The enigmatic personalities of Bollywood heroes become their USP and one such actor who was celebrated for his good looks was Rishi Kapoor. He was the OG chocolate boy of Bollywood and would blow girls away with his charm. With films like Bobby, Khel Khel Mein, Saagar, Prem Rog, never, DebtsAnd ChandniRishi Kapoor has created a huge fan following.
It was believed that Rishi was so famous that girls wrote love letters to him in their blood. Although every girl was in love with Rishi, he lost his heart to the beautiful Neetu Kapoor. Neetu was just 14 when she started dating Rishi Kapoor. They tied the knot on January 22, 1980 and became proud parents of two children, Riddhima Kapoor and Ranbir Kapoor.
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Rishi Kapoor was India’s youngest superstar
Rishi Kapoor was born into the wealthy Kapoor family and was the son of showman Raj Kapoor and his wife Krishna Raj Kapoor. Rishi was only three years old when he made a cameo appearance in his father’s film. Shree 420. His debut role in My name is Joker earned him the National Film Award for Best Child Artist.
It was the 1973 romantic teen film, Bobby, with which Rishi Kapoor made his Bollywood debut as the lead hero. With the success of Bobby, Rishi became an overnight sensation. His female fans waited outside the studio for hours to catch a glimpse of their crush. In his 50-year career, Rishi was India’s youngest superstar.
When Rishi Kapoor fainted at his wedding with Neetu Kapoor
It was during the filming of the film, Sometimes sometimes that Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh fell in love. It wasn’t love at first sight; rather, the two were good friends before they fell in love. Rishi and Neetu had a big fat Punjabi wedding in 1980. Since it was one of the biggest events, the entire film industry was invited.
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In a throwback interview with Rediff.com in 2003, Neetu Kapoor had spoken about her grand wedding with Rishi Kapoor. Recalling a funny story from her wedding, Neetu revealed:
“There were so many gatecrashers at the reception. Security guards let them in thinking they were guests. Later we found stones in the gift boxes. I fainted at my wedding and so did my husband [Rishi Kapoor]. My Lehenga was too heavy. Plus there were too many people there. It was too much for me. My husband fainted because he couldn’t stand the crowd. He fainted just before he was about to ascend Mare.”
As Rishi Kapoor recalled the time when Neetu Kapoor received Ranbir Kapoor
It was in 2017 when Rishi Kapoor’s autobiography, Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor uncensored, was published. Rishi Kapoor revealed in his book exactly when his wife Neetu Kapoor welcomed their son Ranbir Kapoor. Recalling the special moment of her life, he wrote:
“If I remember correctly, Neetu received Ranbir during that time (the shooting of Prem Rog) when we were imagining ‘Meri kismet mein tu nahi hai shayad’. It makes the song even more special for us.”
Rishi Kapoor once spoke about “messing up” his relationship with Ranbir Kapoor.
Rishi Kapoor spoke too often about his arguments with Ranbir and wished they could be kinder to each other. In 2014, Ranbir Kapoor moved out of his family home and started living alone. Talking about the emotional moment in a conversation with Mumbai Mirror, Rishi revealed that Ranbir’s decision influenced him and Neetu Kapoor.
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In the same conversation, Rishi Kapoor also spoke about how he messed up his relationship with Ranbir despite Neetu warning him. Speaking about this, he stated:
“My father gave me space when I moved out after marriage and I also give Ranbir his space when he decided to move out and share a house with his girlfriend. He had one room in this house: how could that be enough for a 33-year-old boy? I know that I messed up my relationship with Ranbir even though my wife kept telling me what I was doing. It’s too late to change it now; Neither of us will be able to get used to the change. It’s like there’s this glass wall, we can see each other, we can talk, but that’s all. He no longer lives with us, which is a big setback for Neetu and me too.”
Rishi Kapoor’s untimely death after battling cancer
In 2018, Rishi Kapoor was diagnosed with leukemia and went to New York for treatment. In 2019, the actor returned to India after his treatment. On April 29, 2020, the actor was hospitalized after complaining of difficulty breathing. On April 30, 2020, the 68-year-old actor said goodbye and headed to his heavenly abode, leaving a huge vacuum in the lives of his friends, fans and family.
In an interview with News 18, Neetu Kapoor revealed how much Ranbir Kapoor misses his father. The doting mother revealed that he still has Rishi Kapoor’s picture as his screensaver and shared:
“Ranbir misses him very much. Rishi’s photo is still visible on his mobile screensaver. There are days when I see tears in his eyes, but he stays strong.”
Rishi Kapoor became synonymous with romance in Indian cinema with his charming personality. His unparalleled fame, talent and achievements have left an indelible mark for generations to come.
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