From Athiya Shetty to Sneha Ullal, actors launched by Salman Khan

Athiya Shetty, Salman Khan, and Sneha Ullal

Salman Khan Birthday 2023: The 'Tiger 3' star is among the biggest superstars of the country. Having worked in the film industry for over 30 years, the actor has also played the role of mentor to many and provided opportunities to many. Ahead of his 58th birthday, here's looking at the actors who were launched by the 'Dabangg' star:

Palak Tiwari:

Salman launched the acting career of TV star Shweta Tiwari's daughter Palak with 'Kisi Ka Bhai Kisi Ki Jaan'. The actor had met Palak as a young girl when she had come on the sets of Bigg Boss for the season in which her mother participated.

Sonakshi Sinha:

In 2010, Shatrughan Sinha's daughter Sonakshi made a dhamakedaar debut with the first installment of the 'Dabangg' franchise opposite Salman Khan. It was the superstar who discovered her and encouraged her to lose weight and proceed with a career in the movies. Khan eventually offered her a role in his production, Dabangg. She was also seen in 'Dabangg 2 and 3'.

Athiya Shetty and Sooraj Pancholi:

Despite both hailing from film families, Athiya and Sooraj were guided and launched by Salman Khan in his production, 'Hero'. The newcomers were cast opposite each other in this action entertainer directed by Nikkhil Advani.

Shehnaaz Gill:

Salman Khan met Shehnaaz on the sets of the reality show 'Bigg Boss 13'. While she was introduced as the bubbly Punjabi Ki Katrina, her talent and charm helped her carve an identity for herself. Gill formed a bond with Salman even after the show came to and. In 2002, she made her Hindi film debut with 'Kisi ka Bhai Kisi Ka Jaan' which had Salman Khan in the lead. The film was also backed by Salman. After the demise of Sidharth Shukla, Salman also encouraged Shehnaaz to move on and live her life to the fullest

Zaheer Iqbal and Pranutan Bahl:

Zaheer is the son of Salman Khan's childhood friend while Pranutan is the daughter of Manish Bahl with whom the 'Tiger 3' star shares a close bond having worked together. He brought the two actors together and launched then with the film 'Notebook' in 2019.

Daisy Shah:

Daisy started her career in the film industry as an assistant choreographer to Ganesh Acharya. She worked in Kannada films before being spotted by Salman Khan who launched her in the film 'Jai Ho' in 2014. She later worked with Khan in 'Race 3' in 2019.

Saiee Manjrekar:

Saiee Manjrekar is the daughter of actor-filmmaker Mahesh Manjrekar. The filmmaker and Salman share a great bond having worked together in hit films together including 'Wanted'. After multiple rounds of auditions, Saiee bagged the role of Khushi in the 2019 film 'Dabangg 3'.

Aayush Sharma and Warina Hussain:

Salman Khan produced the film 'LoveYatri' and launched his brother-in-law Aayush Sharma. He was cast opposite newbie Warina Hussain who began her career as a model.

Zareen Khan:

Salman spotted the actress who bore a resemblance to Katrina Kaif on the sets of the film 'Yuvvraj' and decided to cast her in a prominent role. She then made her leading actress debut opposite Salman Khan in 'Veer'.

Sneha Ulal:

For the 2005 film 'Lucky: No Time for Love' , Salman cast newbie Sneha Ulal opposite him. She made headlines and was quiet the buzz for her striking resemblance to Aishwarya Rai . However, Ulal was not seen mainstream cinema after a glorious debut.

Katrina Kaif:

While Katrina made her debut in 2003 with the lesser-known film 'Boom', she got re-launched by Salman in the hit film 'Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya'. She went on to feature in several films starring Salman.