Many of you know Atul Agnihotri as Salman Khan's brother-in-law. But back in the 90s, he was one of the rising actors in the B-world. With his innocent face, charming smile, and an envious height, Agnihotri soon became a heartthrob with films like Sir, Krantiveer, and others. Today, he is a successful producer with movies like Bodyguard, Bharat under his belt. He debuted with Sir in 1993 which was directed by Mahesh Bhatt. Technically, his tryst with movies began with Pasand Apni Apni (1983) where he played a child actor which starred his cousin Rati Agnihotri. Don’t Go by Language and Curses’ Salman Khan Appeals to Fans to Stand with Sushant Singh Rajput’s Fans

On his birthday today, let us a bit more about Atul Agnihotri and we have a feeling you aren't aware of them.

#Just to pay the bills

Atul in an interview with TOI said that he was working in movies just to pay the bills and put the chicken on the table. "I assisted Pankaj for four years and debuted as Sanjay Dutt’s younger brother in Sanjay Gupta’s Aatish. I also got a role in Mahesh Bhatt sahab’s Sir. I was just 23 and at that time, for me, it was only about being able to pay my bills and it seemed great then." He further added, "From the age of 16, it’s always been about paying for putting the chicken on the table and it still is."

#Meeting Alvira

Atul met Salman Khan's sister Alvira, his wife, during a print commercial shoot. In the same interview, he revealed, "I was modelling for a paint commercial for Kailash Surendranath and met her there as she was assisting him on that commercial. We became friends and remained friends meeting at the RG’s and 1900 as there were no mobile phones at that time. When I got into the movies, we started talking a lot more. Ours was a friendship that grew so much that you wanted it to be a permanent relationship. "

#First meeting with Salim Khan

Agnihotri met Salim Khan for the first time when Alvira introduced him as the 'boy she liked'. He told in the interview, "He was sitting in his balcony, reading the newspaper. Alvira told him, ‘Dad, this is the boy I like.’ That was the first time she had told him about me. He looked up and just said, ‘I like him too.’ That was it. For me, he replaced my father."

#Money matters

Atul was paid just Rs 25000 for his debut film Sir. He told Hindustan Times, "I didn't get the kind of roles I wanted, and most of the projects that I acted in backfired. At that time, actors were not paid enough. I got 25,000 for my first film and then 50,000 for the next. I guess, my true calling was direction and that's what gives me immense satisfaction."

 

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 24, 2020 08:20 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).