New Delhi | Jagran Entertainment Desk: Late Bollywood actor Rishi Kapoor was one of the most well-known figures from his Kapoor family and is known to be a full of life person even at the ending stage of his life.
Rishi Kapoor left this world for his heavenly abode on April 30 this year in Sri HN Reliance Foundation hospital in Mumbai. He was 67-years-old. The actor had a long battle with cancer, for which he had undergone treatment for close to a year in New York in 2018.
Besides his natural acting, Rishi Kapoor was also famous for his honest opinions on anything coming his way. However, his opinions even land him in many controversies but the thespian never shied away from expressing his feelings.
In 2017, Rishi Kapoor unveiled his autobiography titled ‘Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor Uncensored' and the book’s title perfectly defines the content in his memoir. The book contains his 50-year-long experience in the cinema world and his illustrious journey.
So on the occasion of Rishi Kapoor’s birth anniversary, here are five ‘Khullam Khulla’ confessions in the book which created controversies:
On his father Raj Kapoor’s extramarital affairs:
Rishi Kapoor never minced his words whether it was about nepotism or his father’s extramarital affairs. In his book, Rishi Kapoor honestly admits that his father Raj Kapoor had affairs with other women even while he was married to Krishna Raj Kapoor.
"I was very young when my father had an affair with Nargis ji, and so was not affected by it. I don’t remember feeling anything was amiss at home either. But I do remember moving into the Natraj Hotel on Marine Drive with my mom during the time Papa was involved with Vyjayanthimala. My mother had decided to put her foot down this time. From the hotel, we shifted for two months into an apartment in Chitrakoot. My father had bought the apartment for Mom and us. He did all he could to woo her back, but my mother wouldn’t give in until he had ended that chapter of his life."
On his ring being thrown away in the sea by Rajesh Khanna:
Rishi Kapoor said that his girlfriend Yasmin Mehta, whom he dated much before Bobby was out had gifted him a ring when they were dating. “When we were filming Bobby, Dimple would pull it off and wear it on her finger. She ended up keeping it. When Rajesh Khanna proposed to her, he saw the ring and flung it into the sea near her house in Juhu. Inevitably the headlines blazed: ‘Rajesh Khanna throws Rishi Kapoor’s ring into the sea’. The truth is that I was never in love with Dimple or even infatuated with her," says Rishi Kapoor.
On Amitabh Bachchan:
"To go back to Amitabh, I must confess here is still a lingering issue I have with Amitabh Bachchan. A big disadvantage of working in an all-star movie in those days was that everybody only wanted to make action films, which automatically meant that the star who could carry off the action with the most flair would get the meatiest part. That’s how, with the exception of Kabhi Kabhie, which was a romantic film, none of the multi-starrers I featured in had an author-backed role for me. And it wasn’t just me. Shashi Kapoor, Shatrughan Sinha, Dharmendra, Vinod Khanna faced it too".
On being a male chauvinist:
Admitting that he was a male chauvinist, Rishi Kapoor writes, "It was, as I have said often, her decision to wind up her career after marriage. I can say with a clear conscience that I did not force it upon her. We did agree before we got married that once we had children, one of us would be the earning partner and the other would be the nurturing parent. But to be honest, I didn’t try to convince her to keep working either. There was a chauvinist in me that didn’t want his wife to go out to work. I wanted Neetu to finish all her commitments before we got married. All I can say in my defence is that my views have changed since then."
On buying a film award:
"I think that Amitabh was sulking because I had won the best actor award for Bobby. I am sure he felt the award was rightfully his for Zanjeer, which released the same year. I am ashamed to say it, but I actually ‘bought’ that award. I was so naïve. There was this PRO, Taraknath Gandhi, who said to me, ‘Sir, tees hazaar de do, toh aap ko main award dila doonga.’ I am not the manipulative sort but I admit that I gave him the money without thinking.”
Posted By: Talib Khan
