His first major hit was the thriller film, 'Khiladi' (1992). Akshay Kumar made his Bollywood acting debut with 'Saugandh' (1991), but unfortunately the film sank without a trace. 1993 saw a drop as many of his films failed to do well.

However, 1994 proved to be a good year for Akshay as he followed up his hit success with action films like 'Main Khiladi Tu Anari' and 'Mohra'. During the same year, Akshay Kumar also had success with films like 'Suhaag' (1994) and the low budget action film 'Elaan' (1994). Later that year, Yash Chopra signed him for the romantic film, 'Yeh Dillagi' (1994) which was also a success.

In 1995, along with his share of unsuccessful movies, he starred in the third film in his Khiladi series 'Sabse Bada Khiladi' which was a hit. In 1995, he starred in the fourth film with Khiladi in the title, 'Khiladiyon Ka Khiladi' opposite Rekha and Raveena Tandon.

In 1997, he made an extended guest appearance in Yash Chopra's hit film 'Dil To Pagal Hai', for which he received a Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award nomination. In the same year, he attempted a comedy role with the fifth film in the Khiladi series, 'Mr and Mrs Khiladi' (1997).

In 1999, Akshay Kumar received critical acclaim for his roles in the films 'Sangharsh' and 'Jaanwar'. In the same way as this film, his next Khiladi releases in the following years went on to fail at the box office.