MUMBAI: Some of the famous artists that we know by a certain name actually have different names in real-life and those that we know them by are only their stage names. The list has names like Dilip Kumar, Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Salman Khan, among others. 

Take a look below. 

Dilip Kumar: Dilip Kumar is only the actor's screen name. He was born Muhammad Yusuf Khan, but it was Devika Rani, the owner of Bombay Talkies, who advised him that his name would not be suitable as a film actor. So, when he had the option to choose between Jahangir, Vasudev and Dilip Kumar, he opted for the last one. 

Amitabh Bachchan: Big B's father had named him Inquilab. In fact, even their surname wasn't 'Bachchan' but 'Srivastava'. Spilling the beans on changing his surname, Big B had once shared that his father was born in a Kayasth home and was a Srivastav. But because he was against the whole 'caste' thing, he used 'Bachchan' as his pen name. Later on, when he was admitted to a school, his parents enrolled his surname as 'Bachchan' and made it their family surname. 

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Rekha: The love child of South star Gemini Ganesan, Rekha started as a child artiste in films and was credited as Baby Bhanurekha. Later, she went on to use the screen name Rekha. 

Salman Khan: Salman Khan is just a part of his much longer real name which is Abdul Rashid Salim Salman Khan. 

Tabu: Tabu’s real name is Tabassum Hashmi Khan. 

Shilpa Shetty: Born Ashwini Shetty, Shilpa Shetty acquired her stage name after her astrologer mother thought this name change would bring her more luck in films. 

Akshay Kumar: The actor's real birth name happens to be Rajiv Hari Om Bhatia. 

Mallika Sherawat: Her birth name is Reema Lamba. The actress created the screen persona of Mallika Sherawat to avoid being confused with other actresses with similar names. 

Stay tuned to this space for more updates. 

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CREDIT: DNAINDIA