Twinkle Khanna (born 29 December 1973) is an Indian author and former actress. A daughter of actors
Dimple Kapadia and
Rajesh Khanna
Rajesh Khanna (; born Jatin Khanna; 29 December 1942 – 18 July 2012) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who worked in Hindi films. Considered as one of the greatest and most successful actors in the history of Indian cinema, h ...
, she made her acting debut with a leading role in the film ''
Barsaat'' (1995). After playing the leading lady in such films as ''
Jaan'' (1996), ''
Jab Pyaar Kisise Hota Hai'' (1998), ''
Baadshah'' (1999), and ''
Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega'' (2001), she quit acting.
Khanna married actor
Akshay Kumar
Akshay Hari Om Bhatia (born Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia; 9 September 1967), known professionally as Akshay Kumar (), is an Indian actor and film producer working in Hindi cinema. Referred to in the media as "Khiladi Kumar", through his career span ...
in 2001. She worked as an interior designer for a few years, and began writing opinion columns. As an author, she has written the non-fiction book ''
Mrs Funnybones'' (2015), the short story collection ''
The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad'' (2016), and the novels ''
Pyjamas Are Forgiving'' (2018) and ''Welcome to Paradise'' (2023).
Early life and family
Twinkle Khanna was born on 29 December 1973 in
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
, the first of two daughters of veteran Hindi film actors
Dimple Kapadia and
Rajesh Khanna
Rajesh Khanna (; born Jatin Khanna; 29 December 1942 – 18 July 2012) was an Indian actor, film producer and politician who worked in Hindi films. Considered as one of the greatest and most successful actors in the history of Indian cinema, h ...
, with whom she shared her birthday.
Her maternal grandfather, Chunnibhai Kapadia was a
Gujarati businessman and her father Rajesh Khanna, born in
Punjabi family in
Amritsar
Amritsar, also known as Ambarsar, is the second-List of cities in Punjab, India by population, largest city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, after Ludhiana. Located in the Majha region, it is a major cultural, transportatio ...
,
Punjab
Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...
, was from a family of railway contractors. On her mother's side, she is the niece of
Simple Kapadia, an actress and costume designer whom she "adored". Her sister
Rinke Khanna and cousin
Karan Kapadia have also acted in films.
Khanna attended the
New Era High School,
Panchgani and the
Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics.
After finishing her
Class 12th, she wanted to pursue a career as a
chartered accountant and took the entrance examination, but joined the film industry instead due to the insistence of her parents.
She later pursued a
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...
from
Goldsmiths, University of London
Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by ...
, graduating in 2024.
Acting career

Khanna made her screen debut opposite
Bobby Deol
Vijay Singh Deol (born 27 January 1969), better known by his screen name Bobby Deol, is an Indian actor who primarily works in Hindi cinema. A member of the List of Hindi film families#Deol family, Deol family, he is the younger son of actor Dha ...
in
Rajkumar Santoshi's musical romance ''
Barsaat'' (1995). She was cast by
Dharmendra
Dharmendra Kewal Krishan Deol (born 8 December 1935), known mononymously as Dharmendra, is an Indian actor, producer, and politician who is primarily known for his work in Hindi films. Dharmendra is widely considered one of the greatest, most h ...
and before the film's release Khanna signed for two more projects. It performed well at the box office and became the sixth-highest-grossing film of the year, and she received the
Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut for her performance.
The following year she played lead roles in
Raj Kanwar
Raj Kanwar (28 June 1961 – 3 February 2012) was an Indian film director, writer, and producer of Hindi films based in Mumbai, India.
Family and personal life
He was educated at Col. Brown Cambridge School in Dehradun.
He has two sons (with h ...
's action film ''
Jaan'' and
Lawrence D'Souza's romance ''
Dil Tera Diwana'' opposite
Ajay Devgn and
Saif Ali Khan respectively. ''Jaan'' was a box office hit and ''Dil Tera Deewana'' failed to do well. K.N. Vijiyan of the ''
New Straits Times
The ''New Straits Times'' is an English-language newspaper published in Malaysia. It is Malaysia's oldest newspaper still in print (though not the first), having been founded as a local offshoot of Singapore-based ''The Straits Ti ...
'' wrote that "Khanna does not look like a typical Hindi actress". While reviewing ''
Dil Tera Diwana'', Vijiyan wrote about Khanna: "Unlike her previous movies, she looks really good in all her scenes and she can act well."
In 1997, two films featuring her; ''
Uff! Yeh Mohabbat'' and ''
Itihaas'' were released. Both of these films were poor box office performers. Her only release in 1998 was ''
Jab Pyaar Kisise Hota Hai'', which featured her as
Salman Khan's love interest and was a box office success. Khanna acted opposite Akshay Kumar in two action films: ''
International Khiladi'' and ''
Zulmi'' (both 1999). In the former she played a news reporter who falls in love with a criminal whom she interviews. Both performed poorly at the box office. She was paired with
Daggubati Venkatesh in the
Telugu film ''
Seenu'' (1999).
Khanna played the lead role in ''
Baadshah'' (1999), featuring
Shah Rukh Khan
Shah Rukh Khan (; born 2 November 1965), also known by the initialism SRK, is an Indian actor and film producer who works in Hindi cinema. Referred to in the media as the "Padishah, Baadshah of Bollywood" and "King Khan", he has Shah Rukh K ...
as a detective.
In the same year, she acted opposite Saif Ali Khan in ''
Yeh Hai Mumbai Meri Jaan'', a romantic comedy directed by
Mahesh Bhatt
Mahesh Bhatt (born 20 September 1948) is an Indian film director, producer and screenwriter known for his works in Hindi cinema. He has received List of awards and nominations received by Mahesh Bhatt, a number of accolades, including four Nati ...
. She was paired opposite
Aamir Khan
Mohammed Aamir Hussain Khan (; born 14 March 1965) is an Indian actor, filmmaker, and television personality who works in Bollywood, Hindi films. Referred to as "Mr. Perfectionist" in the media, he is known for his work in a variety of film g ...
in
Dharmesh Darshan's ''
Mela'' (2000). Similar to ''The Seven Samurai'' in story,
it was an average grosser at the box office. ''
Chal Mere Bhai'' (2000) featured Khanna in a special appearance beside a leading role in the comedy ''
Joru Ka Ghulam'', opposite
Govinda. She also acted in the
David Dhawan
David Dhawan (born Rajinder Dhawan; 16 August 1951) is an Indian director of Bollywood, Hindi films. A member of the List of Hindi film clans#Dhawan family, Dhawan family, he has directed over #Filmography, 42 films. The 1993 action thriller an ...
-directed comedy ''
Jodi No.1'' (2001).
Her acting in the film met with poor reviews.
Film director
Karan Johar
Karan Yash Johar (born Rahul Kumar Johar; 25 May 1972), often informally referred to as KJo, is an Indian filmmaker, producer and television personality who primarily works in Hindi cinema. He has launched the careers of several successful ac ...
admitted in an interview that Khanna was in his mind for the role of Tina in ''
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai'',
but she refused it, and thus
Rani Mukerji was signed. She left the industry after her marriage to Akshay Kumar in 2001, citing that she did not enjoy the acting profession any more. Her last film was ''
Love Ke Liye Kuch Bhi Karega'' (2001), a remake of the Telugu movie ''
Money
Money is any item or verifiable record that is generally accepted as payment for goods and services and repayment of debts, such as taxes, in a particular country or socio-economic context. The primary functions which distinguish money are: m ...
'' (1993). It featured her opposite
Fardeen Khan and was an average grosser at the box office.
Off-screen work
In August and October 1999, Khanna performed in the Awesome Foursome concert held at the Shah Alam Outdoor Stadium, Malaysia and the Magnificent Five concert at
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
, England.
Juhi Chawla, Shah Rukh Khan and Salman Khan accompanied her in the former while in the latter she performed alongside Aamir Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Akshaye Khanna and Rani Mukherjee. The following year, she was part of the judge panel at
Femina Miss India.
She made her theatre debut as the female lead in Feroz Khan's ''All The Best'' in February 2001. In 2002, Khanna opened her own interior design store in
Crawford Market,
Mumbai
Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...
, called The White Window, in partnership with her longtime friend Gurlein Manchanda. Since then, the store has received the Elle Decor International Design Award.
She has opened up another branch of the store elsewhere in Mumbai.
She does not hold a professional degree and worked with an architect for two years to learn the procedures.
During her pregnancy, she practised maps and designs using
CAD. Khanna did the interiors for
Rani Mukerji's,
Reemma Sen's and
Tabu's houses,
Kareena Kapoor's Bandra flat in 2008 and Poonam Bajaj's design studio. On the request of one of her clients, she ordered a company to make a golden toilet seat. Khanna is the Indian
brand ambassador
A brand ambassador (sometimes also called a corporate ambassador) is a person paid by an organization or company to represent its brand in a positive light, helping to increase brand awareness and sales. The brand ambassador is meant to embody the ...
for
L'Oréal.

Khanna has also endorsed for and designed Supertech's ORB project in Noida and another residential project in Pune. However, Khanna filed a case against Supertech for failing to pay as endorsement fees. She also mentors International Institute of Fashion Designing's Academy of Interiors. Khanna is the co-founder of
Grazing Goat Pictures and has co-produced the films ''
Tees Maar Khan'' (2010) and ''
Patiala House'' (2011). She also did a cameo appearance in the former film.
Khanna has also co-produced ''
Thank You'' (2011), ''
Khiladi 786'' (2012), ''
72 Miles'' (2013).She has also been the brand ambassador for the watch brand
Movado and endorsed
Coca-Cola
Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...
and
Micromax Mobile.
In December 2016, Khanna launched her production house Mrs. Funnybones Movies which eventually co-produced ''Pad Man''. The film went on to win the 2018
National Film Award for Best Film on Other Social Issues.
Khanna is a columnist at ''
Daily News and Analysis
The ''Daily News and Analysis'', abbreviated as ''DNA'', is a Hindi-language news program on Zee news that was earlier an English-language newspaper with multiple local city editions across India. ''DNA'' was first launched as a broadsheet newsp ...
'' after hours and ''
The Times of India
''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
''. Penguin Random House have announced that Khanna's book ''
Mrs Funnybones'' hit the Nielsen bestseller list at number 2 in its first week of sales. Launched in Mumbai on 18 August 2015, the book reached number 1 on the bestseller chart of Crossword's Kemps Corner store and received praise from readers and press, eventually making Khanna the highest-selling female author in India for that year. Khanna's second book ''
The Legend of Lakshmi Prasad'', a collection of four short stories, launched in November 2016 sold more than copies. Her latest book, ''
Pyjamas Are Forgiving'' (Juggernaut Books, 2018) was released in September 2018 and has made her the highest-selling female author in India in the year 2018, according to Nielsen BookScan India. The publisher reported that the book debuted at number 1 on the Nielsen Bookscan All-India Bestseller List and sold over 100,000 copies.
Khanna has been actively advocating the cause of
menstrual hygiene. She joined hands with Save the Children to promote the right to menstrual hygiene among children and slum communities. She was invited to speak at the
University of Oxford
The University of Oxford is a collegiate university, collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the List of oldest un ...
in 2018. She was also invited to be a part of an eminent panel at the United Nations, New York and also appeared on BBC world Impact show to talk about menstrual hygiene and sanitation globally. In 2019, Khanna also launched Tweak, a bilingual digital media platform for women.
In 2022, Khanna went onto pursue her master's in fiction writing at
Goldsmiths, University of London
Goldsmiths, University of London, formerly Goldsmiths College, University of London, is a constituent research university of the University of London. It was originally founded in 1891 as The Goldsmiths' Technical and Recreative Institute by ...
. She received a distinction for her final dissertation, and was one of the shortlistees for the Pat Kavanagh Prize
Personal life

In 2001, Khanna campaigned for her father's election in
New Delhi (Lok Sabha constituency), New Delhi.
She met
Akshay Kumar
Akshay Hari Om Bhatia (born Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia; 9 September 1967), known professionally as Akshay Kumar (), is an Indian actor and film producer working in Hindi cinema. Referred to in the media as "Khiladi Kumar", through his career span ...
, for the first time during a photo session for ''
Filmfare'' magazine. They got married on 17 January 2001 and together have a son, Aarav and a daughter, Nitara. Kumar often credits Khanna for his success. In 2009, ''
People
The term "the people" refers to the public or Common people, common mass of people of a polity. As such it is a concept of human rights law, international law as well as constitutional law, particularly used for claims of popular sovereignty. I ...
'' magazine listed her as the fourth-best-dressed celebrity in India. In February 2014, she was operated on at the Breach Candy hospital to remove a
kidney stone
Kidney stone disease (known as nephrolithiasis, renal calculus disease, or urolithiasis) is a crystallopathy and occurs when there are too many minerals in the urine and not enough liquid or hydration. This imbalance causes tiny pieces of cr ...
.
In 2014, Khanna and her sister sold their father's house for 85
crore
Crore (; abbreviated cr) denotes the quantity ten million (107) and is equal to 100 lakh in the Indian numbering system. In many international contexts, the decimal quantity is formatted as 10,000,000, but when used in the context of the India ...
s. She has maintained a
Twitter
Twitter, officially known as X since 2023, is an American microblogging and social networking service. It is one of the world's largest social media platforms and one of the most-visited websites. Users can share short text messages, image ...
account since November 2014.
Filmography
As actress
As producer
Awards
Bibliography
*
*
*
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
*
Collected News and commentaryat ''
The Times of India
''The Times of India'' (''TOI'') is an Indian English-language daily newspaper and digital news media owned and managed by the Times Group. It is the List of newspapers in India by circulation, third-largest newspaper in India by circulation an ...
''
The Legend of Laxmi Prasad by Twinkle Khanna
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khanna, Twinkle
20th-century Indian actresses
21st-century Indian actresses
21st-century Indian businesspeople
21st-century Indian businesswomen
21st-century Indian designers
21st-century Indian journalists
21st-century Indian women writers
Actresses from Mumbai
Actresses from Pune
Actresses in Hindi cinema
Businesswomen from Maharashtra
Film producers from Mumbai
Gujarati people
Indian columnists
Indian interior designers
Indian designers
Indian women film producers
Living people
People of Punjabi descent
Indian women columnists
Women writers from Maharashtra
Writers from Mumbai
Writers from Pune
Filmfare Awards winners
Alumni of the University of London
Alumni of Goldsmiths, University of London
1974 births
Rajesh Khanna
Akshay Kumar
Indian women artists