Raj Kapoor Age
Bollywood star Raj Kapoor was born on 14 December 1924 in Peshawar, North Western Frontier Province, British India (in modern-day Pakistan).
Raj Kapoor Family
Kapoor was born into a Punjabi Hindu family in 1924 at Kapoor Haveli, a house then owned by his father, in Peshawar to Prithviraj Kapoor and Ramsarni Devi Kapoor.
He was the eldest of six children in the family. He was the grandson of Dewan Basheshwarnath Kapoor and great-grandson of Dewan Keshavmal Kapoor, part of the famous Kapoor family.
Raj Kapoor Images
Raj Kapoor Wife
In May 1946, Raj Kapoor married Krishna Malhotra in Rewa. Krishna’s father was Prithviraj Kapoor’s maternal cousin. It was a match arranged by their families, according to Hindu traditions.
Krishna’s brothers, Rajendra Nath, Prem Nath and Narendra Nath, later became actors. Her sister Uma married actor Prem Chopra.
Kapoor had a longtime romantic relationship with the renowned actress Nargis during the 1940s and 1950s, despite being a married man, although neither ever publicly admitted to this.
As Raj would not leave his wife and children, Nargis ended their relationship after Chori Chori and married Sunil Dutt with whom she fell in love on the set of Mother India (1957).
Raj Kapoor Son
Raj and Krishna Kapoor had five children of these three were sons, actors Randhir, Rishi and Rajiv. Randhir married former actress Babita and fathered actresses Karishma Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor.
Rishi married former actress Neetu Singh. He fathered two children, a daughter Riddhima, and a son, the actor Ranbir Kapoor.
Raj Kapoor Daughter
Raj Kapoor’s elder daughter, Ritu Nanda, is the wife of industrialist Rajan Nanda (scion of the family which promoted and controls the Escorts group), and she is the mother of two children.
Her son, Nikhil Nanda, married Shweta, daughter of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan. Raj Kapoor’s younger daughter, Rima Jain, is the wife of investment banker Manoj Jain and mother of aspiring actor Armaan Jain.
Raj Kapoor Brothers
His brothers were the late actors Shashi Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor. He also had a sister named Urmila Sial. Two other siblings died in infancy.
Raj Kapoor Movies
At the age of ten, he appeared in Bollywood films for the first time, in 1935’s Inquilab. Ranbir Raj Kapoor’s big break came with the lead role in Neel Kamal (1947) opposite Madhubala in her first role as a leading lady.
In 1948, at the age of twenty-four, he established his own studio, R. K. Films, and became the youngest film director of his time making his directorial debut with Aag starring himself, Nargis, Kamini Kaushal and Premnath.
In 1949 he co-starred alongside Dilip Kumar and Nargis in Mehboob Khan’s hit film Andaz which was his first major success as an actor. He had his first success as producer, director and star of Barsaat released later that year
He went on to produce and star in several hit films made under his R. K. Banner including Awaara (1951), Shree 420 (1955), Jagte Raho (1956) and Jis Desh Men Ganga Behti Hai (1960).
In 1964, he produced, directed and starred in the romantic musical Sangam alongside Rajendra Kumar and Vyjayantimala which was his first film in colour. This was his last major success as a leading actor.
He launched his second son Rishi Kapoor’s career in 1973 when he produced and directed Bobby which was a huge box office success and introduced actress Dimple Kapadia, later a very popular actress; it was the first of a new generation of teen romances.
Dimple wore bikinis which was quite unique for Indian films then.
Raj Kapoor Biography
Raj Kapoor is appreciated both by film critics and movie fans. His fame spread worldwide. Audiences in large parts of South/Central/Southeast Asia, the former Soviet Union/Bloc, China, the Middle East, and Africa adored him; his movies were global commercial successes.
Raj Kapoor had the knack of getting the best out of any one, since he had mastered all departments of film making and even marketing them.
He introduced the actresses Nimmi, Dimple Kapadia, and Mandakini, as well as launching and reviving the careers of his sons Rishi, Randhir and Rajiv.
He was famous for making his actresses reveal the body, not very common then in Indian cinema. It was said his ‘show-womanship’ matched his showmanship.
Kapoor had received many awards throughout his career, including 3 National Film Awards, 11 Filmfare Awards and 21 nominations. His films Awaara (1951) and Boot Polish(1954) were nominated for the Palme d’Or at the Cannes Film Festival.
Time Magazine rated his acting as one of the “Top-Ten Performances of all time”. His film Jagte Raho (1956) also won the Crystal Globe award at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
The Government of India honoured him with the Padma Bhushan in 1971 and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1987 – the highest award for cinematic excellence in India.
Raj Kapoor Death
He collapsed at the event where he was to receive the Dadasaheb Phalke Award. His family took him to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) for treatment.
His family hospitalised him for about a month before he succumbed to complications arising from his asthma in 1988 at the age of 63.
At the time of his death, he was working on the movie Henna (an Indo-Pakistan based love story). The film was later completed by his sons Randhir and Rishi Kapoor and was released in 1991.