List of Hindi film families

This article lists notable families whose members are prominent in the Indian film industry.
This list also includes a select number of South Indian film families who crossed over into Hindi cinema. For a full list, see List of South Indian film families.
For Indian music families, see List of Indian music families.
The Akhtar family is a prominent film family in the Hindi film Industry. It consists of renowned poets, authors, scriptwriters, directors, actors, and producers. One of the most famous among them is Urdu poet, author and philosopher Javed Akhtar, whose great-grandfather Fazl-e-Haq Khairabadi is a notable name in the Indian Rebellion of 1857.
Javed Akhtar's first marriage was with script writer Honey Irani; Zoya Akhtar and Farhan Akhtar are their children. Farah Khan and Sajid Khan are Honey Irani's niece and nephew, and hence Farhan and Zoya Akhtar's maternal cousins.
Javed Akhtar's second wife is actress Shabana Azmi. Shabana Azmi's nieces include actresses Farah Naaz and Tabu.
Farhan Akhtar's second wife is actress Shibani Dandekar. Anusha Dandekar is the sister of Shibani.
The most prominent member of the Anand family was actor Dev Anand, who has starred in over a hundred films. Another member of the family is internationally known director Shekhar Kapur, who is known for directing the film Elizabeth. He was married to actress Suchitra Krishnamurthy.
Raj Babbar is an Indian actor and politician. His first wife was Nadira Babbar, who became known with her appearance in Bride and Prejudice (2004) with Aishwarya Rai. Their children are Arya Babbar and Juhi Babbar. Both have ventured into the film industry. Raj's second wife was actress Smita Patil. She died giving birth to their only child Prateek Babbar in 1986. Her son Prateek made his acting debut in 2008 film Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na. Raj Babbar's niece Kajri Babbar is a budding director.
The Barjatya family began with Tarachand Barjatya, who was a film producer and director. He began Rajshri Productions in the late 1940s. Tarachand Barjatya had three sons, Kamal Kumar Barjatya, Raj Kumar Barjatya, and Ajit Kumar Barjatya, all of whom were active in bringing the Rajshri empire to great heights. The company saw an all time increase in revenues when Raj Kumar Barjatya's son, Sooraj R. Barjatya, started his film making career with the 1989 blockbuster, Maine Pyar Kiya and then eventually made Hum Aapke Hain Koun and Hum Saath Saath Hain. The company is now led by the third generation of Barjatyas, namely, Kavita K. Barjatya, Sooraj R. Barjatya and Rajat A. Barjatya.
Considered to be one of the most influential families of the Hindi film industry, the Chopra family has produced some of the country's biggest blockbusters and have worked in close quarters with all the leading superstars of the industry. The founders of this family were the four children of Vilayati Raj Chopra, all of whom worked independently through different leading film production / Distribution houses:
The Deol family's legacy began with Dharmendra. He has six children: his two sons (Sunny Deol and Bobby Deol) went on to pursue film careers, and own Vijayta Films, while their sisters Vijeta Deol and Ajeeta Deol did not pursue a career in the film industry. Esha Deol and Ahana Deol are the two youngest daughters of Dharmendra (with Hema Malini). Esha has pursued a film career, whilst Dharmendra's nephew Abhay Deol has been in the industry since 2005, giving notable performances.
Vasanth Kumar Shivashankar Padukone (9 July 1925 – 10 October 1964), popularly known as Guru Dutt (Konkani:गुरु दत्त), was an Indian film director, producer and actor. He made quintessential 1950s and 1960s classics such as Pyaasa (Thirsty), Kaagaz Ke Phool (Paper Flowers), Sahib Bibi Aur Ghulam (The King, the Queen and the Jack), and Chaudhvin Ka Chand (The Fourteenth Day Moon in the Muslim calendar but actually means full moon, a metaphor for beauty). In particular, Pyaasa and Kaagaz Ke Phool are now included among the greatest films of all time, both by Time magazine's All-Time 100 best movies and by the Sight & Sound critics' and directors' poll, where Dutt himself is included among the greatest film directors of all time. In 2010, he was included among CNN's "top 25 Asian actors of all time".
Note: Composer Kanu Roy was not the brother of Geeta Dutt
Jaddanbai, the start of the family, began as a singer and eventually became a filmmaker. Her husband was Abdul Rashid. Their daughter Nargis began her film career at age six when cast by her mother in one of her films. Nargis went on to become a major star in the 1940s and 1950s. Sunil Dutt also acted in the industry in the 1950s. Nargis went into semi-retirement after their marriage in 1958, and full retirement in 1967, but Sunil continued to act until the early 1990s. Their son Sanjay has pursued a successful film career since 1981 and continues to act today. Nargis died from cancer in the year her son made his debut and Sunil Dutt died in May 2005.
The Dutt family is also known for its political involvement. Sunil was elected five times to the Lok Sabha (the lower house of the Parliament of India) and, at his death, was a cabinet minister under Manmohan Singh. Nargis was a nominated member of the Parliament's upper house, Rajya Sabha, and died in office in 1981. After Sunil's death, their daughter Priya Dutt ran for, and was elected to, Sunil's vacant seat in the Lok Sabha.
Nargis-Sunil Dutt's granddaughter and Sanjay Dutt's niece Sanchi Kumar (daughter of Kumar Gaurav and Namrata Dutt) is married to Indian film director Kamal Amrohi's grandson Bilal Amrohi.
Ashok, Kishore, and Anoop Kumar have all acted in the film industry. Their family is related to the Mukherjee family through the marriage of Sashadhar Mukherjee to their only sister Sati Devi. The family is also related to the Ray-Ganguly-Bose family through the first wife of Kishore Kumar, Ruma Guha Thakurta, who is a niece of Bijoya Ray.
Manoj Kumar was born as Harikishan Giri Goswami in 1937 in Abbottabad. He started his film career in 1957. But it was films like Pathar ke Sanam and Woh Kaun Thi which gave him his fame. His career took off on a different path when he launched his production house Vishal International, making classics like Upkar, Purab aur Paschim, Roti Kapda aur Makan and Kranti which earned him the title of "Bharat Kumar". Though he is a Bollywood legend, his sons were unsuccessful in Bollywood.
Originated in Tamil Nadu, Kamal Haasan and Mani Ratnam are two of the biggest names in the industry.
The oldest family in the industry, the Kapoor family has been active in films since 1926, starting with Dewan Bisheswar Kapoor and his son Prithviraj Kapoor. His descendants have carried on with the career of film acting. Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor, Shashi Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor, Karisma Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor, and Ranbir Kapoor are among the prominent members from the Kapoor clan. Others who tried their hand with at the trade include Rajiv Kapoor (Raj's son), and Karan Kapoor and Kunal Kapoor (Shashi's sons). Shashi Kapoor's daughter, Sanjana Kapoor, with brother Kunal, has been successfully running Prithvi Theatre, founded in 1944 by Prithviraj Kapoor.
Raj Kapoor married Krishna Malhotra, sister of actor Prem Nath from Malhotra family. Raj's grandson and Ritu Nanda's son, industrialist Nikhil Nanda, married Shweta Bachchan, daughter of Amitabh Bachchan from the Bachchan family. Raj's granddaughter Kareena Kapoor married Saif Ali Khan from the Pataudi family. Raj Kapoor's maternal cousin, actor Jugal Kishore Mehra, married actor/singer Anwari Begum, the lead actor of the first Punjabi film Heer Ranjha.
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Surinder Kapoor was the one who introduced his family to the world of Bollywood. Surinder Kapoor started his career as Geeta Bali's secretary and went on to become a producer. He also happens to be a distant cousin of Prithviraj Kapoor. He served as president of the Film & Television Producers Guild of India for six years. He married Nirmal Devi and has four children – Boney, Anil, Reena and Sanjay.
Feroz Khan was an actor, film editor, producer and director from the 1960s till 2007. He introduced his son Fardeen Khan in 1998 in the film Prem Aggan for which Fardeen won the Filmfare Best Debut Award. Mumtaz was a popular actress in the 1960s–70s. She left the industry after her marriage to Mayur Madhvani.
Story and script writer Salim Khan has written and produced some of the most successful Bollywood films. He formed a pair with Javed Akhtar and began writing as Salim–Javed. The duo have written many commercially and critically successful movies all through the 1970s and 1980s like Yaadon Ki Baraat (Nasir Hussain), Deewaar (Yash Chopra), Dostana (Yash Johar), Sholay (Ramesh Sippy), Mr. India (Shekhar Kapoor) and Don – The Chase Begins Again (Farhan Akhtar). His eldest son, Salman, made his film debut at the age of 22 with Biwi Ho To Aisi (1988) and went on to become one of the most successful superstars of Indian cinema. His second son, Arbaaz Khan, is a successful actor and filmmaker whose films include Dabangg and Dabangg 2. His third son, Sohail Khan, is an actor and film maker. His elder daughter Alvira is married to the actor Atul Agnihotri. It is only his second daughter Arpita who has kept away from the field of films.
Salim Khan met and married Sushila Charak, a Hindu woman from a Marathi family. She took the name 'Salma Khan' and they have four children (three sons and a daughter). In later life, Salim Khan married Helen, and took her as his second wife while still married to Sushila/Salma. This arrangement was accepted by both ladies, and by all four of his children by his first wife. The family then adopted a girl, Arpita Khan, who was formally adopted by Helen and raised amid the entire family in their family home in Galaxy Apartments, Bandra Bandstand, Mumbai. Eventually, the two daughters (Alvira and Arpita) married and left to raise their own families, while two of the three sons (Arbaaz and Sohail) married. They live together, as per the Joint family traditions.
Dilip Kumar was born as Muhammad Yusuf Khan in 1922, and became one of India's most acclaimed actors. His wife Saira Banu is also a successful actress in Bollywood. His brother Nasir Khan, brother-in-law K. Asif and nephew Ayub Khan are among those who followed him into films, and his wife Saira Banu is also related to several film personalities.
The Khan–Hussain family starts with Nasir Hussain, who is the eldest man in the family. He is a veteran film writer, producer and director and made his writing debut with the 1953 super hit, Anarkali for Filmistan studios, where he joined as a freelancer. Nasir later went on to start his own production house named Nasir Hussain Films and made evergreen cult films like Teesri Manzil and Yaadon Ki Baraat. Nasir Hussain's younger brother, Tahir Hussain, is also a filmmaker and has been a producer for a number of films. Nasir Hussain has two children; an elder son Mansoor Khan, and a younger daughter, Nuzhat Khan. Nuzhat Khan married a convert to Islam, Anil Pal, an engineer, and had one child, Imran Khan. Tahir Hussain and his wife Zeenat Hussain have four children; Farhat Khan, Aamir Khan, Faisal Khan, and Nikhat Khan. Nasir Hussain launched both Mansoor Khan and Aamir Khan with the 1988 blockbuster Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak, which was produced by Nassir Hussain Films and co-written by the two brothers in their younger days. Faisal Khan is a former actor. Mansoor Khan and Aamir Khan later launched the former's nephew, Imran Khan, with Jaane Tu... Ya Jaane Na in 2008. The film was made under the Aamir Khan Productions banner and was a huge hit.
The family line starts with actor Zakaria Khan, known by his screen name as Jayant. His sons are actors Amjad Khan, (popular for his role of Gabbar Singh in the film Sholay) and Imtiaz Khan (worked in films like Yaadon Ki Baaraat, Dharmatma, Dayavan).
Khanna family starts with Rajesh Khanna (born Jatin Khanna;) he was a Bollywood actor, film producer and politician. He is referred to as the "first superstar" and the "original superstar" of Indian cinema. He starred in 15 consecutive solo hit films in the period 1969 to 1971, still an unbroken record.
Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia's daughters Twinkle Khanna, and Rinkle Khanna have also acted in the industry. Twinkle Khanna left the industry after her marriage to actor Akshay Kumar.
Vinod Khanna was a popular and successful actor in the film industry in the 1970s and 1980s. His sons Akshaye and Rahul both pursued a film career though Rahul has not been as successful.
Durga Khote was a Dadasaheb Phalke Award recipient known for her performances in Mughal-e-Azam, Bobby, Bidaai etc.
The Kher family includes the actors Anupam Kher and Kirron Kher. Their son is actor Sikander Kher. Anupam has starred in the international hit Bend It Like Beckham. He recently won the best actor award given by the Karachi International Film Festival for Maine Gandhi Ko Nahin Mara (2005). Kirron Kher won the Bronze Leopard Award given by the Locarno International Film Festival for Khamosh Pani: Silent Waters (2003).
Gulshan Kumar was the founder of the T-Series (Super Cassettes Industries Ltd.), the best known as music label in India, and an Indian Bollywood movie producer.
Mr. Arjun Lulla was the founder of Eros International, best known for film distribution and production in India.
The Mukherjee-Samarth family has been active in the film industry since the 1940s when Rattan Bai, mother of actor Shobhana Samarth, acted in various films. The current members of the Mukherjee-Samarth family working in the industry are actor Tanuja, actress Kajol (married to actor Ajay Devgan), actress Rani Mukerji (married to producer-director Aditya Chopra), actress Tanisha, and actor Mohnish Behl. Their family married the Ganguly brothers. The Mukherjees and Samarths came together by marriage between producer Sashadhar Mukherjee and Sati Devi's son Shomu Mukherjee and Shobhana Samarth and director Kumarsen Samarth's daughter Tanuja. Shomu's cousin married the sister of actor Debashree Roy.
Actress Sharmila Tagore married Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi, a cricket player in the 1960s and 70s and the 9th and last Nawab of Pataudi. Two of their children, Saif Ali Khan and Soha Ali Khan, and a granddaughter, Sara Ali Khan, are film actors. Both Saif and Soha have also married film actors.
Madan Puri was probably the best known villain in the film industry in the 1950s and late 1960s. His brothers Chaman Puri and Amrish Puri were also very successful actors of their time.
The Ramsays were seven brothers who had achieved cult status for producing low-budget horror films through the 1970s and 1980s, going into the early 1990s. They were the sons of Fatehchand Uttamchand (FU) Ramsay, who had shifted to Mumbai (then Bombay) from Karachi after Partition with his wife and children. In Karachi, the Ramsays (originally Ramsinghani) ran a radio store, and set in Mumbai before shifting to movies. FU Ramsay tried his hand first, but was a failure. But the brothers hit upon the idea of making horror films, starting with Do Gaz Zameen Ke Neeche in 1972. They chose low-cost options, with family members handling most of the key bits of the film-making process. They chose actors who didn't cost too much and shot at actual locations instead of spending on sets. Some of their best known films are Darwaza, Dahshat, Purana Mandir and Veerana. Though they stopped making films together afterwards, most of them continued to be a part of the movies, especially Keshu Ramsay, who produced a number of successful films with Akshay Kumar and made the brilliant Khakee in 2004. The brothers – apart from Keshu – did, however, come together to produce the extremely successful Zee Horror Show, which later became Anhonee, for television.
The family is related to Ganguly family through the marriage of Ruma Guha Thakurta, niece of Bijoya Ray to Kishore Kumar.
Rakesh Roshan Nagrath is an actor from the 1960s to the 1980s. Towards the 1990s he started directing films. His brother Rajesh is a music director and does the music for Rakesh's films. Rakesh introduced his son Hrithik Roshan Nagrath in 2000 in the film Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai which made Hrithik a star overnight.
This family is joined to that of producer and director J. Om Prakash, through his daughter Pinky Roshan Nagrath, who is the wife of Rakesh and the mother of Hrithik. It also connected to the family of Feroz Khan through designer Sussanne Khan, who is the ex-wife of Hrithik and the mother of their sons Hrehaan and Hridhaan. Pashmina Roshan (daughter of Rajesh Roshan and his wife Kanchan Roshan) also joined film industry as an actress with debut movie Ishq Vishk Rebound.
M. B. Shetty worked as an action director and actor in Hindi and Kannada cinema. He had a towering personality with a bald head, often cast as the villain brought down by heroes half his size. Some of his memorable films include China Town, An Evening in Paris, Kismat, Lalkar, Aankhen, Don and Kalicharan. His two sons Rohit Shetty and Hriday Shetty are well-known film directors. Rohit has directed films like Golmaal series, Singham series and Chennai Express. Whereas Hriday directed Plan and Pyaar Ka Twist.
Originating in the Punjab Province of British India, six brothers born to Laxmidas and Hakumdai Chawla, changed their last name to Varma after moving to Bombay to enter the movie industry. They produced and distributed Hindi films and their descendants, both biological and those married into the family, continued this endeavour while making other contributions to the film industry as well. The family is also related to the Bhatt family, through actress and wife of Bhagwan Das Varma, Purnima Das Varma, whose sister, Shirin Ali, was the mother of 6 of the 9 children of Nanabhai Bhatt, including producers Mukesh and Mahesh Bhatt, the father of Pooja Bhatt, Alia Bhatt and Rahul Bhatt.