Celebrating Rishi Kapoor, the family man, on his death anniversary
Rishi Kapoor was an actor par excellence. From portraying the teenager in love in Bobby, and being the forward thinking Dev in Prem Rog to joy-personified in Kapoor & Sons, he has covered a lot of ground as an actor. But do we know Rishi, the family man, this well? Today, on his first death anniversary, we discover that side of this reticent man.
He was much closer to his elder brother, Randhir
Rishi had two brothers, Randhir and Rajiv, and two sisters, Ritu Nanda and Rima Jain. In his own words, he admitted to sharing a much closer bond with Randhir than Rajiv, the youngest sibling. In the 2017 book Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor Uncensored, Rishi revealed that while Randhir was his party-guy, he remained concerned for Rajiv, fondly called Chimpu. Rajiv passed away this February.
Rishi shared an 'uneasy relationship' with younger brother, Rajiv
Rishi believed his Chimpu had a lot of potential and was the "most talented" among them. Skilled in pianoforte, Rajiv was a talented film editor as well, but couldn't really tap any of these much. The two brothers shared an "uneasy relationship" until things got diluted later in life. Randhir, on the other hand, shared many things with Rishi, which solidified their bond.
'When together, we didn't need a crowd to entertain us'
"We had many common likes and dislikes. We both were fond of good food and booze. We would often party by ourselves. When together, we didn't need a crowd to entertain us. I miss that. We were happy amongst ourselves," said Randhir about Rishi.
His bond with his son, Ranbir, wasn't that strong
Now coming to Rishi's core family: His wife Neetu, son Ranbir and daughter Riddhima. While we all are aware of the scorching love story between Rishi and Neetu (more on that later), the veteran actor didn't really share a strong bond with Ranbir. In fact, he modelled his relationship with Ranbir "on the one he shared with his own father," the latter had said.
He never followed a diet, fondly recalls daughter Riddhima
"I do wish sometimes that I could be friendlier with him or even spend more time with him," the Rockstar actor had revealed. Meanwhile, like every father-daughter duo, Rishi and Riddhima were really close. She shared how Rishi loved food. "Mom used to tell him what to eat, he never listened. He always ate what he wanted and never followed a diet," she said.
Rishi-Neetu relationship: Epic love story, one of Bollywood's strongest marriages
Last but definitely not the least, the epic Rishi-Neetu love story. This remains etched in Bollywood's history as one of the most solid marriages. The love story began when Neetu was only 14, and it just became stronger as time passed by. Though Rishi, being the eccentric one, gave a tough time to the balanced Neetu, her support and love toward him never wavered.
