Mumbai: Actor Arshad Warsi on Monday completed 25 years in Bollywood and expressed gratitude for the career and friends he has made in the film industry.
Warsi started his journey as an assistant director to filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt in the 1987 drama "Kaash" and worked as a choreographer for plays and jazz performances.
He also choreographed the title track of Anil Kapoor-Sridevi-starrer "Roop Ki Raani Choron Ka Raja" (1993), before making his acting debut with "Tere Mere Sapne" in 1996, which was produced by the Amitabh Bachchan Corporation.
The actor took to Twitter to thank veteran actor Jaya Bachchan for backing his talent and the film's director, Joy Augustine, for his debut in the romantic-drama.
"Today I completed 25 years in our wonderful film industry. This place has given me some of the most talented people as friends. I am and will always be eternally grateful to ABCL, Mrs. Jaya Bachchan, Joy Augustine, fans who have loved me & all who gave me a
chance-Thank you," the 53-year-old actor wrote.
"Tere Mere Sapne" also featured Chandrachur Singh, Priya Gill and is best known for the Viju Shah-composed chartbuster song "Aankh Maare", filmed on Warsi and Simran.
After his debut, Warsi saw consecutive failures with films like "Hero Hindustani" and "Hogi Pyaar Ki Jeet" but earned widespread acclaim with Rajkumar Hirani's 2003 blockbuster "Munna Bhai MBBS", where he played the affable sidekick, Circuit.
The Sanjay Dutt starrer cemented his position in the industry as the go-to comic actor, as he featured in comedy films like "Hulchul", the "Golmaal" series, "Maine Pyaar Kyun Kiya?" among others.
He also took on complex characters in films like "Sehar", "Ishqiya", and "Jolly LLB", which got the actor immense acclaim.
In 2020, Warsi made his OTT debut with the crime thriller series "Asur". He will be next seen in "Bachchan Pandey", co-starring Akshay Kumar.