Famed Bollywood actor Salman Khan will join the collection of wax figures at Madame Tussauds New York on Thursday, August 2nd. The celebrated actor will join such famed Bollywood stars as, Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan, in the attraction’s “Bollywood Zone.”

Salman Khan is one of Bollywood’s most renowned actors, having appeared in the highest grossing film eight separate years during his career. Khan burst onto the scene with his award-performance in Maine Pyar Kiya in 1989, which won him a Filmfare Award for Best Male Debut. His latest film, Bodyguard, has become the second highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time. In 2004, People magazine named Khan the seventh best-looking man in the world.

“Salman Khan is one of Bollywood’s most enduring and recognizable stars,” said Bret Pidgeon, General Manager of Madame Tussauds New York.  “Bollywood exploded on the American pop culture scene several years ago and has become one of our most exciting entertainment categories.”

Khan’s wax figure is joining Madame Tussauds New York’s Bollywood Zone, which was created after numerous visitor requests.  The brightly-colored, fully-interactive area includes a replica of the Taj Mahal, videos of authentic Indian dancers and a photo area where visitors can pose with Bollywood stars – all designed to re-create the experience of being on a Bollywood film.  Over the coming years, Madame Tussauds plans to expand the area to include figures of other prominent Bollywood stars.

The figure – on loan from Madame Tussauds London – was launched in January, 2008, after Khan beat nine other Indian mega-stars - including Madhuri Dixit, Hrithik Roshan, Lata Mangeshkar and Abhishek Bachchan – to choose the “Next Bollywood Star” that would get a wax likeness. More than 10,000 people voted in the August, 2007, public poll. Khan personally chose and donated the black top and denim jeans for his wax figure.