Anil Kapoor Biography – an Indian Actor and the Mr. India of Bollywood

Anil Kapoor (born 24 December 1956) is an Indian actor & producer who works primarily in Hindi films, besides television and international films. In a career spanning over 40 years as an actor and since 2005 as a producer, Kapoor has appeared in more than 100 films. Recognized for multiple iconic, popular, and cult films, he has received several accolades including two National Film Awards and seven Filmfare Awards.

Born to film producer Surinder Kapoor, he made his Bollywood debut with a small role in the romance Hamare Tumhare (1979) before starring in the Telugu film Vamsa Vruksham (1980) and Kannada film Pallavi Anupallavi (1983). His career saw a turning point with the action drama Mashaal (1984) before he established himself as a leading man with his roles in Meri Jung (1985), Karma (1986), Mr. India (1987), Tezaab (1988), Ram Lakhan (1989) and Eeshwar (1989). Kapoor’s other commercially successful films include Lamhe (1991), Benaam Badsha (1991), Beta (1992), 1942: A Love Story (1994), Andaz (1994), Laadla (1994), Trimurti (1995), Loafer (1996), Virasat (1997), Judaai (1997), Deewana Mastana (1997), Gharwali Baharwali (1998), Taal (1999), Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain (1999), Biwi No. 1 (1999), Pukar (2000), Lajja (2001), Nayak (2001), No Entry (2005), Welcome (2007), Black & White (2008), Race (2008), Race 2 (2013), Shootout at Wadala (2013), Dil Dhadakne Do (2015), Welcome Back (2015), Race 3 (2018), Total Dhamaal (2019), Malang (2020), AK vs AK (2020), Thar (2022), and Jugjugg Jeeyo (2022).

Kapoor’s first role in an international film was in Danny Boyle’s Academy Award-winning film Slumdog Millionaire, for which he shared the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture. His performance in the eighth season of the action series 24 generated rave reviews from the American press. Globally, Kapoor is one of the most recognized Indian film actors.

Early life (Anil Kapoor Biography)

Kapoor was born into a Punjabi Hindu family on 24 December 1956 in Chembur to Nirmal Kapoor and film producer Surinder Kapoor. He is the second of four children. His elder brother Boney Kapoor is a film producer and his younger brother Sanjay Kapoor is an actor. The late actress Sridevi and the producer Mona Shourie Kapoor, both Boney’s wives, were his sisters-in-law, and Sandeep Marwah, founder of the Noida Film City and owner of Marwah Studios, is his brother-in-law. The film actors Arjun Kapoor, Mohit Marwah, and Ranveer Singh are his nephews, while actress Janhvi Kapoor is his niece. The Kapoor family of Prithviraj Kapoor are also his relatives as Prithviraj Kapoor was his father’s cousin.

Kapoor was educated at Our Lady of Perpetual Succour High School, Chembur, and at St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai.

Career (Anil Kapoor Biography)

Acting

Kapoor made his debut in films in 1970, playing a young Shashi Kapoor in Tu Payal Mein Geet. The film, however, was not released theatrically.

1980s

Anil Kapoor made his Hindi film debut with Umesh Mehra‘s Hamare Tumhare (1979) in a small role. He then starred as a lead actor in the 1980 Telugu film, Vamsa Vruksham directed by veteran Bapu. In the same year, he also appeared in two more Hindi films – Ek Baar Kaho and Hum Paanch. In 1981, he appeared in M. S. Sathyu’s Kahan Kahan Se Guzar Gaya. After playing a small role in Shakti (1982), he made his Kannada film debut with Mani Ratnam‘s Pallavi Anu Pallavi (1983). He played his first Hindi film leading role in Woh Saat Din (1983) which was directed by Bapu and featured Padmini Kolhapure and Naseeruddin Shah. He gained recognition in Bollywood with Yash Chopra‘s action drama Mashaal (1984) as a tapori, for which he won his first Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor. His tapori persona and stubble look was considered unconventional at the time but would become fashionable in India many years later. Kapoor’s 1985 releases included Yudh and Saaheb. Yudh featured him uttering his iconic line “Ek Dum Jhakaas”. But it was Meri Jung (1985), wherein he played the role of an angry young lawyer fighting for justice that earned him his first nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor.

Anil Kapoor had a title role in Shekhar Kapur‘s sci-fi film Mr. India (1987), the biggest hit of the year. The film became one of his biggest box-office hits and shot him to superstardom. In 1988, he won his first Filmfare Award for Best Actor for his performance in the film, Tezaab, the biggest blockbuster of 1988. The same year also saw the release of Kasam, an action drama directed by Umesh Mehra. Anil proved to be the only saving grace in commercial failures like Ram-Avtar and Vijay. The following year, he delivered Ram Lakhan (which became the second-highest box office earner of 1989) with the song One Two Ka Four. In Rakhwala, Kapoor played the role of a tapori, and the film was declared a success. Kapoor’s portrayal of an autistic man in Eeshwar (1989) was well-received and established his versatility as an actor, earning him his third nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor.

1990s

The year 1990 saw him play a dual role, as twin brothers in the highly successful action comedy Kishen Kanhaiya, and in the same year, he further attained reasonable box-office success with Ghar Ho To Aisa. Kapoor came up with a critically acclaimed performance in Awaargi. Many critics called that his best performance ever but the film flopped at the box office. Also, films like Jamai Raja and Jeevan Ek Sanghursh, out of which both of them were remakes of South Indian films, proved to be major flops. These films proved to be a setback in his career as 1990 was supposed to be the crowning year for Kapoor as the Hindi film industry’s biggest male star. But with these flops, Anil was on the bad foot.

After a few box-office failures, he had successes with films like Loafer (1996), opposite Juhi Chawla. In Judaai, Kapoor’s depiction of a loving husband torn between his two wives was appreciated and the film fared well at the box office. Deewana Mastana (1997), Biwi No.1 (1999), and Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hain (1999) were also box office hits, with Biwi No. 1 earning him his first nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Comedian. Kapoor’s unusual characterization of a zealous, crooked musical superstar in Taal (1999) shocked both audience and critics alike, earning him rave reviews, in addition to his second Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor. He again won rave reviews for his performance in Virasat (1997), a remake of the Tamil film, Thevar Magan (1992), in which he played Kamal Haasan‘s role. The film proved to be a major box office success, and earned him his first Filmfare Award for Best Actor (Critics), in addition to his seventh nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor. He also starred in the unsuccessful Jhooth Bole Kauwa Kaate, which was filmmaker Hrishikesh Mukherjee’s last directorial, along with Juhi Chawla. He shaved his mustache once again for the second half of the film.

2000s

Anil Kapoor’s first release of 2000 was Bulandi, in which he played a double role, showing restraint and maturity as the elder Thakur. He won his first National Film Award for Best Actor, in addition to his eighth nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor for his performance in Rajkumar Santoshi’s critically acclaimed Pukar (2000). Kapoor again achieved critical and commercial success with Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai (2000). Kapoor performed as Rajeev in the much-delayed Karobaar (2000), a film directed by Rakesh Roshan, where Kapoor’s dialogue delivery was appreciated. He delivered a powerhouse performance in Shanker’s Nayak (2001), which is considered to be his career-best performance.

His first English language film, Slumdog Millionaire, was released on 12 November 2008. Yuvvraaj was released on 21 November 2008. Yuvvraaj, with Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif, failed to do well at the box office. On the other hand, Slumdog Millionaire has won a number of international awards and received rave reviews from critics, costing only US$15 million to produce, but pulling in more than $352 million worldwide. In January 2009, he attended the 66th Golden Globe Awards ceremony along with the team of Slumdog Millionaire, which won four Golden Globe Awards. Kapoor demonstrated his well-known enthusiasm after Slumdog won the Academy Award for Best Picture (one of eight awards). He also received a nomination for Best Ensemble at the Black Reel Awards of 2008 and has won the Screen Actors Guild Award for Outstanding Performance by a Cast in a Motion Picture.

2010s

In 2010, Kapoor starred in the eighth season of the American television series 24, portraying Omar Hassan, President of the fictional Islamic Republic of Kamistan. In October of that year, he was cast to play a villain in both Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol (released in December 2011) and Power. Power was to be directed by Rajkumar Santoshi but was shelved due to unknown reasons.

In September 2015, Kapoor made an appearance as himself in the ad for the upcoming Angry Birds Friends tournament Champions for Earth. Amazon has cast Kapoor in its pilot The Book of Strange New Things. He will play the role of Vikram Danesh, the authoritative head of the base on Oasis.

2020s

In 2022, he starred in the comedy-drama Jugjugg Jeeyo (2022), alongside Neetu Singh, Varun Dhawan, and Kiara Advani, which received mixed reviews from critics but proved to be a commercial success at the box office. Kapoor’s performance in the film earned him his record-setting fourth Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor.

Kapoor has committed to star in Karan Johar‘s directorial venture, Takht, a historical drama featuring an ensemble cast, including Ranveer Singh, Alia Bhatt, Bhumi Pednekar, and Vicky Kaushal. He will also appear in a pivotal role in Siddharth Anand’s Fighter, alongside Hrithik Roshan and Deepika Padukone.

Producing

In 2002, Kapoor produced his first film, the comedy Badhaai Ho Badhaai, in which he also starred. It was followed by My Wife’s Murder (2005), and Gandhi, My Father (2007). Gandhi, My Father focuses on the relationship between Mahatma Gandhi and his son Harilal Gandhi and was awarded the National Film Award – Special Jury Award. He produced the film Shortkut: The Con Is On starring Akshaye Khanna and Arshad Warsi. In 2010, he produced Aisha (2010), starring his daughter Sonam Kapoor and Abhay Deol. The film performed moderately at the box office, grossing Rs. 155 million in its theatrical run.

He has acquired the remake rights for the American TV series, 24, reportedly for an amount of INR 1 billion. It took him about 1.5 years to license the rights to create an Indian rendition of the popular TV show. Kapoor will be stepping into the protagonist’s (Jack Bauer) role as well. Kapoor played the role of President Hassan in the 8th season of the original series aired on Fox Network.

Singing

Anil Kapoor has on rare occasions contributed to the soundtracks of his movies as a singer. One of his first playback songs was the title track of the 1986 Bollywood comedy Chameli Ki Shaadi. The song was comic in nature and depicted the love story of the titular Chameli and her lover Charandas, played by Kapoor. Chameli was portrayed by Amrita Singh. In the same decade, he was credited with the song “Tere Bina Main Nahin Mere Bina Tu Nahin” for the film Woh Saat Din. He is also credited with the song “I Love You” from Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai. In 2008, Kapoor provided a rhyme-like dialogue to introduce his character in Yashraj’s Tashan. His theme was titled “Bhaiyaji ka Tashan”. His co-stars in the movie also had their introductions incorporated into the soundtrack, which was composed by Vishal–Shkhar. Akshay Kumar‘s theme was titled “Bachchan Pandey ka Tashan”. Kareena Kapoor‘s was “Pooja ka Tashan”. Saif Ali Khan was credited for “Jimmy ka Tashan”. He had one full album, “Welcome” as a co-singer with Salma Agha in 1986. The album was scored by Bappi Lahiri.

Personal life (Anil Kapoor Biography)

In 1984, Kapoor married Sunita Bhavnani, a costume designer with whom he has two daughters and a son. Their elder daughter Sonam Kapoor (born 1985) is an actress their younger daughter Rhea Kapoor (born 1987) is a film producer and their son Harshvardhan Kapoor (born 1990) is also an actor. Anil Kapoor is referred to as ‘AK’ by his children.

Filmography

Films

As actor (Anil Kapoor Biography)

As Producer (Anil Kapoor Biography)

Anil Kapoor produces the films under the banner Anil Kapoor Films & Communication Network.

Television

Awards and nominations (Anil Kapoor Biography)

National Film Awards

Filmfare Awards

IIFA Awards

Screen Awards

Zee Cine Awards (Anil Kapoor Biography)

Bollywood Movie Awards

Sansui Awards

Screen Actors Guild Awards

Stardust Awards (Anil Kapoor Biography)

Times of India Film Awards

Other Awards

Honors

Source URL