Sitting comfortable in his make up van, the actor ponders on all that is happening around his life. The success of Singh is Kinng aroused such insecurities in people that Akshay had to go on the defensive when he said, “I don’t believe in the number game. There are only seven or eight top actors and there is enough work in the industry for all of us. No one is eating into any one’s territory.”
At award ceremonies, the top billing goes to the actor, who is given the honour to do the finale act. Akshay never made it to the final act for any shows until the box office registers began jingling and he began to be touted as the biggest actor in Bollywood. Akshay said, “I was never bothered about where my acts would be placed in a show. My only concern is that I present a new act everytime I am on stage. I have used camels to make my entry, jumped from rooftops, entered with a Punjabi troupe amidst the audiences… I am an entertainer and I will do that. Numbers…, I am not a mathematician or a numerologist…” The last line added with a mischievous smile.
The latest controversy of his wife, Twinkle Khanna, unbuttoning the top button of his jeans at a fashion show, comes closely after he was awarded the Padmashree. A close friend of the actor declared, “We were expecting some kind of backlash after he got his award. But this controversy was least expected. It is a hit below the belt…” Another wicked smile follows after the last line.
However the man in the middle of the storm is quite unaffected. He has stood tall when he was a struggler, he stood smiling when his films scored at the box office, he took to audacious promotions when critics panned his semi auto biographical film, Chandni Chowk to China, he stood dignified when he accepted the Padmashree award from the President of India, and now when he is in the midst of another storm, Kumar, will do what he knows best, stand tall and weather the tempest.
