Raj Kapoor Biography

Raj Kapoor, was the kind of man everyone loved to love. He was adept at bringing alive emotions onscreen and taking it outside it.

Ranbirraj Kapoor was born on 14th December 1924 in Peshawar, which is now in Pakistan. His father was the theater actor Prithviraj Kapoor and mother was Ramsarni Devi. They belonged to the Hindu Pathan community. His grandfather was Dewan Basheswarnath Kapoor. He had a sister Urmila Sial and two brothers, both of whom were actors, Shammi Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor.

Raj Kapoor married Krishna Malhotra in 1946. They had five children – Randhir, Ritu, Rishi, Reema and Rajiv. All his sons went on to act in Bollywood. His grandchildren Karishma, Kareena and Ranbir are also popular actors in Bollywood.

Kapoor was known to be involved in a relationship with actress Nargis with whom he acted in some classics. The other actress he was linked with was Vyjayanthimala.

He was frequently referred to as the Charlie Chaplin of Indian Cinema. He has been credited with introducing actors like Dimple Kapadia, Mandakini and Nimmi as well as music directors Shankar Jaikishan.

He started out in the film industry as a clapper boy and assisted Kidar Sharma. He was twelve when he started acting with the movie Inquilab (1935). In 1948, he started his own studio R.K.Films and started directing and producing movies. Aag (1948) was the first movie he directed, produced and acted in. It also starred Nargis.

Raj Kapoor passed away in 1988. He was suffering from asthma. He was making the movie Henna which starred his son Rishi Kapoor at the time of his death. The movie was later completed by Randhir Kapoor and became a huge hit.

After starting his career as a child actor with Inquilab (1935), Raj Kapoor made his debut in Neel Kamal (1947) with Madhubala. His first major success was Andaz (1949). The movie also starred Nargis and Dilip Kumar. The same year Barsaat (1949) became a hit. Kapoor directed and acted in the movie. It was also the launch pad for the actress Nimmi and the music directors Shankar Jaikishan.

Awaara (1951) saw him onscreen with his father Prithviraj Kapoor, grandfather Dewan Basheswarnath Kapoor and brother Shashi Kapoor. The movie was nominated for the Grand Prize at the Cannes Film Festival. Shree 420 saw him in a role similar to the one he played in Awaara (1955).

After Chori Chori (1956) and Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti (1960), his first movie in colour Sangam was released in 1964. Mera Naam Joker (1970) saw one of his most poignant performances but was a moderate success. He starred in Kal Aaj Aur Kal (1971). The movie was the directorial and acting debut of his son Randhir Kapoor.

Bobby (1973) was a trend setting love story that introduced his son Rishi Kapoor and Dimple Kapadia. In Ram Teri Ganga Maili (1985) he brought to the screens the actress Mandakini, in a story that traced the deterioration of the country.

Raj Kapoor was last seen as an actor in Vakil Babu (1982) and a British movie Kim (1984) which was based on a story by Rudyard Kipling.