Bollywood superstar, with net worth over Rs 2,700 crore, once worked as a waiter at a restaurant: ‘Didn’t get…’

Akshay Kumar is one of the richest stars in Bollywood. As per a Forbes 2024 report, his networth is a whopping Rs 2700 crore. However, life has not always been so smooth-sailing for tinsel-town’s ‘Khiladi’. There was a time, when the actor worked as a waiter for a living.

In an old video, the ‘Bhool Bhulaiyya’ star was seen reminiscing about his journey before Bollywood. “Let me tell you what I was. I had gone to Thailand to be a martial expert. But there was no job available for me, so I had to become a waiter. I used to cook and serve people at a restaurant, I didn’t get too many tips…” Kumar worked for a while at Bangkok.

Following Thailand, Kumar worked for a travel agency in Calcutta (now Kolkata), as a chef in a hotel in Dhaka, and as a Kundan jeweller in Delhi. He began teaching martial arts after he returned to Bombay. During this period, Kumar was given a modelling assignment for a furniture business by the parent of one of his students. For eighteen months, Kumar assisted photographer Jayesh Sheth in building his first portfolio.


In Saugandh (1991), Kumar debuted as the main actor alongside Raakhee and Shantipriya. He starred in the critically acclaimed Dancer, directed by Kishore Vyas, that same year. The next year, he starred in Khiladi, a suspenseful thriller directed by Abbas Mustan that is regarded as his breakthrough performance.

In another interview with ANI, the star recalled about his humble beginnings, and how he and his family, which consisted of 24 members all lived in a small house in Chandni Chowk. We all would sleep in the same room. In the morning, when we woke up for exercise, everyone would jump over each other to get out,” he told ANI.

The ‘Hera Pheri’ actor said that even after he moved to Mumbai, the family would stay in a small house in Sion Koliwada where they paid Rs 100 as rent.

The actor said that despite these difficulties, they were happy and contented. “I swear to God, there wasn’t a single day where we did not smile or laugh. Now, that we have money, sometimes we feel a bit sad but at that time, there was nothing to be sad about, We would have dal chawal, jeera aloo, aloo gobhi, bhindi, we would eat all of this and we were happy,” he said.