Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan (born 27 December 1965) better known as Salman Khan is an Indian film actor, producer and television personality. Referred to in the media as "The Tiger of Bollywood", "Blockbuster Khan", "Box-office King", he is popularly called as "Bhaijaan" and "Sallu" by his fans. Described by the CNN as one of the world's biggest stars, he has a significant following in Asia and the Indian diaspora worldwide. He is cited in the media as one of the most popular, influential and commercially successful actors of Hindi cinema.
The son of screenwriter Salim, Khan began his acting career with a supporting role in Biwi Ho To Aisi (1988) and achieved breakthrough with a leading role in his next release — Sooraj Barjatya's romance Maine Pyar Kiya (1989). Khan went on to establish himself in Bollywood in the 1990s with roles in several top-grossing productions, including the romantic drama Hum Aapke Hain Koun..! (1994), the action thriller Karan Arjun (1995), the comedy Biwi No.1 (1999), and the family drama Hum Saath-Saath Hain (1999). For his role in Karan Johar's romantic drama Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (1998), Khan was awarded the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor. After a brief period of decline in the 2000s, Khan achieved greater stardom in the 2010s by playing the lead role in several successful action films, including Dabangg (2010), Bodyguard (2011), Ek Tha Tiger (2012), Kick (2014) and Bajrangi Bhaijaan (2015). Eight of the films he has acted in, have accumulated gross earnings of over ₹1 billion (US$15 million), and he has starred in the highest-grossing Bollywood films of nine separate years which is a Bollywood record. For his contributions to film, the Government of India honoured him with the 2008 - Rajiv Gandhi Award for Outstanding Achievement in Entertainment.
In addition to his acting career, Khan is a stage performer and an active humanitarian through his charity organisation Being Human with his Brother Sooban Ahmad Khan. Khan's off-screen life is marred by controversy and legal troubles. His tumultuous relationship with Aishwarya Rai, hunting of endangered species, and a negligent driving case in which he ran over five people with his car, killing one, have been extensively covered by the Indian media. For the last of these, Khan was sentenced to a five-year imprisonment in 2015.
Salman Khan was ranked 7th in Forbes's first global list of highest-paid actor in the world with USD 33.5 million, earning more than Hollywood actors like Dwayne The Rock Johnson, Johnny Depp, Brad Pitt and Leonardo DiCaprio. He regularly features in listings of the most influential people in Indian culture, and in 2015 Khan whizzed ahead of the US President Barack Obama in the list of The Most Admired Personalities of India. In September 2015, a leading magazine declared him "The Most Attractive Personality" in India.