My top ten

Akshay Kumar onscreen moments (where he did the unexpected for love) By Arjun N Kapoor

Arjun N Kapoor is co-founder of KriArj Entertainment who have co-produced Pad Man, which is in cinemas on January 25.

“IN AKSHAY KUMAR’S 25 years in Bollywood he has given stellar performances across a range of genres.

“Although he has been associated closely with comedy, drama and action, the actor has had many stand-out romantic moments where he has done something different. He has done that in our recent KriArj Entertainment production Pad Man, which is a true-life tale based on real events. With that in mind, here are top 10 movie moments where Akshay Kumar has done the unexpected for love,” said Arjun N Kapoor

Pad Man: The highly-anticipated movie sees Akshay Kumar play a real life hero named Arunachalam Murugantham, who was driven by a deep love for his wife to cause a revolution that helped countless women. He portrays a loveable and sensitive husband who goes out of his way to invent an affordable sanitary pad that has a transformative effect on society. That deep love for his wife commits his character to the cause of women empowerment, even if it means isolation and marginalisation from society. The end result is a new kind of love story, which is inspirational, deeply romantic and has an important message.

Toilet: Ek Prem Katha: This beautifully crafted drama was another KriArj Entertainment production and an example where Akshay’s character does the unexpected for love. Based on real life events, he portrays a husband who must go against rural society to build a toilet to keep hold of his wife. He battles against age-old values for love and in the process transforms the lives all those around him. Although it was a romance at its core, the film had a transformative effect.

Namastey London: Akshay plays a simple Punjabi man who marries a British woman from a foreign land, only to discover she loves someone else. The bighearted character goes on a mission to reunite his wife with the man she loves, and in the process wins her over with the selfless gesture. That role also won over millions of moviegoers.

Dhadkan: The smash hit musical saw Akshay play a man with great ideals, who believes in giving a rightful place to his wife. Even though his wife loves someone else, his character does the unexpected by respecting her decision and still remaining devoted. After seeing the magnanimity of her husband’s heart in forgiving and accepting her, the wife realises she has fallen in love with him.

Welcome: This may have been a smash hit comedy, but there was a great romantic heartbeat at its core. This time Akshay’s character selflessly take the blame for a serious crime committed by the woman he loves. The multi-starrer once again enabled him to show the audiences the beauty of a selfless act.

Mujhse Shaadi Karogi: With this hit comedy, Akshay’s character is driven by the love for his childhood friend and once again does the unexpected. He doesn’t reveal his identity and pretends to be an enemy to help that friend with his major anger issues. Through a series of comical events, Akshay’s character unites his friend with the woman he loves and helps cure the anger problems.

Dil To Pagal Hai: A memorable cameo saw Akshay play a character who gets engaged to his childhood friend, who he loves. When his loveable character realises she is deeply in love with someone else, he helps unite her with him. Without that selfless gesture, the now memorable ending would not have happened.

Heyy Baby: Three womanising bachelors are left with a baby to take care of. When Akshay’s character finds out the baby girl is his, he steps up and wants to take care of her. When the mother re-emerges, he tries to win her over, but when she doesn’t relent he is willing to let her leave with the baby because he loves them. The selfless gesture prompts the mother to reunite with him and make them a family.

Yeh Dillagi: Inspired by Hollywood classic Sabrina, this film saw Akshay portray a man willing to sacrifice the woman he loves for his younger brother because he knows it will have a transformative effect on his life. The younger brother sees the sacrifice and realises she is meant to be with the elder brother. Akshay helped give the remake a unique Indian identity.

Andaaz: Miss Universe Lara Dutta and Miss World Priyanka Chopra made their movie debuts opposite Akshay, who played another role where his character did the unexpected for love. When he realises the woman who didn’t reciprocate his love and married another man becomes a widow, he helps her face life again. They fall in love and he goes against society to marry the widow.