Celebrating Shabir: Happy Birthday Rockstar!

"This guy will be young even when he turns 80. He is young in his attitude and thinking. When I am with him, I forget all my worries. He makes me laugh, and is the only person who tolerates my mood swings. He is the only person who'll be there at 4 am if I want to go out for coffee. Koi bhi problem ho duniya mein, he just takes it away. He is my anchor." - Ekta Kapoor (producer- Kahhin toh hoga, Kayamath, Kumkum Bhagya etc.)

"It has to be Shabbir Ahluwalia (the actor he looks up to). He is too good; the way he improvises his scenes are remarkable. His one liners in the show are always impromptu and I just love the way he performs. Off the screen, he is a typical rockstar. I would say he is tailor-made for the role. He is chilled out, makes everyone around him comfortable. He keeps everyone in a jovial mood with his conversations. If you see, his chemistry with every character in the shows comes out good. This is only possible when you have a great rapport with your co-stars and Shabbir manages to do that"- Arjit Taneja (co- actor Kumkum Bhagya)

"I learned that I can be a better person, working with Shabbir Ahluwalia, I have realised that as he is a great human being."- Sriti Jha (co- actor Kumkum Bhagya)

"I can't stop laughing when I look at Shabbir. He cracks a lot of jokes. So I avoid looking into his eyes."- Mahhi Vij (co- actor- Laagi Tujhse Lagan)

Shabir's time in entertainment industry has been versatile and successful. His career started with a school times soap, Hip Hip Hurray. And then he did smaller roles in soaps such as Kahaan Ghar Ghar ki.

But his biggest break was his role in a negative character, Rishi, in the long running soap, Kahhin toh Hoga. The flirtatious, vengeful Rishi was a character of its own league. It earned him a lot of fan following despite being a negative role, most of its credit going to Shabir for playing the character so convincingly. Applauds and accolades came his way too with Rishi.

Milind Mishra was one milestone character for Shabir, where he played a rugged/rustic man with a tender heart in Kayamath. Milind also marked his first show as a main lead and he shone through the soap displaying his acting abilities in the genre of romance for the first time.

And then we have the most adorable character played by Shabir yet, aka Abhi in Kumkum Bhagya. We will tell you more about Abhi later on in this thread but Abhi has earned him love all over the world and his fans have multiplied in geometric proportions, as evident by the meet and greet events.

While Shabir is a great actor, he is not just that. He has a knack with words and he has masterfully used it by hosting shows. He makes an amazing host, a thorough entertainer as we saw him in shows such as Nach Baliye, Dancing Queen, and Meethi Choori no.1.

He has tried his hands at the big screen too and done justice to his action-packed roles in Mission Istanbul and Shootout at Lokhandwala.

He has kept up with his passion for sports all through. When he is not acting, he is found playing soccer and cricket as a part celebrity/charity matches. But he is also an adventure sports enthusiast, he holds a Guinness World Record for the longest motorcycle ride through a fire tunnel and winning Khatron ke Khiladi Season 3 are just evidence for it.

And on his birthday, we wish Shabbo many more career highs ahead while we thank him for being such an entertainer we have adored.👏

Versatility thy name- defines Shabir the best when it comes to acting. He always has hand picked and chosen his roles carefully portraying them realistically as characters with their shares of issues and moments of glory, to leave a longstanding impact on the audience's mind. His portrayal of Abhi is the latest example of that.

"We might be the master of our thoughts but we are slaves to our emotions." This quote suits Abhi. He is not a super hero, not a bad guy, not even a too good to be true character. He is a man with regular human emotions and he is not afraid to express them. He follows his heart and emotions rule him. Hence it is so easy to connect with Abhi when you feel his heart.

Shabir has sealed himself as Abhi so perfectly that he makes the viewers forget they are watching a fiction show, as they laugh and cry with Abhi.

Below are the snippets of the range of emotions Abhi goes through and Shabir enacts them flawlessly using the range of his acting prowess.

Joy

Abhi is full of life. His happiness lies within himself and seeing his close ones happy. His cute smile, his endearing laughter, and the spark in his eyes bring a smile on our faces when we see his joy on screen. His outlandish yet endearing sense of humor tickles our bones. Can anyone ignore adoring Abhi's witty and funny one liners? Thanks to Shabir who makes Abhi's humor so natural. It's amazing to see Abhi being 'fun' with any character in the show as he brings smile in every character's face along with the audience. It makes him the charm of the show.

Anger

Abhi isn't the typical angry young man. He is normally in a happy go lucky soul, but when he does get angry, he scares the hell out of you. His searing eyes and the intense bearing brings shivers up your spine. No wonder every character in the show tries to not mess with Abhi directly but wants to keep him out of complicating issues. It's a pleasure to watch Shabir portraying the intensity and depth of Abhi's rage in such scenes.

Angst

The past one year of Kumkum Bhagya is a year of confusion and restlessness for Abhi. The good guys and the villains played with him and his feelings. He did not know what was happening around him. He was manipulated, lied to, and cheated. Shabir displayed Abhi's angsty emotions convincingly as Abhi expressed his issues in his dwindling thoughts and actions.

Love

Abhi is a loving soul and he loves them all and they all love Abhi. The soap revolves around how everyone wants something about Abhi. He is a genuinely loving and kind hearted person that way. On romantic love side, he is a man every girl would want to romance with. No wonder he is the heartthrob of thousands of girls in the show. He is hot, naughty with a great sense of humour. Also, the tender caring guy he could be, his naughty smirk, and those flirty lines would make any girl feel weak in her knees just watching him.

Fear

Can you believe the Rockstar is scared of ghosts? Haha, he can be. He is too cute when he gets scared of little things such as a cockroach or a ghost. On a serious note, Abhi's real fears are that of losing his loved ones and it is heart breaking to watch him go through that. Shabir proves his acting mettle in such scenes.

Pain

Real men don't cry is an absurd statement. Real men do not give up is the way to go. Abhi may shed tears unlike how we see typical heros but his ability to feel and express his emotions is striking. He is an artist and pathos is a part of his moods. And while Abhi enjoys his unquie status as a rockstar, his personal life is full of tragedies. Shabir emotes pain and pathos so naturally that you end up feeling Abhi's pain. Abhi's strength lies in that he never gives up and he overcomes the challenges and pains life lavishly throws at him.

Shabir Ahluwalia's portrayal of Abhi in Kumkum Bhagya as Abhishek Mehra is a role with a variety of shades and depth.

Abhi is a hotshot celebrity and more. He has a big heart and values his bonds with all the people in his life. The slow unraveling of the character from Abhi, the rockstar who had a materialistic outlook for life into the depth of his real person, as the story progresses, was a journey of its own. Through his interaction with other characters, the challenges he faced, the decisions he made, the layers of Abhi's persona came out. Here is a peek-a-boo into Abhi and his relationships to which he puts his heart and soul, the unique bonds he shares with the characters.

Abhi - Sabse accha pota (the bestest grandson)

His universe revolves around Daadi, who raised him through his traumatic childhood. He trusts, respects, and loves her so much he married a girl his Daadi liked. He is ever protective of her and fulfills her every wish. He is adorable around her and makes her heart fill with happiness. His connect to the older people is evident from his interactions with his other Daadis too whom he calls Daasi. All Daadis/Naanis would want a pota like Abhi!

Abhi - The one and only rockstar

He's the nation's only famous rockstar, but loves and respects his fans so much! This tremendous success hasn't gone to his head and he is honest to his fans and speaks from his heart about his mistakes and his personal life. Fans go gaga over him on the streets, malls, hotels, everywhere. He rules their hearts through his music and with his persona.

Abhi - The rockstar husband

He thought his marriage with this Chasmish girl was a temporary thing, but boy did he fall head over heels for his wife! He saw his wife's good heart. He responded to her love and grown to love and adore her. His love confession to Pragya was magical. His love for Fuggy never changed even when Mogambo tortured him. He missed her so much he even had a Fuggy doll! His rockstar style confession "Kya main zindagi bhar tumhara pati bankar reh saktahoon?" is a dream come true for any wife!

Abhi - The best big brother a girl can have!

He's an awesome big brother to Aaliyah! They lost their parents when they were young so their bond is precious, strong, and full of love. He is such a doting brother who has given the best there is to Aaliyah even before she asks. He did the unthinkable of marrying a girl he didn't like just to make his sister happy. Their relationship is strained now, but the bond is strong. He's been like a father, brother, and a friend to his little sister.

Abhi - A cool friend!

Abhi-Purab bromance is funny and amazing. What all they've been through since childhood! They have such a strong relationship they worked out their problems and misunderstandings. They hang out casually and share about their love life problems over. They're great friends and Abhi has never forgotten Purab who has been with him before he became a star.

Abhi - The nephew, cousin, and the uncle

When he moved to MM, he made sure his uncle and aunt, his cousins Raj and Akash, and his nephews Bunty and Babli joined him. He lavishes them with gifts and a good lifestyle even when some of them try to destroy him. He's generous and forgiving of others mistakes and family comes first for him.

Abhi- The Betaji damaad (the son- son in law)

He loves his mother in law and the grand mother in law whom he lovingly calls rockstar Daadi. Rockstar Daadi is also his best drinking buddy!! He's protective of them and helps them out generously in every way. He always looked at Sarla Maa as his mother. He's so warm and loving to his in law's family. Even though he's rich and is a megastar, he respects elders and fulfills his duties to them.

Abhi - The hottest brother in law

Bulbul, Abhi's sister in law, was a huge fan of Abhi. Their bond was special and they teased each other a lot. They were both similar in many ways. He cared for Bulbul so much that he went against his own sister to do the right thing in getting Purab and Bulbul married. Their cheerful bond is missed in the show with Bulbul's death.

We wish to see Abhi in many other roles as Kumkum Bhagya progresses. We are confident Shabbo would do justice to every relationship that Abhi needs to portray.