Hrithik's first movie role was as a child artist when he was six years old in the 1980 movie
Aasha, when he appeared in a dance sequence as an extra. He went on to appear as a child artist in
Aap Ki Deewane (1980) and
Bhagwan Dada (1986).
He was an assistant director for his father's films Karan Arjun (1995) and Koyla (1997).
He made his debut as a leading man in the 2000 film Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai opposite another debutante actress Amisha Patel. The film was directed by his father and proved to be very successful at the box office: It was the highest grossing film of 2000 and winner of the Filmfare Best Movie Award. Hrithik's performance earned him the Filmfare Best Debut Award and the Filmfare Best Actor Award. That same year, Hrithik also starred in Fiza and Mission Kashmir which were only moderately successful at the box office.
In 2001, Hrithik starred in Yaadein which was a failure at the box office and Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham which did extremely well at the box office, becoming the second-highest grossing film of 2001.
He had a bad year in 2002 when all three of his releases - Mujhse Dosti Karoge!, Na Tum Jaano Na Hum, Aap Mujhe Achche Lagne Lage - failed to make an impact the box office and were declared flops.
In 2003, his career was back on track with Koi Mil Gaya, which Hrithik's father Rakesh directed. It was the highest grosser of the year. It won many Filmfare Awards, including another Filmfare Best Actor Award for Hrithik.
He only had only one release in 2004, Lakshya, directed by Farhan Akhtar. Lakshya did not do as well at the box office as expected but critics called it his most impressive performance so far.
Hrithik took a two-year break from acting before resurfacing with the superhero film Krrish which released in June 2006. Krrish has been a major box office success.
His most recent release is Dhoom 2, a sequel to the 2004 hit Dhoom. In this film, he plays a negative role (a villain) for the first time. The film released on November 24, 2006 and is already breaking box office records.
His forthcoming films are Jodha-Akbar and Kismat Talkies which are scheduled to release in 2007.
