Emraan Anwar Hashmi (; born 24 March 1979) is an Indian actor and singer who appears predominantly in Hindi cinema. Hashmi debuted in 2003 with the crime thriller film Footpath and subsequently appeared in films include Murder (2004), Kalyug (2005), Gangster (2006) and gained acclaim starring in the action film Awarapan (2007). Hashmi has received several Filmfare Awards nominations. Before venturing into acting, Hashmi worked as an assistant director for the horror film Raaz (2002). During the same decade, he became a huge sensational and established leading actor with many successful romantic thrillers like Zeher (2005), Aashiq Banaya Aapne (2005), Aksar (2006) and Gangster (2006). His other critically and commercially successful films include Jannat (2008), Raaz: The Mystery Continues (2009), Once Upon a Time in Mumbaai (2010), The Dirty Picture (2011), Murder 2 (2011), Shanghai (2012), Jannat 2 (2012), Raaz 3 (2012) and Ek Thi Daayan (2013). Early life Hashmi was born on 24 March 1979, in Mumbai, Maharashtra into a Muslim family. His father, Syed Anwar Hashmi, is a businessman, who also acted in the 1968 film Baharon Ki Manzil, and his mother, Maherrah Hashmi, was a homemaker. His paternal grandfather, Syed Shauqat Hashmi, migrated to Pakistan after the partition of India, while his grandmother, Meherbano Mohammad Ali (known by her screen name Purnima), was an actress, who stayed in India. Meherbano Mohammad Ali later married producer-director Bhagwan Das Varma, making Bhagwan Das Emraan’s step grandfather and Emraan a part of the Varma family. Emraan is also a part of the Bhatt family because Meherbano was the sister of Shirin Mohammad Ali, the mother of producers Mahesh Bhatt and Mukesh Bhatt, who are thus Hashmi's uncles. Hashmi is the cousin of director Mohit Suri, with whom he has collaborated in several films. His other cousins are actresses Pooja Bhatt and Alia Bhatt, while another cousin is actor Rahul Bhatt. Hashmi studied at the Jamnabai Narsee School. After graduating from Jamnabai, he attended Sydenham College in Mumbai. Hashmi later earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Mumbai. Career 2003–2007: Debut and breakthrough Hashmi made his acting debut in 2003, with Vikram Bhatt's thriller Footpath. Co-starring alongside Aftab Shivdasani and Bipasha Basu, he portrayed the role of Raghu Shrivastav, a gangster. His performance in the film was appreciated by critics; Gaurav Malani described him as the "scene-stealer" and praised his mannerisms. The following year he featured in Anurag Basu's erotic