 1985. She later became a BJP Member of Parliament for Chandigarh. Her son, the actor Sikandar Kher, is his stepson. His younger brother, Raju Kher, is also an actor.
Awards and Honours
Selected Filmography
Frequently Asked Questions
When and where was Anupam Kher born?
Anupam Kher was born on 7 March 1955 in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, India and is 71 years old.
What is Anupam Kher known for?
Known for: Saaransh, Karma, Daddy, Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge, A Wednesday.
What honours has Anupam Kher received?
Padma Shri (2004), Padma Bhushan (2016).
Featured image: Anupam Kher at the IIFA Awards press conference, New York, 13 July 2017. Photo by Laura Lee Dooley, licensed under CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.
