Salman, who has seen several ups and downs in his 20-year-old film career, remains one of the most loved personalities and one of the biggest draws in the industry.

The actor who recently turned script-writer with director Anil Sharma's 'Veer' is currently shooting for it in Mumbai.

Other upcoming films include Vipul Shah's 'London Dreams', Sohail Khan's 'Main aur Mrs Khanna' and Boney Kapoor's 'Wanted: Dead or alive'.

Salman is perhaps the only actor in the Hindi film industry who keeps his popularity ratings unchanged among fans despite a slew of flops in recent times.

The fact was evident by the stupendous success of his TV game show 'Dus Ka Dum', where his affable and easy going conduct was described as an extension of his real-life personality.

Part of the famous Khan troika - Shah Rukh and Aamir being the other two, Salman is among the top paid actors in the industry.

Often labelled as the "bad boy of the tinsel town", Salman had recently said in an interview that the image had been given to him by people "who could not get closer to him and did not know him well".

Salman was first seen as a part of the supporting cast in the film 'Biwi Ho To Aisi' in 1988, but it was the spectacular commercial success of his first solo lead 'Maine Pyar Kiya' in 1989, that catapulted him into the "big league".

The success of 'Saajan' and 'Karan Arjun' reconfirmed his status as the industry's "next big thing".

After a couple of years of modest accomplishments, 1994 saw the release of "Hum Aapke Hain Kaun", his second venture with director Sooraj Barjatya after 'MPK'. It was among the biggest hits of that decade and was perhaps the first Bollywood movie to do well overseas.

The film got Salman a lot of accolades besides establishing him as one of the industry's most "bankable" stars.

Since then, he has belted out one big hit after another. Over the years, he has given several successful performances in 'Judwaa', 'Pyar Kiya to Darna Kya', 'Biwi No 1', 'Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam', 'Mujhse Shaadi Karogi', 'No Entry' and 'Partner'.

Besides commercial successes, he has also been critically acclaimed for his stellar performances as an obsessive lover in 'Tere Naam' and as a HIV positive patient in 'Phir Milenge'.

Controversy's favourite child, Salman, is currently on bail in a black buck shooting case in Jodhpur and also a hit-and-run case in Mumbai. But the actor has never responded to criticism -- whether it was the court cases or controversies related to his personal relationships.

After being almost written off by film pundits, Salman made a comeback with 'Tere Naam', where he played a man obsessively in love with a simple village girl.

This tragic love story of the man with a heart of gold was viewed by audiences as an extension of his real-life story and reclaimed Salman's place in the industry and the hearts of audiences.

Salman has said that he would never play negative roles on screen because "he is not a negative person and such a portrayal would have a wrong effect on his young fans".

His outbursts against Shah Rukh after their much publicised spat also drew flak from his detractors. Professionally, 2008 has not been a good year for Salman. His last release, 'Yuvvraaj', in which he was paired romantically with real-life girlfriend Katrina Kaif, was a dismal flop. The actor, however, has a lot to look forward in the next year with several big projects awaiting release.