After UP, 'Tanhaji' declared tax-free in Haryana; movie also enters Rs 100 cr-club

Superstar Akshay Kumar grabbed plenty of headlines this year. The 52-year-old started the year with a bang after Karan Johar’s ‘Kesari’ crossed the Rs 200 crore-mark worldwide. Later, in April, his non-political interview with Prime Minister Narendra Modi became the talk of the town as the two men discussed everything from politics to mangoes.

At $65 million, Akshay Kumar became the world’s fourth highest paid actor, leaving behind Jackie Chan and Bradley Cooper. Kumar was also the only one to feature in Forbes highest-paid celebrity list, surpassing Rihanna and Katy Perry.

Kumar then surprised his fans with his stellar performance in the films ‘Mission Mangal’ and Farhad Samji’s ‘Housefull 4’. Kumar’s next theatrical release in ‘Good Newwz’, a romantic comedy on surrogacy in which he stars opposite Kareena Kapoor Khan. Kumar came in the eye of the storm this year due to his Canadian citizenship The actor, however, shut the trolls by announcing that he has applied for Indian citizenship.

2019 was the year of ‘Shahenshah’ of Bollywood. As the country was still coming to terms with the horrific Pulwama attack, the 77-year-old actor donated Rs 5 lakhs each to the family of martyrs.

In June, Bachchan Sr also cleared the debts of over 2,100 farmers in Bihar, and donated Rs 51 lakhs to the victims of Assam floods.

Big B completed five decades in Bollywood, which marked the 50th anniversary of the release of his debut film ‘Saat Hindustani’. This year, he was also honoured with the prestigious Dadasaheb Phalke Award.

During the end of this year, the thespian’s health deteriorated. Big B was also hospitalised for three days due to liver problems and then revealed that doctors want him to take time off work. The megastar, who waves out to his fans every Sunday outside his residence - Jalsa - as a ritual, couldn’t do so due to ‘pain’.

He further missed the Kolkata Film Festival and Sharjah Book Fair last month due to declining health. But, he hosted a grand Diwali bash for the business leaders and B-town celebs after a hiatus of three years.

The year began on a positive note for the Roshan family. The film-maker Rakesh Roshan underwent surgery in January for early-stage throat cancer. Hrithik Roshan shared a picture of the Roshan family leaving the hospital with the caption, “Can’t stop. Won’t stop. We begin again. And again.”

In July, the ‘Krishh’ actor was the talk of the town for essaying the role of mathematician Anand Kumar in the biographical drama ‘Super 30’. The actor received some flak for the artificially darkened skin in the movie. The film, however, received mostly positive reviews from the critics and crossed Rs 200-crore mark worldwide. It was also declared tax-free in several states including Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar.

The actor-cum-dancer starred in the box office hit ‘War’ next to Tiger Shroff which minted Rs 450 crore and became 2019’s highest grossing film in India.

The year ended on a high note for the megastar when a UK poll named him the sexiest Asian male of the decade.

2019 was an interesting year for Shroff Jr. The actor starred opposite Ananya Pandey and Tara Sutaria in Karan Johar’s ‘Student of the Year 2’ which came close to crossing the Rs 100 crore-mark.

Shroff also made headlines this year thanks to his alleged romance with actress and ‘Baaghi’ co-star Disha Patani.

The ‘Baaghi’ star became the face of Mumbai Marathon. The star started filming for the third installment in the franchise ‘Baaghi 3’ after his release this year, ‘War’, crossed Rs 292.71 crores.

The star debutant, Sara Ali Khan, had a rocking 2019. Sara became the face of Puma India and Fanta, and soon made it to the brands’ favourite list. The ‘Kedarnath’ actress bagged 11 endorsement deals this year. Her film ‘Coolie No. 1’, starring actor Varun Dhawan, was lauded by PM Modi for going plastic-free on the film set.The ‘Simmba’ starlet also grabbed headlines for her budding romance with Kartik Aaryan, which began on the sets of Koffee with Karan, last year.

Shahid Kapoor’s ‘Kabir Singh’, which became one of the most googled movies this year, attracted a lot of controversy too. While most critics bashed the film, calling it out for promoting toxic masculinity, it set the cash registers ringing at the box office. ‘Kabir Singh’ became the first ‘A’ certified film to cross Rs 200 crore-mark in India.

Kapoor was immortalised this year with his statue at Madame Tussauds, Singapore.. The actor is currently honing his cricketing skills for the upcoming film ‘Jersey’.

Telugu director Boyapati Srinu's action drama ‘Vinaya Vidheya Rama’ was Kiara Advani's first release of 2019. After its release, the film met with a negative response and tanked at the box office globally. She was seen in a cameo in Karan Johar’s "Kalank".

Advani’s next release, ‘Kabir Singh’, became a massive hit at the box office. Currently, she is all set for her Christmas 2019 release ‘Good Newwz’, which also stars Akshay Kumar, Kareena Kapoor Khan and Diljit Dosanjh.

Kartik Aaryan from ‘Pyaar ka Punchnama’ fame was in the news this year for his alleged romance with ‘Kedarnath’ actress Sara Ali Khan after they started shooting for Imtiaz Ali’s ‘Love Aaj Kal 2’.

Aaryan was named India’s hottest vegetarian along with Anushka Sharma this year. He also became the youngest actor to sign over a dozen brands, just like his rumoured girlfriend. His two releases this year were ‘Luka Chuppi’ with Kriti Sanon, and ‘Pati, Patni Aur Woh’, starring Bhumi Pednekar and Ananya Pandey.

Controversy’s child Kangana Ranaut made headlines this year with her home production, ‘Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi’, which received positive reviews. Her second release with Rajkummar Rao was a black comedy ‘Judgementall Hai Kya’, which was critically acclaimed for her performance.

Both the films were box-office successes. She is currently working on the Jayalalithaa biopic and the film is expected to release on 20th February 2020.