44 Facts About Raj Kapoor

Raj Kapoor is considered one of the greatest and most influential actors and filmmakers in the history of Indian cinema, and has been referred to as The Greatest Showman of Indian Cinema and as the Charlie Chaplin of Indian Cinema.

Raj Kapoor was inspired by Charlie Chaplin and played characters based on The Tramp in films, such as Awaara, Shree 420 and Mera Naam Joker.

Raj Kapoor's films were global commercial successes in parts of Asia, the Middle East, the Caribbean, Africa, and the Soviet bloc.

Raj Kapoor was born as Shrishti Nath Kapoor on 14 December 1924 at Kapoor Haveli, a large house then owned by his grandfather in the Qissa Khwani Bazaar neighborhood of Peshawar, British India into a Punjabi Hindu family who belonged to the Dhai Ghar Khatri community.

Raj Kapoor's parents were Prithviraj Kapoor and Ramsarni Devi Kapoor.

The Kapoor family hailed originally from Samundri, Samundri Tehsil, Lyallpur District, Punjab Province, British India.

Raj Kapoor was the eldest of six children in the family.

Raj Kapoor was the grandson of Dewan Basheshwarnath Kapoor, great-grandson of Dewan Keshavmal Kapoor, and great-great-grandson of Dewan Murli Mal Kapoor, and was part of the Kapoor family.

Raj Kapoor's brothers were the late actors Shammi Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor.

Raj Kapoor is the nephew of actor Trilok Kapoor, who is the younger brother of his father.

Raj Kapoor's maternal first cousin, Juggal Kishore Mehra, was a singer, whose step-granddaughter, Salma Agha, later became an actress and singer.

Raj Kapoor attended several different schools like Colonel Brown Cambridge School in Dehradun, St Xavier's Collegiate School in Calcutta and Campion School in Bombay.

At the age of ten, Raj Kapoor appeared in a Hindi film for the first time, in 1935 film Inquilab.

Raj Kapoor began the 1960s with Radhu Karmakar's Jis Desh Mein Ganga Behti Hai and Manmohan Desai's Chhalia.

In 1964, Kapoor had two releases, Dulha Dulhan opposite Sadhana and his own directional Sangam, co-starring Vyjayanthimala and Rajendra Kumar, which was the first Indian film to be exclusively shot abroad on locations including London, Paris and Switzerland and was among the most expensive film of its time with the longest runtime for an Indian film up to that time.

Raj Kapoor lost stardom in the late-1960s as his subsequent releases, such as Teesri Kasam, Diwana, Around the World and Sapnon Ka Saudagar were commercially unsuccessful.

For portraying a kind-hearted clown in the film, Raj Kapoor won BFJA Award for Best Actor.

In 1975, Raj Kapoor returned to acting with two back-to-back successful films in Randhir Raj Kapoor's Dharam Karam and Naresh Kumar's Do Jasoos.

In 1980, Raj Kapoor appeared alongside Sanjay Khan and Zeenat Aman in the highly anticipated romantic drama Abdullah.

In 1982, Raj Kapoor directed his son Rishi in the romantic musical drama Prem Rog opposite Padmini Kolhapure.

Raj and Krishna Kapoor had five children: three sons, actors Randhir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and Rajiv Kapoor, and two daughters, Ritu Nanda and Rima Jain.

Raj Kapoor's granddaughters Karisma Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor, and grandson Ranbir Kapoor are the latest Hindi cinema superstars from the Kapoor family, while another of his grandsons, Nikhil Nanda, is a noted industrialist.

Raj Kapoor had a longtime romantic relationship with renowned actress Nargis Dutt during the 1940s and 1950s, despite being a married man, although neither ever publicly admitted to this.

Raj Kapoor was followed three months later by her younger brother Rishi, Kapoor's second son, who died in April 2020.

Raj Kapoor suffered from asthma in his later years; he died of complications related to the disease in 1988 at the age of 63.

Raj Kapoor collapsed at the event where he was to receive the Dadasaheb Phalke Award in New Delhi, and was taken to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi for treatment.

Raj Kapoor was hospitalised for about a month before he succumbed to complications arising from his asthma.

The Kapoor family sold part of 125 acres Rajbaugh to MIT ADTU which built a memorial for the Kapoor family on its campus.

Raj Kapoor shot many of his films at this farm, including Satyam Shivam Sundaram, Mera Naam Joker, Bobby, and Prem Rog.

Raj Kapoor is often referred as The Greatest Showman of Indian Cinema in the Indian media.

Raj Kapoor commissioned these famous lyrics for Mera Joota Hai Japani, a song from the movie Shree 420:.

Raj Kapoor appeared in Box Office Indias "Top Actors" list twelve times from 1949 to 1960.

Apart from his success as an actor, Raj Kapoor is considered one of the most successful directors of Indian cinema, both critically and commercially.

Raj Kapoor was a canny judge of filmi music and lyrics.

Raj Kapoor is remembered for his strong sense of visual style.

Raj Kapoor used striking visual compositions, elaborate sets, and dramatic lighting to complete the mood set by the music.

Raj Kapoor introduced the actresses Nimmi, Dimple Kapadia, and Mandakini, as well as launching and reviving the careers of his sons Rishi, Randhir and Rajiv.

Raj Kapoor had received many awards throughout his career, including 3 National Film Awards, 11 Filmfare Awards and 21 nominations.

Raj Kapoor's acting in the former was rated as one of the "Top Ten Performances of All Time in World Cinema" by Time magazine.

Raj Kapoor was named "Showman of the Millennium" by Star Screen Awards in 2002.

In June 2011, Noah Cowan, artistic director of TIFF Bell Lightbox, and Sabbas Joseph, Director, Wizcraft along with members of the Kapoor family came together to pay tribute to the life and work of Indian actor, director, mogul and legend Raj Kapoor, as presented in partnership by TIFF, the International Indian Film Academy, and the Government of Ontario.

In 2011, it was announced that Raj Kapoor will be inducted into the Brampton Walk of Fame in Ontario, Canada.

Raj Kapoor worked with them in 20 films in all including 10 of his own productions from Barsaat until Kal Aaj Aur Kal.

Also, when Mukesh died, Raj Kapoor had said, Main ne apni aawaaz ko kho diya.