Rishi Kapoor

Some Lesser Known Facts About Rishi Kapoor

• Did Rishi Kapoor smoke?: No (quit) ^[6]Lehren Retro

• Did Rishi Kapoor drink alcohol?: Yes 

• Rishi was the third generation of the highly prestigious and the so-called first family of Bollywood- The Kapoor Family.

• He was very notorious in his childhood.

  

• He had no interest in studies, and he failed in 8th standard. While talking about it, Ranbir Kapoor said,
  

  My family’s history isn’t that good. My father failed in 8th grade, my uncle in 9th and my grandfather in 6th. I am actually the most educated member in my family. I got 56 per cent in my 10th boards and my best of five percentage was 60.”

• He was first seen in the film “Shree 420” (1955) as a toddler in the song “Pyaar Hua Ikraar Hua.”

  

• Rishi played the role of younger Raj Kapoor in the movie- Mera Naam Joker.

  

• The scene is his debut film Bobby, where Rishi meets Dimple in her house, was inspired by the real-life first meeting of Raj Kapoor and Nargis.

  

• In the film Amar Akbar Anthony (1977), Rishi (character Akbar Illahabadi) called Neetu with her real name “Neetu” in the first scene, it wasn’t noticed by the makers of the film at that time, and the film was released with this scene.

• In an interview, Neetu Singh revealed that Rishi used to tease her a lot, like throwing pranks at her and destroying her make-up, and she would often get irritated by these acts.

• After 5 years of courtship, Rishi and Neetu tied the knots with each other on 22 January 1980. It was also revealed later that both of them went unconscious during their wedding rituals; Neetu because of her heavy dress, and Rishi because of the gathering.

  

• After his movie, Karz, which was expected to be a big hit but which turned out to be a big flop, he underwent depression for a long time.
  

• In the initial years of his career, although many of his films proved a failure at the box office, some made a mark at the box office, such as Prem Rog (1982), Nagina (1986), Chandni (1989), Henna (1991), and Bol Radha Bol (1992).

  

• Once there was a rumour that Neetu had filed a divorce against him because of domestic violence, but she took the case back for the sake of her children.

• Rishi also tried his hands in direction and made his directorial debut in 1999 with the film “Aa Ab Laut Chalen” starring Aishwarya Rai and Akshaye Khanna. While talking about it in an interview, he said,
  

  I wasn’t doing much I wasn’t signing films that excited me and I thought that it’s time to direct a film. My wife Neetu also egged me on to do so. That’s how it happened.” 

• He is considered as the original ‘Prince of Romance’ in Bollywood. 

• Rishi Kapoor is also very popular in Nigeria, and people in Nigeria have given him a nickname “Mace,” which means a woman. 

• The film Karobaar: The Business of Love (2000) is considered as his last film in a romantic role.

• Reportedly, more than 20 Bollywood actresses debuted opposite Rishi Kapoor.

• Both Rishi Kapoor and his son Ranbir Kapoor had done a ‘towel dropping’ act in their debut films. Rishi had it in his debut movie Bobby in 1973 while Ranbir did it in Saawariya in 2007.

  

• Initially, he was not interested in social media, but Anushka Sharma and Abhishek Bachchan convinced him to join Twitter.

• In 2012, he gave a spine-chilling performance by playing the role of “Rauf Lala” in Hrithik Roshan stareer Agneepath.

  

• Rishi appeared in many popular films along with his wife Neetu, like Love Aaj Kal, Jab Tak Hai Jaan (2012), and Besharam (2010).

  

• In the film, Kapoor & Sons (2016), he played the role of an 80-year-old person, and he had to undergo prosthetic makeup for the role, and it used to take 12-13 hours to get him ready for the role.

  

• In January 2017, he released his biography titled Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor Uncensored. 

• He was not the first choice for 102 Not Out, and it was when Paresh Rawal had rejected the role that it finally went to Rishi Kapoor. Amitabh Bachchan and Rishi reunited after 27 years in the film. Interestingly, 27 years was the age gap shown between them in the film.

• He disclosed in his autobiography that to get the best actor award for his role in his debut film Bobby, he had paid Rs. 30,000.

• In an interview, his wife, Neetu Singh revealed that Rishi had sent her a telegram when he was shooting for the Bollywood film, Barood (1976). In the telegram, he wrote,
  

  Sikhni badi yaad aati hai.”

• In 2018, amid the rumours about his illness, Rishi Kapoor took to his Twitter handle and cleared the air about that.

  

• When he died on 30 April 2020, condolences started pouring from across the country. Prime Minister Narendra Modi and many Bollywood celebs expressed their grief over the loss of this talented actor.