Ayushmann Khurrana is the 42-year-old actor and singer from Chandigarh who built one of Hindi cinema’s most unusual careers, moving from reality television and radio to a National Film Award for playing a blind pianist in Andhadhun. In November 2026, he returned to the headlines after a threatening audio message sent in the name of the Lawrence Bishnoi gang led Mumbai Police to arrest a Bengaluru engineer.
From winning the second season of MTV Roadies in 2004 to headlining box-office hits such as Vicky Donor, Badhaai Ho and Dream Girl, Khurrana has made a career out of playing ordinary men in extraordinary situations. This biography covers his age, height, wife, net worth, films and the November 2026 threat case.
| Full Name | Ayushmann Khurrana (born Nishant Khurrana) |
| Age | 42 years old (born 14 September 1984) |
| Height | 5 feet 9 inches (175 cm) |
| Birthplace | Chandigarh, India |
| Occupation | Actor, singer, television host |
| Known For | Vicky Donor, Andhadhun, Dream Girl, Article 15, Badhaai Ho |
| Net Worth 2026 | About $10 million (about ₹80 crore) — estimate, see Net Worth section below |
Early Life
Ayushmann Khurrana was born as Nishant Khurrana on 14 September 1984 in Chandigarh, India, into a Punjabi Khatri family. His father, P. Khurrana, was an astrologer and an author on the subject of astrology, and died in May 2023. His mother, Poonam, is of half-Burmese descent and holds a master’s degree in Hindi. His parents changed his name to Ayushmann when he was three years old, and he has a younger brother, actor Aparshakti Khurana, who made his own acting debut in Dangal (2016).
Khurrana studied at St John’s High School in Chandigarh and DAV College, Chandigarh, where he majored in English literature. He went on to earn a master’s degree in Mass Communication from Panjab University. Theatre shaped his early years: he performed for five years, founded DAV College’s theatre groups Aaghaaz and Manchtantra, and won a Best Actor award for playing Ashwatthama in Dharamvir Bharati’s Andha Yug.
Career
After completing his studies, Khurrana’s first job was as a radio personality at BIG FM in Delhi. In 2004 he won the second season of the reality television show MTV Roadies, and he went on to host a string of television shows, including India’s Got Talent, Music Ka Maha Muqqabla and Just Dance. He also acted in the Star Plus series Kayamath in 2007 and anchored the Extra Innings T20 coverage of the Indian Premier League.
Khurrana made his film debut in 2012 with Shoojit Sircar’s romantic comedy Vicky Donor, playing a sperm donor opposite Annu Kapoor and Yami Gautam. The film earned more than ₹610 million worldwide against a ₹100 million budget, and Khurrana won Filmfare Awards for Best Male Debut and Best Male Playback Singer for “Pani Da Rang”, a song he had written and composed with Rochak Kohli back in 2003. His unconventional debut set a template later echoed by newer leading men such as Ahaan Panday, who broke out with Saiyaara (2025). His next few films — Nautanki Saala! (2013), Bewakoofiyaan (2014) and Hawaizaada (2015) — failed at the box office, but Dum Laga Ke Haisha (2015), opposite Bhumi Pednekar, turned his fortunes around.
His run from 2017 onwards made him one of Hindi cinema’s most bankable stars. Bareilly Ki Barfi and Shubh Mangal Saavdhan both succeeded in 2017, and 2018 brought two of the year’s biggest Hindi hits: Sriram Raghavan’s thriller Andhadhun, in which he played a blind pianist caught up in a murder, and the comedy Badhaai Ho. Andhadhun earned ₹4.56 billion worldwide, much of it from China, and won Khurrana the National Film Award for Best Actor and a Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor. In 2019 he added three more hits — Article 15, Dream Girl and Bala — winning a second consecutive Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor for Article 15.
The years that followed were uneven. Shubh Mangal Zyada Saavdhan (2020) and Gulabo Sitabo (2020), the latter released directly on Amazon Prime Video during the pandemic, were followed by Chandigarh Kare Aashiqui (2021), Anek, Doctor G and An Action Hero (all 2022) — the last of them a rare action outing for Khurrana in a genre dominated by stars such as Vidyut Jammwal — none of which performed well commercially. Dream Girl 2 (2023) brought a commercial resurgence, and his only release of 2025, the horror comedy Thamma, was a moderate success. In 2026 he starred in Pati Patni Aur Woh Do and in the spy comedy Udta Teer, playing a Pakistani spy undercover in India who loses his memory, opposite Sara Ali Khan.
Alongside acting, Khurrana has kept up a parallel career as a singer, lending his voice to songs in his own films and to singles such as “Mitti Di Khushboo” and “Nazm Nazm”. He has appeared on the Forbes India Celebrity 100 list in 2013 and 2019, a ranking long led by stars such as Shah Rukh Khan, was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world in 2020, and has been a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for India since February 2023.
Personal Life
Khurrana married his childhood friend Tahira Kashyap, a filmmaker, writer and journalism teacher, in 2008. The couple have two children together — a son, Virajveer, and a daughter, Varushka. Kashyap was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2018 and, after treatment, was declared cancer free in 2020; Khurrana has credited her belief in Nichiren Buddhism with helping her through that period. While Khurrana works in Mumbai, his family remains based in Chandigarh, and in 2015 he co-wrote his autobiography, Cracking the Code: My Journey to Bollywood, with Tahira.
Ayushmann Khurrana Net Worth 2026
Ayushmann Khurrana’s net worth in 2026 is commonly estimated at around $10 million, or about ₹80 crore, according to Pinkvilla and Technosports. Other biography sites put the figure lower, at $5–6 million, and no official or audited figure exists, so any number should be treated as an estimate. His income comes from film fees, playback singing, brand endorsements and television hosting. Forbes India estimated his annual income at ₹305 million when he ranked 37th on its Celebrity 100 list in 2019.
November 2026 Threat Case
On 4 November 2026, news outlets reported, citing Mumbai Police sources, that Khurrana had received a threatening audio message from a person claiming links with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and demanding crores of rupees. The report came in the same week that actor Tusshar Kapoor received a similar audio message from a person calling himself Harry Boxer, who reportedly demanded ₹5 crore. Police have not confirmed any connection between the two threats.
Mumbai Police’s Crime Branch arrested Vaibhav Mishra, a 30-year-old IIT graduate and IT engineer from Bengaluru, for allegedly sending threatening messages to several Bollywood celebrities, including Khurrana and Kapoor, through Instagram and email. Deputy Commissioner of Police (Crime Branch) Rajtilak Roushan confirmed the arrest. According to police sources, Mishra had no established link with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang, and investigators suspected the messages may have been a prank, possibly using AI-generated audio.
On 8 November 2026, Mathrubhumi reported that police suspected AI had been used to generate the audio message sent to Khurrana, in which the caller identified himself as “Anil Pandit” and claimed to be the younger brother of gangster Lawrence Bishnoi. Mishra was arrested and was being questioned; he has not been convicted of any offence, and the investigation was continuing at the time of writing.
Frequently Asked Questions
How old is Ayushmann Khurrana?
Ayushmann Khurrana is 42 years old. He was born on 14 September 1984 in Chandigarh, India.
How tall is Ayushmann Khurrana?
Ayushmann Khurrana is 5 feet 9 inches tall (175 cm) and weighs around 70 kg, according to Pinkvilla and other profile sites.
Who is Ayushmann Khurrana’s wife?
Ayushmann Khurrana is married to Tahira Kashyap, a filmmaker, writer and journalism teacher. They married in 2008 and have two children, a son named Virajveer and a daughter named Varushka.
What is Ayushmann Khurrana’s net worth in 2026?
His net worth is commonly estimated at around $10 million (about ₹80 crore), per Pinkvilla and Technosports, though other sites cite $5–6 million. No official figure exists.
What was Ayushmann Khurrana’s first movie?
Ayushmann Khurrana’s first movie was Vicky Donor (2012), in which he played a sperm donor. The film was a commercial success and won him Filmfare Awards for Best Male Debut and Best Male Playback Singer.
What happened in the November 2026 threat case involving Ayushmann Khurrana?
In November 2026, Khurrana reportedly received a threatening audio message from a person claiming links with the Lawrence Bishnoi gang and demanding crores of rupees. Mumbai Police arrested Vaibhav Mishra, a 30-year-old IT engineer from Bengaluru, for allegedly sending the messages. Police said Mishra had no established link with the gang and suspected the audio may have been AI-generated. Mishra was arrested and questioned; he has not been convicted.
