John Abraham: A Journey from no-one to a superstar

From no one to a successful model to a superstar, John Abraham?s journey has been nothing short of a dream. But even after so much fame and success, he maintains his down-to-earth attitude and hasn?t forgotten his roots

CJ: Neeraj Nagpal

Sun, Mar 01, 2009 15:13:55 IST

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WOW! THIS would certainly be one of my all time favourite topics to pen on! It gives me immense gratification to write about the ‘Sexiest Man in Asia’ - as per a leading British Asian weekly. I know it would have been better off had a female written this manuscript but then, before you read it completely, don’t burden yourself with an early judgment.

John Abraham, born on December 17, 1972, in Mumbai, has been one of the most successful male models India has produced and currently working as an actor. He has pursued BA (Hons) in Economics and completed his MMS also. Abraham started his career with the media firm Time & Space Media Entertainment Promotions Ltd. Later, he worked for Enterprises-Nexus as a media planner.

When asked about his growing up, this is what he had to say:-

“I am a Mumbaikar. I have lived in Mumbai (Bombay) all my life. I have grown up here, studied here. I’ve played hard and rough through my years at Bombay Scottish School and in college. I’ve earned the respect of friends and the love of a few women. I’ve had my bones broken a few times, and my heart broken a lot.

As a student, I was just a bit above average, always in the top 15 in the class. I never had trouble with academics but I was never a geek either. I captained the soccer team for Bombay Scottish for a while. I loved soccer and would have loved to take it up as a career but apparently, the universe had other plans for me. I dare say, with still, no clue about what life had in store for me.”

His journey from being nobody to somebody started the day one of the models didn’t turn up for a photo shoot and with the rub of green by his side, he was asked to do the shoot instead and from thereon, there’s been no looking back for this superstar. In 1999, he won the Gladrags Manhunt Contest and went to Singapore for Manhunt International, where he came second. Following this, he appeared in a number of commercial advertisements.

There’s a great saying, “Always respect people on your way up, because you would meet the same people on your way down.” This statement applies 101 per cent to John because of his down-to-earth attitude. Unlike fellow stars, who take themselves as divine just with one odd flick, this dude has given good looks, good movies and good charisma to the Indian Film fraternity and yet remains humble.

He has always given more respect to a matter than it deserved. From his views on the 26/11 attack to a recent episode wherein he saved a girl from eve teasing in Delhi, he deserves a standing ovation. A member of PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) has contributed a lot to the animal welfare in India. From asking Mumbai authorities to ban cruel horse-drawn carts to speaking up for pigs and spreading awareness about the cruelty involved in the capture, breeding and caging of birds, he has been a stupendous personality.

It’s not only about his looks, which fetched him “The Sexiest Man in Asia” but there’s much more to it. His humble and philanthropic nature is his best quality. John is not at all bigheaded, overconfident, arrogant or attention seeker, which is so much unlike his peers in the industry.

There’s always been an excitement about his stunning body, be it his 8-packs abs or 21-inch biceps (Yes, he increased them to 21 inches in ‘Dostana’ from 18 inches). For those, who want to know about this dude’s diet, let me ease the pain. Here goes what John himself has to say about his diet:-

“I am predominantly vegetarian. I occasionally have some fish. My family is vegetarian, except for some fish, about once a week. Breakfast consists of six egg whites. A glass of fruit juice, a couple of slices of toast with butter. And my customary two cups of tea. I eat about 10 almonds. My lunch consists of some chapattis (whole-wheat tortillas), yellow dal (lentil soup), spinach and some stir-fried vegetables. I don’t take any steroids or growth hormones. I never have. The only supplement that I take is protein. I am a vegetarian and I need to take my protein in other ways. Meats give you a protein chain of 21 proteins. Tofu and spinach give you 17 in one chain and 5 in another. But it’s practically impossible to always have that. So my protein shakes are an absolute necessity.”

There’s always been a speculation about what kind of workout schedule this hunk follows. Let’s hear it from the horse’s mouth:-

“I am 6ft 1 inch and I was just 64 kgs before I started modelling. My trainer told me and so did Atul Kasbekar, the fashion photographer that I need to train and add a little muscle. When I started training I could bench about 30 lbs. By the time I did Glad Rags Manhunt, I was benching super sets of 360 lbs on an incline. My weight touched about 86 kgs at that point. My fat count was about 10 per cent.”

This simply means that he pumps incredible iron in the gym, almost a par with what professional bodybuilders would touch. Isn’t it awesome? Wonder how many of us like me had our jaws to ground when he was coming out with his famous yellow trunks in ‘Dostana’. Don’t get me wrong here but the attention is purely towards the physique!

A dude by looks, a hunk by physique and a geek by mind makes him a ‘Superstar’ and he deserves every inch of success he has had so far and I along with all John’s fans, wish him to rock the way he always has and emerge as greatest actor India has ever produced!

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