KAPOOR & SONS

ADITYA RAJ KAPOOR SAYS HIS FATHER SHAMMI KAPOOR AND UNCLES RAJ KAPOOR AND SHASHI KAPOOR WERE SAME-SAME BUT DIFFERENT. HE SHARES MEMORIES OF THE STALWARTS

- FARHANA FAROOK

Bollywood royalty. The Kapoor khandan has inherited the label along with the legacy. From silent movies to booming blockbusters, the contribution of the Kapoors to entertainment has been immense. Indisputably, the family shines as a bright constellation in the cinematic galaxy. Viewed as India’s crucial cultural ambassadors to the world, as actors/filmmakers their work remains relevant even as the current generation has taken centre-stage.

Patriarch Prithviraj Kapoor was the pioneer of Indian theatre and film and founded the travelling theatre company Prithvi Theatres in 1944. His passion was taken forward by sons Raj Kapoor, Shammi Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor forming the second generation of Kapoors. If Raj’s films combined utopian socialism with soft erotica, 'Yahoo’ Shammi’s ‘jazz, jive and jumps’ made wooing a high-impact expression. Avant-garde Shashi, who strode both commercial and parallel cinema, also furthered his father’s Prithvi Theatre.

Their exceptional trajectories could not have been possible without their supportive wives. Raj’s wife, the late Krishna Kapoor's grace won her the title of ‘First Lady’ of the fraternity. It was Neila Devi’s devotion that helped a shattered Shammi Kapoor piece together the fragments of his life after losing first wife, Geeta Bali. Shashi was distraught after losing wife Jennifer Kendal, who anchored his life and lifestyle.