Born on April 4, 1979, Television actor Gaurav Chopra hails from Delhi and is the son of a prominent businessman. Gaurav has lived a lavish childhood due to his affluent background. (All photos/Gaurav Chopra's official Instagram account)

Gaurav Chopra completed his schooling from St. Columba's School, New Delhi and went to National Institute of Fashion Technology, New Delhi. Yes, not many know that the actor holds a degree in fashion designing. He graduated from NIFT in 2000.

In picture: Gaurav Chopra's childhood photo

Gaurav Chopra made his acting debut with the television show Ssshhhh... Koi Hai in 2002. However, in 2004, he rose to prominence with the show Saara Akaash, where he played Abhay Singh Rathore.

In picture: Gaurav Chopra is quite close to his mother and this picture is proof enough!

Gaurav Chopra starred in various popular TV shows such as Doli Armaano Ki, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Na, Left Right Left among others during his early career. He went on to do stellar performances in Uttaran, Eisa Desh Hai Mera and others afterwards.

Gaurav Chopra is a huge fan of Bollywood legend Amitabh Bachchan. Incidentally, he used to even get compared to the thespian when he forayed into the entertainment industry due to his height and deep voice.

Gaurav Chopra is a good dancer as well and regularly participated in dance, drama and other extra-curricular activities during his school and college days.

Gaurav Chopra became one of the few Indian TV stars to foray into Hollywood. He had a small role in the Leonardo DiCaprio-starrer Blood Diamond. He essayed a French journalist in the film. He was also roped in to be the voice of Chris Hemsworth in Thor: Ragnarok. "This is the first time I am dubbing for anyone. It's not an easy task," he had said, during the dubbing of the film.

Gaurav Chopra may have become popular through his stint on daily soaps like Uttaran and Piya Ka Ghar, but the actor had once confessed that he never identified with such stories. In his more than a decade-long career on the small screen, he chose TV series and reality shows over daily soaps.

"I have never related personally to the saas-bahu shows and I have not been a part of many of those. I am not saas-bahu kind of an actor. My domain is to do different characters. Saas-bahu shows in my career do exist but in them too I have always played the non-saas-bahu type... I am sick of such shows," Gaurav said in a tell-all interview with mid-day.

Having started his career in television in 2004, Gaurav tried his hands in Hollywood too. That apart, he was one of the contestants of reality television shows such as Bigg Boss, Nach Baliye 2, Zor Ka Jhatka: Total Wipeout, Pati Patni Aur Woh. He also acted in the web series Fourplay and Love Lust & Confusion.

Well, he even tried his luck in Bollywood, but it wasn't a successful stint. Gaurav Chopra worked in the 2013 gangster film Rangdari. In fact, his first big-screen outing was the Tamil film Ottran in 2003, which too did not give him any fame. However, he has now become wiser with the film projects that come to him.

"After working in the industry for some time, it becomes difficult to start all over again. Since I have worked in television, people tend to slot me. I have always been very choosy on my shows, roles and appearance. Since my work is appreciated by the audience, I believe that good work should lead me to get more quality work. Not that I cannot approach people to work with me, it is just that I want people to give me work based on merit," said Gaurav, when asked about his plans in Bollywood anytime soon.

Besides, he said he is not one of those actors who will jump into a project because it is a film and an opportunity to appear on the big screen. "I do not discriminate between mediums," he said. Asked who is the filmmaker he wishes to collaborate with as an actor, Gaurav said, "Well, Sanjay Leela Bhansali would be a dream to work with. I like Dibakar Banerjee's work and would love to work with Vishal Bhardwaj and Rajkumar Hirani. "But all I know that when the right time and opportunity comes, I will get it. Until then, it is all in desire."

On the personal front, Gaurav Chopra has constantly been in the news for his love life. He dated television actress Narayani Shastri for many years. Both were contestants on the dance reality show Nach Baliye. The telly couple had an on-off relationship for several years till they split in 2010, but they continued to remain pals.

In 2016, Gaurav Chopra was linked with VJ Bani during his stint on the tenth season of the controversial reality show Bigg Boss.

In 2018, Gaurav Chopra took the industry by surprise when he secretly tied the knot with longtime girlfriend Hitisha Cheranda in New Delhi on February 19, 2018. With no buzz around his marriage, he succeeded in keeping his nuptials a hush-hush affair, with only family and close pals in attendance. This is one of the few pictures of Gaurav Chopra and his bride Hitisha Cheranda that had gone viral on social media.

Gaurav Chopra still continues to keep his personal life away from the limelight. Unlike most of the celebrity couples, Gaurav and Hitisha do not really indulge in social media PDA, making his fans yearn for more pictures of the couple!

Here's wishing a very happy birthday to Gaurav Chopra!