 "Salman Khan's 51st birthday celebrations kick off, capping superstar's stupendous 2016")
Salman Khan brought in his 51st birthday on 27 December like he always does — at his farmhouse in Panvel, surrounded by his family and friends. As he cut a ‘Being Human’ cake, with little nephew Ahil Sharma by his side, siblings Arbaaz, Sohail, Alvira and Arpita, close friends Sangeeta Bijlani, Daisy Shah and of course, Iulia Vantur, in attendance, Salman looked relaxed and happy. Friends and relatives gathered round to wish Salman a happy birthday.Just a day earlier, he had been seen enjoying a Christmas dinner with Iulia at a fine dining restaurant in Bandra.
On the anvil, are three days of celebrations at Panvel, followed by a tour of Australia — the ‘Da Bang’ concert at the Rod Laver arena in Melbourne — and the launch of his app, which Salman announced on Twitter. The Da Bang tour will also feature Sonakshi Sinha, rapper Baadshah and Daisy Shah, among others.
Salman does have reason to celebrate; 2016 has been, except for one row, a good year. In stark contrast to 2015, when he had the verdict in his 2002 hit-and-run case dangling over his head — he was convicted by a lower court in May, only to have the decision overturned by the Bombay High Court in December — 2016 has been a god year for Salman.
First, he consolidated his hit-and-run acquittal from December 2015 with a clean chit from the courts in the black buck poaching case as well, this July. Then, riding high on the twin successes of Bajrangi Bhaijaan and Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (which has recorded the highest ever opening day collections for an Indian film, at Rs 40+ crore) from 2015, Salman cemented his unimpeachable status as Bollywood’s numero uno star with 2016’s Sultan. Even the controversy over his ‘raped woman’ remark (Salman had said that shooting the wrestling sequences in the film had left him feeling like a ‘raped woman…unable to walk’) didn’t stop the Sultan juggernaut, which went on to do a box office business of over Rs 300 crore. On the small screen, Salman returned with Bigg Boss’ tenth season. He also hosted the Star Screen Awards with Shah Rukh Khan, which will be telecast on the night of 31 December. Coming up next is Kabir Khan’s Tubelight, which he has been shooting for through 2016, and the next installments in the Dabangg and Ek Tha Tiger franchises. His 50th birthday party last year saw more than 800 people, including the crème de la crème of the Hindi film industry, turn up at his Panvel farmhouse, dancing into the wee hours of the morning. As he brings in his 51st, we can only imagine the scale of celebrations that Salman has in store.
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