Parikshit Sahni (born 1 January 1944) is an Indian actor who is known for playing the lead in TV series Barrister Vinod, ''

Gul Gulshan Gulfaam ''Gul Gulshan Gulfaam'' is a 1987 DD National television serial directed by Ved Rahi and produced by Prem Krishen (Cinevistaas). It was one of the first serials to be based in Kashmir and portray a Kashmiri family: It became an instant hit

'' (

Doordarshan Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...

) and ''Gaatha'' (

Star Plus StarPlus is an Indian Hindi language general entertainment pay television channel owned by Disney Star (formerly ''Star India''), a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company India. The network's programming consists of family dramas, comedies, ...

). He has also appeared in three of Rajkumar Hirani's blockbuster films '' Lage Raho Munna Bhai'', ''

3 Idiots ''3 Idiots'' (stylized as ''3 idiots'') is a 2009 Indian Hindi-language coming-of-age comedy-drama film written, edited and directed by Rajkumar Hirani, co-written by Abhijat Joshi and produced by Vidhu Vinod Chopra. Adapted loosely from Cheta ...

'', and '' PK''. He is the son of actor

Balraj Sahni Brigadier Balraj (born Balasegaram Kandiah) was a senior commander of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Early life Balraj was the fifth and youngest child of Kandiah and Kannagias. He received his primary education in Kokkuthoduwaai ...

and nephew of writer Bhisham Sahni.

Early life

He was born in

Muree Murree ( Punjabi, Urdu Urdu (;"Urdu"
''

Rawalpindi District Rawalpindi District ( Punjabi and ur, ) is a district located in the northernmost part of the Punjab province of Pakistan. Parts of the district form part of the Islamabad Rawalpindi metropolitan area. Rawalpindi city is the district capi ...

of the Punjab Province of British India (present day in the Murree District of Punjab, Pakistan), into a Punjabi Hindu family, while his father was teaching English at Visva-Bharati University in Shantiniketan of Rabindranath Tagore, and his mother was doing her Bachelors. Most of his schooling was done at the Lawrence school Sanawar. He then went to study at Delhi's St. Stephen's College. Later, Sahni began his career as a child artist.

Personal life

Sahni's parents were both theatre and film actors, although his mother acted in only a couple of films before her death at an early age in 1947. After her death, his father married Santosh Chandhok two years later. He is married to Aruna Kapur. On the advice of his uncle, Bhishm Sahani, Parikshit Sahni was sent by his father to attend a five-year course in architecture in Moscow. However, since he was poor in maths, he was advised to get admission in Cinema Institute. He cleared the aptitude test and joined the five-year course in film direction in the Moscow Cinema Institute. He returned in 1966 and started his film career in India. He assisted Raj Kapoor in '' Mera Naam Joker'' because Kapoor needed a person who could help him in working with the Russian Circus but he left that to act in '' Anokhi Raat.'' Sahni even changed his screen name to Ajay Sahni at the suggestion of his friend Sanjeev Kumar during the shooting of their 1968 film '' Anokhi Raat'', before eventually reverting to his own name a few years later.

Career

Sahni starred in the classic

Punjabi film Punjabi cinema, sometimes metonymously referred to as Pollywood or Punjwood is the Punjabi-language film industry centered around the Indian state of Punjab, and based in Amritsar and Mohali. The cinema of Punjab has its beginnings with the ...

''Marhi Da Diva'' (1989), with Raj Babbar, Pankaj Kapur, Kanwaljit Singh, and Deepti Naval. He played a remarkable role in the Hindi film ''

Pavitra Paapi ''Pavitra Papi'' ( Punjabi: ਪਵਿੱਤਰ ਪਾਪੀ; English:"The Holy Sinner") is a 1970 Indian Hindi-language drama film directed by Rajendra Bhatia. The film stars Balraj Sahni, Parikshit Sahni and Tanuja. The movie was based on a P ...

'' (1970) which was based on a Punjabi novel by

Nanak Singh Nanak Singh, (b. 4 July 1897 as Hans Raj – 28 December 1971), was an Indian poet, songwriter, and novelist of the Punjabi language. His literary works in support of India's independence movement led the British to arrest him. He published nov ...

(a famous novelist). Pavitra Paapi also featured his real life father, Balraj Sahni in a pivotal role. He acted in the

television series '' The Great Maratha'' as Malhar Rao Holkar. One of his most famous films was the Amitabh and Shashi Kapoor starer Kaala Patthar. He acted in the film ''

'' in which he played the rolse of

R. Madhavan Ranganathan Madhavan (born 1 June 1970) is an Indian actor, screenwriter, director, and producer who predominantly appears in Tamil and Hindi films. Madhavan has won four Filmfare Awards South and three Tamil Nadu State Film Awards. Madhavan ...

's father. He acted in the TV series '' Heena'' as Nawab Mirza, Heena's father. ''Heena'' ended in 2003. Sahni played Veer Singh (Kakasa) on the popular

Zee TV Zee TV (stylised as ZEE TV) is a Hindi general entertainment pay television channel in India. It was launched on 2 October 1992, as the first privately owned TV channel in the country. It is owned by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. Zee TV also ...

serial '' Saat Phere: Saloni Ka Safar'' opposite

Nivedita Bhattacharya Nivedita Bhattacharya (born 21 July 1970) is an Indian actress. She was born in Lucknow. She is an actress who has acted on television and in films. Filmography * ''Kya Kehna'' (2000) - Preity Zinta's sister-in-law * '' Darr @ the Mall'' (2 ...

Filmography

Films

TV series

References

External links

*
''I met a hermit on the run'' – Article by Parikshit Sahni
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sahni, Parikshit Indian male film actors Indian male television actors Male actors in Hindi cinema Living people Lawrence School, Sanawar alumni Delhi University alumni People from Murree 1944 births