Raj Kapoor
Raj Kapoor (
Hindi: राज कपूर,
Urdu: راج کپُور, Rāj Kapūr,
December 14,
1924 -
June 2,
1988) was a legendary
Indian
actor,
director, and
producer of
Bollywood movies (
Indian cinema).
Raj Kapoor began his career as a clapper boy assisting
Kidar Sharma. At age eleven, he appeared in films for the first time, in the 1935 film
Inquilab. Raj Kapoor's big break, however, came when he played the hero's role in
Neel Kamal (
1947) by Kidar Sharma. 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. His first movie as a director
Aag (Fire) (1948) was an immediate success.
Raj Kapoor's career as director spanned the years from 1948 through 1988. He directed many films that are still remembered and loved, from
Barsaat (1949) to
Awaara (1951),
Shri 420 (1955), and
Sangam (1964). He starred in a number of the films he directed, often with actress
Nargis, who was his real-life love interest.
After the box office failure of his ambitious 1970 film,
Mera Naam Joker (My name is Joker), which took more than six years to complete, He produced and directed
Bobby (
1973) which introduced
Dimple Kapadia, later a very popular actress, and was the first of a new generation of teen romances. Dimple wore bikinis in the film which was quite unique for Indian films then. Raj Kapoor focussed a lot on the female form in later films like
Satyam Shivam Sundaram (
1978) and
Ram Teri Ganga Maili (
1985).
Raj Kapoor suffered from asthma in his later years; he died of complications related to asthma in 1988 at sixty-three years of age. At the time of his death he was working on the movie
Henna (an Indo-Pakistani love story). The film was later completed by his son
Randhir Kapoor.
Raj Kapoor is appreciated both by film critics and ordinary film fans.
Film historians and movie buffs speak of him as the "
Charlie Chaplin of
Indian cinema," since he often portrayed a tramp-like figure, who, despite adversity, was still cheerful and honest. His fame spread world-wide. He was adored by audiences in large parts of
Africa, the
Middle East, the former
Soviet Union,
China, and
Southeast Asia; his movies were global commercial successes.
Many of Raj Kapoor's movies had a patriotic theme. His films
Aag,
Shri 420 and
Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hein (
In the Country Where the Ganges Flows) celebrated the newly independent India, and encouraged film-goers to be patriots. Raj Kapoor commissioned these famous lyrics for the movie
Shri 420:
Mera joota hai JapaniYe pataloon InglistaniSar pe lal topi RoosiPhir bhi dil hai HindustaniMy shoe is Japanese:These trousers are English:The red hat on my head is Russian:But still my heart is Hindustani (Indian)
The song is still extremely popular and has been featured in a number of movies since
Shri 420.
Raj Kapoor was a canny judge of
filmi music and lyrics. Many of the songs he commissioned are evergreen hits. He introduced the music directors Shankar-Jaikishan and the lyricist Hasrat Jaipuri. He is also remembered for his strong sense of visual style. He used striking visual compositions, elaborate sets, and dramatic lighting to complete the mood set by the music. He introduced the actors Nimmi,
Dimple Kapadia,
Zeenat Aman and Mandakini, as well as fostering the careers of his sons Rishi and Rajiv.
Raj Kapoor was given the
Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1987, for lifetime commitment to Indian cinema.
The Kapoor family hailed from
Samundri near the town of
Lyallpur in present-day
Pakistan. Raj Kapoor was born on
14th December 1924, at
Peshawar in the
North-West Frontier Province of what is now
Pakistan. He was named
Ranbirraj Kapoor at birth, and was the eldest of the four children of renowned stage and cinema actor
Prithviraj Kapoor and his wife Smt. Ramsarni (Rama) Devi nee Mehra. His younger brothers were the actors
Shammi Kapoor and
Shashi Kapoor. He also had a sister by name Urmila Sial. In
1946, at the age of twenty-two, Raj Kapoor was wed to Krishna Malhotra belonging to
Jabalpur in a traditional family-arranged wedding. Krishna was Raj Kapoor's first cousin once removed, being his father's maternal uncle's daughter.Her brothers
Premnath as well as
Rajindernath were also actors. Raj Kapoor and Krishna's eldest son
Randhir was born the following year, followed by their elder daughter Ritu the year after, in
1948. The second son
Rishi was born in
1952, and second daughter Rima in
1956. Their youngest son,
Rajiv was born in
1962. Randhir, Rishi and Rajiv have all been associated with the Hindi film industry as actors, directors or producers.
Raj Kapoor is also known to have had a longtime romantic relationship with the renowned actress
Nargis during the
1950s. The couple starred in several films together, including
Awaara and
Shri 420.
Noted film personalities
Karisma and
Kareena Kapoor are the granddaughters of Raj and Krishna Kapoor, being the daughters of their eldest son
Randhir by his wife Babita.
Actor
*
Abdullah (1980)
*
Mera Naam Joker (1970)
*
Teesri Kasam (1966)
*
Sangam (1964)
*
Jis Desh Men Ganga Behti Hai (1960)
*
Main Nashe Men Hoon (1959)
*
Chori Chori (1956)
*
Jagte Raho (1956)
*
Shree 420 (1955)
*
Aah (1953)
*
Awaara (1951)
*
Pyaar (1950)
*
Sargam (1950)
*
Andaz (1949)
*
Barsaat (1949)
*
Aag (1948)
*
Aag Ka Sola (1940)
Director
*
Ram Teri Ganga Maili (1985)
*
Prem Rog (1982)
*
Satyam Shivam Sundaram (1978)
*
Bobby (1973)
*
Mera Naam Joker (1970)
*
Sangam (film) (1964)
*
Shree 420 (1955)
*
Awaara (1951)
*
Barsaat (1949)
*
Aag (1948)
*
* Rajadhyaksha, Ashish; Willemen, Paul.
Encyclopedia of Indian Cinema. London: British Film Institute; New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 1994
* Kishore, Valicha.
The Moving Image. Hyderabad: Orient Longman, 1988
