Biography of Bobby Deol
Bobby Deol born as Vijay Singh Deol on January 27, 1967 in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, is a Bollywood actor. Born into an acting family of Jat ethnicity, Deol is the son of the acclaimed Bollywood actor Dharmendra and the brother of Sunny Deol, also a successful actor in the Mumbai based Indian film industry.
Bobby Deol was born into a Jat family and is the second son of Bollywood movie star Dharmendra and Prakash Kaur. He is the younger brother of Sunny Deol. Bobby Deol was born in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. He has two sisters, Vijeyta and Ajita, and two half sisters – from his father’s second marriage to actress Hema Malini – Esha Deol and Ahana Deol. Actor Abhay Deol is his younger cousin.
Bobby Deol is married to Tanya Ahuja, with whom he has two sons. His eldest son Aryaman was born on 16th June 2001. His second son was born on 5 November 2004 and was named Dharam, after his father.
Deol has been featured mostly in thriller films, often playing wealthy but vulnerable middle class characters, affected by the corrupt establishment and women and often propelled into crime to avenge the deaths of loved ones. His films commonly involve themes of jealousy, deceit and revenge and in his more romantic thrillers often involve him caught in love triangles.
Deol was awarded the Filmfare Best Debut Award for his role in the 1995 film Barsaat and was later nominated for the Filmfare Best Actor Award for his performance in Humraaz in 2002.
Deol first briefly appeared as a child actor in the film Dharam Veer in 1977. Just ten years old at the time, he played the younger version of the film’s lead actor, his father, Dharmendra. Deol then made his adult debut with Twinkle Khanna in the 1995 Bollywood film Barsaat, directed by Rajkumar Santoshi. Deol plays the character of Badal, a naive but intelligent young man who moves from a small village to the big city and gets caught up with corrupt police and criminal gangs amidst falling in love.
Partly shot in Scotland, Deol broke his leg in an equestrian accident while filming and had to be flown to London to recuperate and had to call off several publicity shoots which documented his debut. The film was nonetheless a considerable success and garnered him the Filmfare Best Debut Award.
In 1997, Deol starred in Gupt: The Hidden Truth, a suspense thriller directed by Rajiv Rai, considered his breakthrough role. Cast alongside Manisha Koirala, Kajol, Paresh Rawal, Om Puri and Raj Babbar, Deol played the role of Sahil, a young man accused of murdering his step father over an engagement proposal and wrongly imprisoned. He escapes and tracks down the real killer. Gupt: The Hidden Truth was highly acclaimed for its storyline and soundtrack and was a major commercial success. In the same year, Deol appeared in Aur Pyaar Ho Gaya, alongside Aishwarya Rai in her debut Bollywood role.
In 1998, Deol starred opposite Neha in the Vidhu Vinod Chopra film, Kareeb. Deol played the character of Birju, an irresponsible young man from an upper middle class family in Himachal Pradesh with a love of petty thievery and deceit. Later in 1998, he appeared in Abbas Mustan’s military thriller Soldier, alongside Raakhee Gulzar and Preity Zinta. Deol played the mysterious character of Vicky, later revealed as Raju, son of Vijay Malhotra who was convicted of arms smuggling.
In 1999, Deol starred in Dillagi, directed by and co-starring his brother Sunny Deol. The film is noted for being the first time Sunny Deol directed a film and also the first time he acted alongside Bobby. This pairing was repeated in 23rd March 1931: Shaheed (2002) and Apne (2007). Dillagi features the two as the brothers Ranvir and Rajvir, fighting for the affection of Shalani (Urmila Matondkar).
In 2009, Deol portrayed Nandu, an orphan turned assassin wrongly accused of a politician’s murder in the movie Ek – The Power of One.
Deol’s next film titled, Help, was shot in Mauritius, in which he appeared opposite Mugdha Godse. The film was released on August 13, 2010. Deol then starred in Yamla Pagla Deewana which was released on January 14, 2011.