John Abraham is a former model turned Bollywood actor. Abraham started his career with the media firm Time & Space Media Entertainment Promotions Limited, which however closed down due to financial problems. Later, he worked for Enterprises-Nexus as a media planner. Abraham's anglicized name aided him when he entered the modeling field. His unconventional looks, macho physique, charismatic smiles and personable characters made him one of the highest paid supermodels in India. In 1999, he won the Gladrags Manhunt Contest and went to Singapore for Manhunt International, where he won second place. Following this, he appeared in a number of commercial advertisements.
Being a hot star in the modeling world, he made his film debut in 2003. Unlike usual Bollywood heroes who debut in male oriented action subjects, he accepted the erotic, emotional and controversial Jism (2003). The film did well, and his work was noticed widely. Later the same year came the paranormal Saaya (2003) and romantic Paap (2003); but neither did well at box-office. John's first blockbuster smash hit came in 2004 when he took the villain role 'Kabir' in Dhoom. He has appeared in a number of successful movies since then including, Kaal (2005), Garam Masala (2005) and Taxi No 9211 (2006). In 2005, John ignored the threats from some Hindu fundamentalists and agreed to play the lead role in the controversial film Water, which portrays the tragic fate of Hindu widows in pre-independant India.
