Sanjay Khan

He co-starred with his elder brother Feroz Khan in the films Upaasna (1971), Mela (1971) and Nagin (1976). He later turned producer and director with the films like Chandi Sona (1977) and Abdullah (1980). In 1990, he starred in and directed the famous historical drama television series The Sword of Tipu Sultan.

• Name — Sanjay Khan • Birth Name — Shah Abbas Ali Khan • Born — 3 January 1940 • Birthplace — Bangalore, Kingdom of Mysore, British India (present-day Karnataka, India) • Years Active — 1964–2007 • Children — 4, including Sussanne and Zayed • Relatives — * Feroz Khan (older brother) • Akbar Khan (younger brother) • Fardeen Khan (paternal nephew) • Website — sanjaykhanofficial.com

Sanjay Khan was born on 3 January 1940 as Shah Abbas Ali Khan in Bangalore, Kingdom of Mysore, British India (now in Karnataka, India) into a Muslim family. Born to an immigrant Afghan father, Sadiq Ali Khan from Ghazni and a mother of Persian ancestry, Bibi Fatima Begum. He had five brothers and two sisters, Dilshad and Khurshid. His elder brother Feroz Khan was a well-known actor and produced successful films like Dharmatma and Qurbani. His younger brothers Sameer and Shahrukh are businessmen, while Akbar Khan has made magnum opus Taj Mahal: An Eternal Love Story. At the age of 12, Khan was taken to a theatre to see Raj Kapoor's Awaara and was mesmerised by the film. Following the film, he decided to visit with the actors. The manager of the theatre took Khan into the projection room and explained to him how the film is made. To Khan, that was a moment of epiphany and he decided to pursue an acting career. He obtained Senior Cambridge through Cambridge School in Daryaganj, New Delhi. Deciding not to pursue further education, Khan moved to Mumbai where, before joining Hindi Cinema, he assisted John Guillermin, Hollywood film director for the MGM Production of Tarzan Goes to India (1962) which starred his brother Feroz in a supporting role and Sanjay also appeared in a small role as a pilot.

• Illustration — Khan (second from right) with wife Zarine (second from left), son Zayed Khan (extreme left) and daughter Simone (extreme right) at the wedding of Esha Deol in 2012 Khan made his debut in Chetan Anand's 1964 war film Haqeeqat in a small role as a soldier. Later that year, he played a pivotal supporting role in the big blockbuster film Dosti. He went on to star in hit films like Dus Lakh (1966), Ek Phool Do Mali (1969), Intaqam (1969), Shart (1969), Mela (1971), Upaasna (1971), Dhund (1973) and Nagin (1976). In 1977, he made his directorial debut with Chandi Sona starring himself, Parveen Babi and Raj Kapoor. In 1980, he directed and starred in Abdullah alongside Raj Kapoor and Zeenat Aman. He made his last film appearance in the 1986 film Kala Dhanda Goray Log, which was his third and last film as a director. He shifted his focus on television in the late 1980s, directing and starring in the big-budget historical television drama series The Sword of Tipu Sultan. During the making of the series in 1989, a fire broke out on the sets and killed more than 40 crew members and Khan suffered 65% burns to his body. He recovered after 72 surgeries and production on the series resumed later that year with him and his brother Akbar Khan jointly directing episodes of the series. The series first aired on DD National from 1990 to 1991 and lasted 60 episodes. This would be his final acting role but he went on to produce and direct several other popular television series like The Great Maratha, Jai Hanuman and 1857 Kranti.

In 1997, he launched his dream project – the five-star deluxe Golden Palms Hotel and Spa in Bangalore. He completed this 150-room hotel with built up area of approximately 300,000 sq ft, with the largest swimming pool ever built in India containing 300,000 litres of water. Golden Palms Hotel and Spa was conceived, designed, constructed was owned by him till 2010; his wife Zarine Khan designed the interiors.

He was married to Zarine Katrak, they had three daughters and a son. Their eldest daughter Farah Khan Ali was formerly married to DJ Aqeel for 24 years, their second daughter Simone Arora married Ajay Arora and they own D'decor, while their youngest daughter is Sussanne Khan was formerly married to actor Hrithik Roshan for 14 years. Their son is a former actor Zayed Khan, who married Malaika Parekh. Sanjay Khan is an ardent follower of Lord Hanuman.

In 1978, Khan married actress Zeenat Aman, while he was already married to Katrak. The marriage with Aman was annulled in 1979, after Khan beat and physically assaulted her in a hotel room, resulting in many injuries, particularly to her right eye. The incident was witnessed by his wife, who allegedly joined him and cheered him on to keep beating Aman. The incident left Aman with a lazy eye (ptosis), and she later stated that she pretends it never happened. • Illustration — Sanjay Khan at Rajesh Khanna prayer meet

A major fire accident took place on 8 February 1989 in the Premier Studios of Mysore where the serial The Sword of Tipu Sultan was being shot. Loose wiring and the absence of ventilators were further causes for the fire to spread.Instead of fire-proofing material, the walls had gunny bags and the temperature rose to around 120 °C (248 °F) because of huge lights being used. All these factors contributed to the massive fire, and the final death toll was 52. Khan suffered major burns and had to spend 13 months in hospital and undergo 73 surgeries.

In 2018, he announced that he signed a deal with Penguin Books to release his autobiography titled The Best Mistakes of My Life and same year announced that he will build a theme park in Agra.

In 2020, he launched his second and last book "Assalamualaikum Watan".

List of Sanjay Khan film credits • Year — Title — Role — Notes • 1962 — Tarzan Goes to India — Pilot — Acting debut • 1964 — Dosti — Ashok • Haqeeqat — Indian Soldier — Based on 1962 Sino-Indian War • 1966 — Dus Lakh — Kishore — First lead role • Dillagi — Sapan • 1967 — Dil Ne Pukara — Ramesh / Rajan • Milan Ki Raat — Shankar • 1968 — Abhilasha — Arun Singh • 1969 — Beti — Dr. Rajesh Anand • Ek Phool Do Mali — Amar Kumar • Shart — Raj • Madhavi — Senapati Jai Singh • Intaquam — Rajpal "Raju" • 1970 — Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi — Deepak Chaudhary "Deepu" • Pushpanjali — Dinesh Khanna • Maharaja — Mohan / Maharaja • 1971 — Haseenon Ka Devata — Jai • Upaasna — Mohan • Mela — Kishan Singh / Kanhaiya • Woh Din Yaad Karo — Ajay / Raja • 1972 — Chori Chori — Raja • Wafaa — Shyam Thakur • Sub Ka Saathi — Amrit / Ramu • Dharkan — Suraj Prakash • Babul Ki Galiyaan — Sudheer • Anokhi Pehchan • 1973 — Dhund — Advocate Suresh Saxena • Sone Ke Haath — Vijay Khanna • Daaman Aur Aag — Raja • 1974 — Asliyat • Trimurti — Vijay • Zindagi Ki Raahen — Unreleased film • Duniya Ka Mela — Shyam / Munna • 1976 — Nagin — Suraj • 1977 — Mera Vachan Geeta Ki Kasam — Hari Singh / Rahim Khan • Mastan Dada — Narendra • Chandi Sona — Mayur — Also director • 1980 — Qurbani — Narrator • Abdullah — Sheikh Mohammed Al-Qamaal — Also director • 1983 — Jalwa — Unreleased film • 1986 — Kala Dhanda Goray Log — Raja — Also Director • 1988 — Akarshan — Himself — Cameo • 1989 — Chingari — Inspector Mohan — Filmed in 1971; Delayed release

List of Sanjay Khan television credits • Year — Title — Character — Actor — Producer — Director — Year completed • 1990–1991 — The Sword of Tipu Sultan — Tipu Sultan — 1991 • 1994 — The Great Maratha — 1994 • 1997–2000 — Jai Hanuman — 2000 • 2001–2002 — Jai Mahabharat — 2002 • 2002–2003 — 1857 Kranti — 2003 • 2003 — Maharathi Karna — 2003

• Maharathi Karna (2003) TV series • 1857 Kranti (2002–2003) TV series • Jai Mahabharat (2001–2002) TV series • Jai Hanuman (1997–2000) TV series • The Great Maratha (1994) TV series • The Sword of Tipu Sultan (1990–1991) TV series • Kala Dhanda Goray Log (1986) • Abdullah (1980) • Chandi Sona (1977)

• Maharathi Karna (2003) TV series • 1857 Kranti (2002–2003) TV series • Jai Mahabharat (2001–2002) TV series • Jai Hanuman (1997–2000) TV series • The Great Maratha (1994) TV series • The Sword of Tipu Sultan (1990–1991) TV series • Kala Dhanda Goray Log (1986) • Abdullah (1980) • Chandi Sona (1977)

• Maharathi Karna (2003) TV series • 1857 Kranti (2002–2003) TV series • Jai Mahabharat (2001–2002) TV series • Jai Hanuman (1997–2000) TV series • The Great Maratha (1994) TV series • The Sword of Tipu Sultan (1990–1991) TV series • Kala Dhanda Goray Log (1986) • Abdullah (1980) • Chandi Sona (1977)

The authorities additionally record the heading Shah Abbas Khan. His recorded language was Hindi. His recorded confession was Islam. He married Zarine Katrak and Zeenat Aman. 4 children are recorded: Farah Khan Ali, Zayed Khan, Simone Arora and Sussanne Khan.

Sanjay Khan is recorded with the occupation television actor. Recorded with the occupation film director. Recorded as actor, film producer, screenwriter and director.