Farhan Akhtar birthday special: Rare pictures and best songs of the talented star [PHOTOS+VIDEOS]

Farhan Akhtar is all set to celebrate his 42nd birthday on 9 January. The multi-talented star is known for expertise in various fields, including acting, singing, direction, writing and production.

Farhan started his Bollywood acting career with the movie "Rock On" in 2008, which was also co-produced by him. He won a national award for the film as a producer. Farhan sung most of the songs in the film, and almost all of them became chartbusters.

Apart from bagging the "Filmfare Award for Best Actor" in 2013 for the film "Bhaag Milkha Bhaag", Farhan has till date added several feathers to his cap, as director, producer, singer and writer.

Farhan's directorial debut "Dil Chahta Hai" won a National Award for Best Feature Film in Hindi in 2001. After that he made the critically acclaimed "Lakshya" as director and "Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara" as producer. He has also produced commercially successful films like "Don" and "Don 2".

Known to be one of the most talented stars of Bollywood, Farhan recently appeared in the movie "Wazir". Apart from contributing to the entertainment world, Farhan also runs a social campaign titled "Men Against Rape and Discrimination" (MARD), which fights against social injustice towards women in India.

On the occasion of his 42nd birthday, have a look at some of Farhan Akhtar's rare pictures in the slideshow above, and listen to some of his best popular songs below.