Shashi Kapoor actor filmmaker birthdate death wife son daughter

Know about Shashi Kapoor’s age, family, biography, awards, and career. Keep reading more to get interesting facts about Shashi Kapoor

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Shashi Kapoor’s Biography

Shashi Kapoor was an Indian actor and producer best recognized for his work in Hindi movies. He was honored with various awards including four National Film Awards and two Filmfare Awards. He also appeared in a number of English-language foreign films particularly those made by Merchant Ivory. He was given the Padma Bhushan Award in 2011 and the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2014 by the Indian government in recognition of his contributions to Indian film.

He is an accomplished film producer as well as an award-winning performer in Hindi films. He has shown his versatility in this entertainment industry by working as a director and assistant director in the Indian film industry. He is also a descendant of the famous Kapoor dynasty which has given the Indian film industry many notable actors. The home of Bollywood in India is also known as this family. 

He was the third and youngest son of Prithviraj Kapoor when he was born into the Kapoor family. He made his acting debut as a young child in his brother Raj Kapoor's 1948 film Aag and he played his first adult part in Yash Chopra's political drama Dharmputra (1961).

Shashi Kapoor’s Age

Shashi Kapoor was born on March 18 1938. Shashi Kapoor's real name is Balbir Prithviraj Kapoor. Kapoor passed away on December 4 2017 after being hospitalized at the Kokilaben Hospital in Versova Mumbai for what was thought to be a chest infection. He was receiving treatment at a hospital for long-standing liver and heart issues according to The Guardian and he was always tending to other patients. 

Officially liver cirrhosis was listed as the cause of death. Shashi Kapoor was 79 years old when he died. Shashi Kapoor’s hobbies are playing musical instruments listening to music and watching movies. Shashi Kapoor’s zodiac sign is Pisces.

Shashi Kapoor’s Family

In Calcutta British India Shashi Kapoor was born Balbir Raj Kapoor to Prithviraj Kapoor and his wife. He was Raj Kapoor and Shammi Kapoor's youngest sibling. His uncle was the actor Trilok Kapoor. From 1958 until her death in 1984 Kapoor had three children with English actress Jennifer Kendal: Kunal Kapoor Karan Kapoor and Sanjana Thapar. 

Kunal his oldest son is married to Ramesh Sippy's daughter a director. Kunal launched his production company Adfilm-Valas and transitioned into directing commercials. Sanjana a theater celebrity and the wife of wildlife conservationist Valmik Thapar is Shashi's daughter. Hamir is the name of their son. Karan Shashi's younger son was successful as a model moved to London and now owns a photography business.

While touring with Prithvi Theatres Kapoor appeared in plays written directed and produced by his father Prithviraj Kapoor. Shashiraj was the name he used when he first began appearing in movies as a young boy in the late 1940s because there was already an actor by that name who had previously appeared in mythical movies as a child performer.

Shashi Kapoor’s Education

Shashi was sent to a boarding school at a very young age where he felt inconvenient regarding his food. Shashi once complained in a letter to his mother about the school's cuisine stating that he would commit suicide if he continued to eat it. Shashi left his boarding school as a result. Shashi Kapoor did his schooling at Don Bosco High School Mumbai. Shashi is a school dropout. 

Shashi Kapoor’s Marriage

Shashi Kapoor was a popular celebrity in his era. He had millions of female fans many of whom wanted to wed him. But Jennifer Kendal was the only woman who managed to win his heart. Their romance is the stuff of romantic comedies. Till the day of his passing Shashi remained faithful to his beloved wife. 

The couple initially met at Mumbai's Royal Opera House where they discussed their first encounter. This is where their love story began according to Jennifer's sister Felicity Kendal's autobiography White Cargo. Shashi allegedly escorted Jennifer backstage and by the next afternoon they had fallen in love.

Their love story experienced many ups and downs just like many other love stories. Jennifer's father initially opposed their relationship. Even though he allegedly treated Shashi badly he still loved Jennifer and their relationship only became stronger as a result of every challenge.

According to Aseem Chhabra's biography of Shashi Kapoor there was a point when neither Shashi nor Jennifer had any food to eat but Jennifer's father continued to withhold his approval for months. Shashi ultimately requested assistance from his brother Raj Kapoor after much effort and failure.

Raj sent Jennifer two tickets for Mumbai and it was his wife Geeta Bali who introduced the two and gave Jennifer a dupatta. Shashi Kapoor then 20 years old married Jennifer Kendal then 25 in July 1958. Sanjana is the daughter and they have two boys Karan and Kunal. 

In 1978 they collaborated to found the Prithvi Theatre in Bombay. But it appears that God had different ideas. After receiving a colon cancer diagnosis in 1983 Jennifer spent her final months at home in Britain. In 1984 she passed away leaving Shashi distraught. Following this Shashi Kapoor began to appear lost to everyone and changed as he battled to survive in the wake of the death of his better half.

Shashi Kapoor’s Career

Shashi Kapoor Movie Bachpan (1945)

It is a 1945 Hindi drama movie that Homi Wadia directed. S. N. Tripathi provided the music which was produced by Homi Wadia's Basant Films. Mazhar Khan Chandraprabha Shashi Kapoor Sr. Gulab Dalpat Baby Shakuntala Dixit and Baby Madhuri all starred in the movie.S. N. Tripathi created the soundtrack for the movie and I. C. Kapoor wrote the lyrics.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Awaara (1951)

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Raj Kapoor produced and directed the 1951 Indian Hindi criminal drama film Awaara which was written by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas. Raj Kapoor his biological father Prithviraj Kapoor Nargis Leela Chitnis and K. N. Singh all appear in the film. Other members of the Kapoor family also make an appearance notably Prithiviraj's father Dewan Basheshwarnath Kapoor who makes his one and an only film appearance and Raj's youngest real-life brother Shashi Kapoor who portrays the younger version of his character. Shankar Jaikishan composed the soundtrack for the movie.

The story revolves around the intertwined lives of Judge Raghunath (Prithviraj Kapoor) who is unaware that Raj is his son and the affluent Rita (played by Nargis). Raj is a poor burglar. The movie makes use of Kapoor's pitiful little tramp character which was expanded upon in future Kapoor movies like Shree 420. Awaara is regarded as a turning point in Bollywood history.

Mukesh's rendition of the Shailendra-penned song Awaara Hoon—which means I Am a Vagabond—became incredibly popular not just in India but also in the Soviet Union China Bulgaria Turkey Afghanistan and Romania. In addition the movie received a nomination for the 1953 Cannes Film Festival's Grand Prix. Over 200 million tickets for the movie are thought to have been sold abroad with over 100 million of those going to audiences in China and roughly 100 million in the Soviet Union. 

The movie is a contender for the most successful movie of all time due to its appeal in so many nations. Awaara was one of the 20 fresh additions to Time magazine's list of the top 100 movies of all time in 2012.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Dharamputra (1961)

This is Yash's second project as a director. The partition of India and Hindu extremism were both depicted for the first time in a Hindi film. produced by his older brother B.R. Chopra who had to leave Lahore during the Indian Partition and founded B.R. Films in Mumbai in 1956.

In this movie Shashi Kapoor played a crucial part of a Hindu extremist for the first time as an adult actor. Renowned actors Rajendra Kumar and Shashikala both made special appearances for a song. It received the Best Feature Film in Hindi award at the ninth National Film Awards.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Jab Jab Phool Khile (1965)

Hindi-language romantic drama movie from India Shashi Kapoor and Nanda are its stars. The protagonist of the tale is a poor Kashmiri boatman who develops feelings for a wealthy traveler. The movie was a blockbuster at the box office and ranked No. 2 in 1965's top ten highest-grossing movies at Box Office India. Highlights of the movie include the music composed by the duo Kalyanji Anandji with help from Laxmikant Pyarelal who was at the time relatively unknown (lyrics by Anand Bakshi). 

For a few years the movie was shown every other day in the cinemas of Algeria since there was a demand from the general public. One of the most popular Indian actors in North African nations including Algeria Morocco and Libya was Shashi Kapoor. Even today some of the more established retailers in Marrakesh's souks will give you a discount if you are from the Shashi Kapoor region. The Hindi film Raja Hindustani released in 1996 was influenced by this one. 

Shashi Kapoor Movie Kanyadan (1968)

Mohan Sehgal's 1968 Hindi social romantic drama film Kanyadaan is a work of his. Rajendra Bhatia produced the movie for Kiron Productions. The director of photography was K. H. Kapadia while the story and screenplay were written by R. A. Baqueri with dialogue by Sarshar Sailani. Hasrat Jaipuri and Gopaldas Neeraj wrote the lyrics and Shankar Jaikishan oversaw the music direction. 

Shashi Kapoor Asha Parekh Om Prakash Achala Sachdev Dilip Raj Sayeeda Khan and Padma Rani are among the actors in the movie.

The theme of the story was the social problem of child marriage. Rekha and Amar are married off as youngsters but as they get older they start to fall in love with other people and eventually decide they don't want to stay married.

The movie was a financial success earning 3.2 crores ranking it fourth among 1968's best earners.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Pyar Ka Mausam (1969)

Bollywood musical romance movie produced by Nasir Hussain Films The movie was written produced and directed by Hussain. Shashi Kapoor and Asha Parekh a mainstay of the Nasir Husain cast appeared in it. Bharat Bhushan Nirupa Roy Madan Puri Tahir Hussain and Rajendranath were also present. Shashi Kapoor's character is portrayed as a young boy by Nasir's nephew Faisal Khan who was 3 years old at the time. 

The songs' iconic lyrics were written by Majrooh Sultanpuri and R.D. Burman two more Husain mainstays. Homi Mullan performed the song Ni Sultana Re while playing the duggi. In the movie R.D. Burman also played an acting role. The movie achieved Silver Jubilee status.

The plot revolved around Nasir Husain's favorite topic a family whose members split up at the beginning of the film before coming together at the conclusion after a lot of action. The title song (Tum bin jaoon Kahan) is performed numerous times throughout the movie. Shashi Kapoor the lead actor is featured three times in Mohammed Rafi's version while Bharat Bhushan is featured in Kishore Kumar's version twice. 

The song like the important songs in Nasir Hussain's later films plays a significant role in the film (Yaadon Ki Baraat and Hum Kisise Kum Naheen). In all three movies the theme song aids in reuniting estranged families and lovers.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Sharmeelee (1971)

In 1971 Samir Ganguly and Subodh Mukherjee released the romance drama Sharmeelee in the Hindi language. The movie features Shashi Kapoor Raakhee Narendra Nath Nazir Hussain Iftekhar S. N. Banerjee Anita Guha and Asit Sen as its main actors. With her dual part in this movie Raakhee became one of the top leading ladies in Hindi movies of the decade. Ranjeet made his acting debut in the movie as well. The movie begins on a romantic note but about halfway through it makes a stunning turn toward mystery and thriller territory.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Chor Machaye Shor (1974)

N. N. Sippy served as both the producer and the director of this movie. Shashi Kapoor Mumtaz Danny Denzongpa Madan Puri Asrani and Asit Sen all appear in the movie. The music is composed by Ravindra Jain. The single nomination for the movie came from Asrani for best performance in a comedy role. The movie was a super hit and came in second at the 1974 box office. It was filmed at the Maharashtra fort of Pratapgad.

The late blind music composer Ravindra Jain wrote the song for this film. His debut film as a music director was this one. All of the songs heard in the movie were classics. Inderjeet Singh Tulsi wrote the lyrics to Le Jayenge Le Jayenge Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge and Ek Dal Par Tota Bole Ek Dal Par Maina. Ravindra Jain was responsible for writing the remaining lyrics. The renowned Elephant Head Point is shown in the background of Ek Dal Par Tota Bole which was filmed in Mahabaleshwar.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Deewar (1975)

The 1975 action/crime movie Deewaar was made in Hindi and was directed and written by Yash Chopra (Salim Khan and Javed Akhtar). Amitabh Bachchan Shashi Kapoor Neetu Singh Nirupa Roy and Parveen Babi are among the cast members. The movie is about two poor brothers who battle to survive in Bombay's slums and ultimately end up on opposing sides of the law when their family is betrayed by their father's misguided ideals. The wall that has formed between the two brothers after they were torn apart by fate and circumstances during a period of social unrest is the deewaar or wall of the title.

Upon its debut Deewaar was a critical and financial success. The screenplay plot and music of the movie received praise as did the actions of the entire cast especially Bachchan Kapoor and Roy. Deewaar is one of three Hindi-language films to appear on the list of 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die and Indiatimes listed it as one of the Top 25 Must-See Bollywood Films. It is frequently regarded as a groundbreaking cinematic masterpiece.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Phaansi (1978)

It is a 1978 Hindi-language motion picture that Harmesh Malhotra directed. Shashi Kapoor Sulakshana Pandit Pran and Ranjeet are the movie's main actors. Laxmikant Pyarelal composed the movie's music. Actor Asrani also played a Muslim man who was Shashi Kapoor's close buddy in the film. Shashi Kapoor's father was portrayed by actor Iftekhar. The bad guy hanged him to death (Ranjeet). 

The antagonist also hanged Asrani. Ranjeet went to Nepal in search of serenity after seeing this movie. While portraying the most vicious Daaku in Hindi film history he was severely mentally afflicted. Due to the movie's plot drama melodies and exciting action it was deemed a success.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Namak Halaal (1982)

Written and directed by Kader Khan and Prakash Mehra this Indian masala movie. Shashi Kapoor Amitabh Bachchan Parveen Babi Waheeda Rehman Om Prakash Ranjeet and Satyen Kappu all play significant roles in the movie. Anjaan wrote the lyrics and Bappi Lahiri created the music.

The movie went on to earn 120 million rupees ($12.64 million) making it the third-highest-grossing Indian movie of 1982. It is the all-time largest comedy blockbuster in India where it sold over 20 million tickets and had a net income adjusted for inflation of about 3 billion rupees (US$38 million) as of 2019.

Tanishk Bagchi reworked the song Raat Baaki for the film Ittefaq. The line I can talk English I can walk English and I can laugh English because English is a highly phunny language is the most well-known dialogue from the film.

Shashi Kapoor Movie Ilzaam (1986)

Anita Raj Shatrughan Sinha Govinda Neelam Shashi Kapoor and Prem Chopra all appear in the 1986 Bollywood drama Ilzaam which was directed by Shibu Mitra and produced by Pahlaj Nihlani. Govinda makes his acting debut in the movie. Box office results deemed the movie a success.

Shashi Kapoor's Career Timeline

Shashi Kapoor’s Net Worth

Shashi Kapoor is a well-known actor in Hindi films and a wealthy producer with an estimated net worth of $80 million. Over the course of his lengthy acting career in the Hindi film industry Shashi Kapoor accrued a sizable fortune by playing numerous roles. Balbir Raj Prithviraj Kapoor also known as Shashi Kapoor was born on March 18 1938 into a prominent family in Kolkata often known as Calcutta. 

He is an accomplished film producer as well as an award-winning performer in Hindi films. He showed his versatility in this entertainment industry by working as a director and assistant director in the Indian film industry. He is also a descendant of the famous Kapoor dynasty which has given the Indian film industry many notable actors.

Shashi Kapoor’s Awards

• Filmfare Awards for Best Film Kalyug in 1982
• Filmfare Awards for Best Film Junoon in 1980
• Filmfare Awards for Best Supporting Actor Deewaar in 1976
• National Film Awards India for Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 2015
• National Film Awards India for Best Actor New Delhi Times in 1986
• Padma Bhushan awarded in 2011

8 Fun Facts about Shashi Kapoor

• Shashi Kapoor performed in plays throughout his formative years that his father Prithviraj Kapoor both directed and produced.
• As a young actor in the late 1940s Shashi appeared in numerous films. He played the younger version of Raj Kapoor in Awaara (1951) which is his most well-known role as a child actor.
• Shashi Kapoor and Dev Anand shared the title of second-highest-paid actor behind Rajesh Khanna from 1970 to 1975.
• Shashi Kapoor became famous for the line Mere Paas Maa Hai from the 1975 movie Deewar.
• Shashi Kapoor bought the Prithvi Theatre in Juhu reopened it and took over as managing trustee in 1978.
• On Sundays he never worked because he was with his family all day.
• Shashi looked to his father as an example.
• Amitabh Bachchan once saved his life while he was performing in Mumbai's Shanmukhananda Hall. Due to his broken leg he was in a wheelchair when the hallway suddenly caught fire causing a stampede. No one heard his cries for assistance. Amitabh Bachchan then arrived and saved him.