Aftab Shivdasani

Indian film actor (born 1978)

Aftab Shivdasani

Shivdasani at IIFA (2014)

Born|  (1978-06-25) 25 June 1978 (age 46)

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India

Occupations|

* Actor
* producer
* model

Years active| 1987-present
Spouse|

Nin Dusanj

(m. 2014)​

Children| 1

Aftab Shivdasani (born 25 June 1978) is an Indian actor, producer and model known for his works in Hindi and also working for Tamil and Kannada film industry.[1] Shivdasani was selected as the Farex baby at the age of 14 months and eventually appeared in many TV commercials for the product. He started his career as a child artist in films like Mr. India (1987), Shahenshah (1988), ChaalBaaz (1989), Awwal Number (1990), C.I.D. (1990) and Insaniyat (1994).[2]

In 1999, he made his adult debut in Ram Gopal Varma's Mast, for which he received the Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut and Star Screen Award for Most Promising Newcomer- Male. Subsequently, he featured in several commercially successful films, including, Kasoor (2001) for which he received Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role and a nomination for Filmfare Best Villain Award, Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai (2002), Awara Paagal Deewana (2002), Hungama (2003), Masti (2004). His debut film in Tamil cinema was Bhaskar Oru Rascal (2018). He made his debut in Kannada cinema with the commercial hit movie Kotigobba 3  (2021).

## Personal life

[edit]

Shivdasani was born in Mumbai in a Sindhi Hindu family to Prem and Putli Shivdasani.[3] His mother is an Irani Zoroastrian. Shivdasani studied at St. Xavier's High School, Fort, then graduated from H. R. College of Commerce in Mumbai.[3] In 2012, he got engaged to Nin Dusanj, a London-based Punjabi who grew up in London and later moved to Hong Kong, working within the advertising and luxury branding industries in Asia.[2] On 5 June 2014, he married Dusanj at a private ceremony attended only by both their families.[4] They have a daughter, Nevaeh, born in 2020.[5]

## Career

[edit]

### 1987–1994: Child roles

[edit]

Shivdasani was selected as the Farex baby (baby food brand) at age 14 months and from that point on he appeared in many TV commercials. He made his Bollywood debut as a child actor in Mr. India (1987), then appearing in films such as Awwal Number, Shahenshah, ChaalBaaz and Insaniyat. He also played the child role for Inspector Vijaykumar Srivastav in the 1988 film 'Shahenshah', who would later be played by Amitabh Bachchan for the remainder of the film.

### 1999–2008: Switch to adult roles and breakthrough

[edit]

Aftab Shivdasani (2012)

Shivdasani continued appearing in commercials until the age of 19 when he was offered a lead role in director Ram Gopal Varma's Mast opposite Urmila Matondkar while still studying at H.R. College. Shivdasani made his debut as an adult opposite Matondkar in Mast. The film became an instant flop although Shivdasani won the Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut and the Star Screen Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Male for his performance in Mast. He earned critical acclaim for his performance. Mohammad Ali Ikram of PlanetBollywood.com praised his performance and wrote: "Newcomer Aftab Shivdasani comes across as a bit young and aimless when the movie opens, but as you watch the proceedings, you'll learn that this bit of casting makes perfect sense considering Kittu's immaturity and innocence."[6]

In 2001, Shivdasani made his comeback to acting with his second film, Vikram Bhatt’s Kasoor opposite the debutant Lisa Ray. Shivdasani played a negative role and shot to instant fame with his portrayal of Shekhar Saxena, a well-known journalist, who murders his wife. His performance in the film earned him a nomination for the Filmfare Best Villain Award and a Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role. Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama noticed the improvement in his acting and praised his performance. "Aftab, as the suave publishing magnate, catches you unaware with a performance that is first-rate. His characterisation is dissimilar from the one he played in his debut-making venture Mast. His work should catapult him to the league of genteel artists."[7] His next release of that year saw him paired with Ram Gopal Varma again after Mast in Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega, in which Shivdasani starred in a supporting role opposite Saif Ali Khan, Fardeen Khan, Twinkle Khanna and Sonali Bendre. Shivdasani's performance was applauded by Taran Adarsh and considered to be better than the other two heroes. Taran Adarsh wrote "Aftab plays to the gallery and gives a good account of himself. Aftab has an edge over the other two heroes because his character is mass appealing. His scenes with Johny Lever are simply superb."[8] However, the film failed at the box office. His last release of the year was Rajiv Rai's Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat, in which Shivdasani played Taj Bharadwaj, one of the three lead roles with the debutant Arjun Rampal and Suniel Shetty opposite Kirti Reddy. Shivdasani was praised by Taran Adarsh. "Aftab Shivdasani has an edge thanks to his lovable characterization. He is natural."[9] Pankaj Shukla of SmasHits wrote "Aftab is impressive as usual and is fast maturing as an actor."[10]

In 2002, Shivdasani's first two films Koi Mere Dil Se Poochhe opposite debutant Esha Deol was a failure but Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai opposite Ameesha Patel was successful at the box office. His third release of that year was Rajkumar Kohli's multi-starrer supernatural horror Jaani Dushman: Ek Anokhi Kahani that was a disaster. His fourth film of 2002 was the multi-starrer action comedy Awara Paagal Deewana, that proved to be a successful movie and became the seventh highest grosser movie of that year. It was an average grosser. His final release of that year was Pyaasa.

Shivdasani had some failures in 2003 with the multi-starrer Darna Mana Hai, which was a commercial failure at the box office but it was critically successful. His role of Purab, a young college student who has the ability to stop and move people, was critically praised. His next release was Priyadarshan's comedy film Hungama opposite Akshaye Khanna and the debutant Rimi Sen, which was his biggest success of that year. His third and final release of that year was Footpath opposite Bipasha Basu, Rahul Dev and debutant Emraan Hashmi, which failed to do well at the box office.

Shivdasani's first two releases of 2004 were Suno Sasurjee opposite Ameesha Patel, and Muskaan opposite Gracy Singh. His third release of that year was Indra Kumar's comedy film Masti, in which he starred opposite Vivek Oberoi, Ritesh Deshmukh, Amrita Rao, Genelia D'Souza, Tara Sharma, Lara Dutta and Ajay Devgan. The film became a hit. His last release of that year was Shukriya: Till Death Do Us Apart opposite Anupam Kher and Shriya Saran.

In 2005, Shivdasani's films included Mr Ya Miss opposite Antara Mali and Koi Aap Sa opposite Anita Hassanandani Reddy and Dipannita Sharma. The former was a flop while the latter was average at the box office. All of Shivdasani's films, especially Ankahee, were failures in 2006. Shivdasani found failures with multi-starrer films in 2007 and 2008.

### 2009–present: Aao Wish Karein and recent projects

[edit]

In 2009, Shivdasani acted in Aao Wish Karein, the first film produced under his production company, Rising Sun Entertainment. He helped co-write the script and also played the lead character, Mickey. The same year, Shivdasani appeared in Acid Factory. In 2011, Shivdasani played the lead role in the comedy film Bin Bulaye Baraati opposite Priyanka Kothari. Shivdasani's next release was 2012 super-hit 1920: The Evil Returns in which he played the lead role opposite Twinkle Bajpai. His next film Grand Masti, a sequel to the 2004 blockbuster Masti was also a huge success like the original grossing over 100crores at the box office. In January 2016 part 3 of the hit franchise Kyaa Kool Hai Hum was released where Aftab starred alongside Tusshar Kapoor the film was a hit at the box office. In July 2016 the third instalment of the super hit Masti series, Great Grand Masti was released.

In 2021, he took part in a commercially successful Kannada movie, Kotigobba 3, as a police officer. Later that year, Shivdasani starred as Vijay Kumar, a RAW officer in Special Ops 1.5: The Himmat Story, the sequel to Neeraj Panday’s hit series Special Ops on Disney+ Hotstar. His performance received commercial and critical appreciation from all and was also hailed as the surprise package of the second season.[citation needed]

## Awards

[edit]

Year  | Nominee / work  | Award  | Result

|
|
|

2000  | Mast | Star Screen Award for Most Promising Newcomer - Male | Won
Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut | Won
2002  | Kasoor | Filmfare Award for Best Performance in a Negative Role | Nominated
Zee Cine Award for Best Actor in a Negative Role | Won
Screen Weekly Awards for Best Performance in a Negative Role | Nominated
2005  | Masti | Bollywood Movie Award for Best Comedian | Won

## Filmography

[edit]

### As a child actor

[edit]

Year  | Film  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1987 | Mr. India | Orphan |
1988 | Shahenshah | Young Vijay Kumar Srivastava |
1989 | ChaalBaaz | Raju & Raja |
1991  | Sau Crore | Rakesh  |
1990 | Awwal Number | Young Sunny |
C.I.D. | Sunny |
1994 | Insaniyat | Young Amar Nath Singh |

### As an adult

[edit]

Year  | Film  | Role  | Notes

|
|
|

1999 | Mast | Krishnakant Mathur "Kittu" |
2001 | Kasoor | Shekhar Saxena |
Love Ke Liye Kuchh Bhi Karega | Harilal |
Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat | Tajinder "Taj" Bharadwaj |
2002 | Koi Mere Dil Se Poochhe | Aman Puri |
Kya Yehi Pyaar Hai | Rahul Tiwari |
Awara Paagal Deewana | Dr. Anmol Acharya |
Jaani Dushman: Ek Anokhi Kahani | Prem Srivastav |
Pyaasa | Suraj Thakur |
2003 | Darna Mana Hai | Purav | Story segment: Stop-Move
Hungama | Nandu Apte |
Footpath | Arjun Singh |
2004 | Suno Sasurjee | Raj K. Saxena |
Muskaan | Sameer Oberoi |
Masti | Prem Chawla |
Shukriya: Till Death Do Us Apart | Rohan 'Ricky' Verma |
2005 | Koi Aap Sa | Rohan |
Deewane Huye Paagal | Raj Sinha | Cameo appearance
Mr Ya Miss | Sanjay Patel |
2006 | Shaadi Se Pehle | Rohit Chopra |
Ankahee | Dr. Shekhar Saxena |
Darwaza Bandh Rakho | Ajay 'Balu' Pandit |
Jaane Hoga Kya | Siddharth Sardesai/ Mannu Dada |
2007 | Nishabd | Rishi | Cameo appearance
Red: The Dark Side | Neil Oberoi |
Life Mein Kabhie Kabhiee | Manish 'Manu' Gupta |
Speed | Kabir Khan |
Om Shanti Om | Himself | Guest appearance in song Deewangi Deewangi
Dus Kahaniyaan | Aman | Segment - Lovedale
2008 | De Taali | Abhishek 'Abhi' Aggarwal |
Money Hai Toh Honey Hai | Gaurav Negi |
2009 | Aloo Chaat | Nikhil |
Daddy Cool | Michael |
Kambakkht Ishq | Lucky Shergill |
Acid Factory | Sarthak |
Aao Wish Karein | Mickey V. Mehra | Also Producer
2011 | Bin Bulaye Baraati | AD |
2012 | Players | Raj | Cameo appearance
1920: The Evil Returns | Jaidev Verma |
2013 | Grand Masti | Prem Chawla |
2016 | Kyaa Kool Hain Hum 3 | Rocky |
Great Grand Masti | Prem Chawla |
2018 | Bhaskar Oru Rascal | Sanjay | Tamil Film
2019 | Setters | Aaditya |
2021  | Kotigobba 3 | Sharath  | Kannada Film
TBA  | Masti 4 † | TBA | Filming[11]

### Television

[edit]

Year  | Title  | Role

|
|

2020 | Poison 2 | Aditya Singh Rathore
2021 | Special Ops 1.5: The Himmat Story | Vijay Kumar

## See also

[edit]

* Bollywood portal
* Biography portal

* List of Indian film actors

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Aftab Shivdasani and family to stay in London till situation improves in India". Hindustan Times. 3 June 2021. Archived from the original on 3 June 2021. Retrieved 3 June 2021.
2. ^ a b Aftab Shivdasani to get married – Bollywood Movie News Archived 21 October 2014 at the Wayback Machine. Indiaglitz.com (5 November 2012). Retrieved on 2016-02-14.
3. ^ a b "Aftab Shivdasani". Koimoi. Archived from the original on 8 December 2014. Retrieved 24 October 2014.
4. ^ "Aftab Shivdasani ties the knot". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 22 July 2018. Retrieved 11 June 2014.
5. ^ "Exclusive! Aftab Shivdasani: I am eager to bring my daughter Nevaeh to India to meet her grandparents". Times of India. 8 May 2021. Archived from the original on 8 May 2021. Retrieved 8 May 2021.
6. ^ Mohammad Ali Ikram. "Mast Review". PlanetBollywood.com. Archived from the original on 7 November 2011. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
7. ^ Taran Adarsh. "Kasoor Review". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
8. ^ Taran Adarsh. "Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega Review". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 3 April 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
9. ^ Taran Adarsh. "Pyaar Ishq Aur Mohabbat Review". Bollywood Hungama. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
10. ^ Pankaj Shukla. "Three Boys, One Girl, And Some Heart Surgery". SmasHits.com. Archived from the original on 27 October 2012. Retrieved 11 August 2012.
11. ^ "It's official! Milap Zaveri's Masti 4 goes on floors, Aftab Shivdasani shares picture featuring Riteish Deshmukh and Jitendra". Bollywood Hungama. Retrieved 15 December 2024.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Aftab Shivdasani.

* Aftab Shivdasani at IMDb
* Aftab Shivdasani at Bollywood Hungama
* Tamil Movie News : Aftab Shivdasani (in Tamil)

* v
* t
* e

Screen Award for Best Male Debut

* Bobby Deol (1996)
* Chandrachur Singh (1997)
* Akshaye Khanna (1998)
* Not awarded (1999)
* Aftab Shivdasani (2000)
* R. Madhavan (2001)
* Arjun Rampal (2002)
* Vivek Oberoi (2003)
* Shahid Kapoor (2004)
* Not awarded (2005)
* Shiney Ahuja (2006)
* Siddharth (2007)
* Ranbir Kapoor (2008)
* Farhan Akhtar (2009)
* Omi Vaidya (2010)
* Ranveer Singh (2011)
* Divyendu Sharma (2012)
* Ayushmann Khurrana (2013)
* Sushant Singh Rajput (2014)
* Tiger Shroff (2015)
* Vicky Kaushal (2016)
* Jim Sarbh & Harsh Varrdhan Kapoor (2017)
* Aparshakti Khurana (2018)
* Ishaan Khatter (2019)
* Siddhant Chaturvedi (2020)

* v
* t
* e

Zee Cine Award for Best Male Debut

* Akshaye Khanna (1998)
* Mukesh Tiwari (1999)
* Aftab Shivdasani (2000)
* Hrithik Roshan (2001)
* Tusshar Kapoor (2002)
* Vivek Oberoi (2003)
* Shahid Kapoor (2004)
* No Award (2005)
* Shiney Ahuja (2006)
* Upen Patel (2007)
* Ranbir Kapoor (2008)
* No Award (2009)
* No Award (2010)
* Ranveer Singh (2011)
* Rana Daggubati (2012)
* Arjun Kapoor & Ayushmann Khurana (2013)
* Dhanush (2014)
* No Award (2015)
* Vicky Kaushal (2016)
* Jim Sarbh (2017)
* Matin Rey Tangu (2018)
* Ishaan Khattar (2019)
* Siddhant Chaturvedi & Vishal Jethwa (2020)

Authority control databases

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* VIAF
* WorldCat

National|

* Germany
* United States
* France
* BnF data
* Italy
* Australia

People|

* Trove
* Deutsche Synchronkartei

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