Akshay Kumar reveals his real name

Born Rajiv Bhatia, sometimes a name is all it takes to carve out a legacy in Bollywood

Delhi-born Rajiv Bhatia’s transformation into the household name Akshay Kumar has a quirky backstory rooted in his debut film. The Hindi film star recently shared the origins of his stage name in an interview with Galatta Plus.

When asked about his first day on the set of Aaj, directed by Mahesh Bhatt and featuring stars like Raj Babbar, Smita Patil, and Kumar Gaurav, Akshay revealed an interesting tidbit. “Do you know what was Kumar Gaurav’s name in the film? Akshay! That’s how I got my name. Not many people know this,” Akshay said, laughing about the origins story of his name.

“So, my real name is Rajiv and during the shoot I just casually asked what is the name of the hero in the film, they said Akshay, I told them, I want to keep Akshay as my name!” Dispelling any notion that he changed his name due to the prevalence of Rajiv Kapoor, Akshay clarified, “Rajiv is a good name and I think back then Rajiv Gandhi was the Prime Minister or something. So, it was a great name but I changed it anyway.”

“It wasn’t like some pandit advised me to change my name! My father also asked me, ‘What’s wrong with you?’ but I told him the same, that this was the hero’s name in my first film so I will keep it!”

A prominent action star of the 90s, Akshay rose to fame alongside Bollywood giants Shah Rukh Khan, Aamir Khan and Salman Khan. However, the actor has faced a series of box office disappointments post-pandemic, with Sarfira marking his lowest opening in recent times. Despite these setbacks, fans eagerly await his next comedy, Khel Khel Mein.