Rajesh Khanna was an actor.
Rajesh Khanna ( born Jatin Khanna ; 29 December 1942 -- 18 July 2012 ) was an Indian actor , film producer and politician who is known for his work in Hindi cinema . He starred in 15 consecutive solo hit films in the period 1969 to 1971 , still an unbroken record . He made his debut in 1966 with Aakhri Khat . Through his career he appeared in more than 168 feature films and 12 short films . He was the highest paid Indian actor from 1970 to 1987 where Amitabh Bachchan shared the same tag with Khanna from 1980 to 1987 .