Aamir Khan was born on 14 March 1965 in Mumbai to Tahir Hussain, a film producer, and Zeenat Hussain. The producer-director Nasir Hussain is his paternal uncle. He is related to the Indian philosopher Abul Kalam Azad through his grandmother. He has three younger siblings; brother, Faisal Khan is an actor, and two sisters, Farhat and Nikhat Khan. His nephew, Imran Khan, is a contemporary Hindi film actor. He was educated at J.B. Petit School, St. Anne's High School, Bandra, and Bombay Scottish School, Mahim. He played tennis in state-level championships and became a state level champion. He completed his twelfth grade from Mumbai's Narsee Monjee College. He joined a theatre group called Avantar, where he performed backstage activities for over a year. He married Reena Dutta, on 18 April 1986. They have two children, a son named Junaid and a daughter, Ira. In December 2002, Khan filed for divorce. Reena took custody of both children. On 28 December 2005, Khan married Kiran Rao. On 5 December 2011, Khan and his wife announced the birth of their son, Azad Rao Khan, through a surrogate mother.
He first appeared on screen as a child actor in his uncle Nasir Hussain's film Yaadon Ki Baaraat (1973). He made his stage debut with a small role in the company's Gujarati play, Kesar Bina, at Prithvi Theatre. He worked as an assistant director to Nasir Hussain on the Hindi films Manzil Manzil (1984) and Zabardast (1985). As an adult, his first feature film role was in the experimental film Holi (1984), and he began a full-time acting career with a leading role in the tragic romance Qayamat Se Qayamat Tak (1988). He won his first Filmfare Award for Best Actor for Raja Hindustani (1996). In 1999 he founded Aamir Khan Productions, whose first film, Lagaan (2001), was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and earned him a National Film Award for Best Popular Film. He made his directorial debut with Taare Zameen Par (2007), a major success that garnered him the Filmfare Awards for Best Film and Best Director. He made his television debut with his talk show, Satyamev Jayate. The show dealt with social issues. It started airing on 6 May 2012.
He was honored by the Government of India with the Padma Shri in 2003 and the Padma Bhushan in 2010 and received an honorary title from the Government of China in 2017. On 30 November 2011, he was appointed the national brand ambassador of UNICEF to promote child nutrition. He is part of the government-organized IEC campaign to raise awareness about malnutrition.