Bollywood Actor Shahid Kapoor is our quintessential chocolate boy with his suave looks and boyish charm. He is one of the most refined actors of Bollywood who imbibes the roles he plays so well that it gets hard to imagine any other face on that particular character.
February 25th, 2022 marks Shahid’s 41st birthday and here are 10 lesser-known facts about the actor that we bet you didn’t know.
01. Shahid’s infamous linkups!
Barring Genelia Dsouza and Shraddha Kapoor, Shahid has been linked with every heroine he has worked with, from Amrita Rao in his debut film Ishq Vishq to Hrishita Bhatt or Sonakshi Sinha in R… Rajkumar. He was in serious relationships with two of his co-stars Kareena Kapoor and Priyanka Chopra, both of whom have moved on.
02. Shahid Kapoor is Shahid Khattar on Passport!
Shahid Kapoor, son of the talented Pankaj Kapur, has Khattar on his passport. A corporate executive who was doing Shahid’s travel arrangements explains that Shahid is neither Kapoor in his passport nor Azim which is his mother’s maiden name. But he has Khattar on his passport because his mother Neelima Azim was at that point married to actor Rajesh Khattar. Now Rajesh and Neelima are divorced, but Shahid is reminded of a man, who he was very close to once upon a time, every time he sees his passport.
03. Hits and flops do not matter when it comes to Shahid!
Though regarded as one of the top stars of Bollywood Shahid has had only 5-6 hits in a career of 24 films. The flops were unstoppable. And yet Shahid is hugely in demand. Talent will always tell. Kapoor maintains his popularity despite a fluctuating career trajectory.
04. Shahid is a hardcore vegetarian!
Shahid Kapoor’s father Pankaj Kapur had been trying to convince Shahid Kapoor to become vegetarian. He is now a vegan and follows a strict diet regime. He was stirred towards the vegetarian route after reading the book ‘Life is Fair’, by Brian Hines which was gifted to him by a friend. The book left such a deep impact on him that he instantly gave up meat. He has even rendered his support to the cause of PETA’s vegan campaign. He won PETA India’s sexiest vegetarian contest in 2009 and was named as PETA Asia-Pacific’s Sexiest Vegetarian man in 2011.
05. He is the First Indian actor to fly the American F-16 aircraft!
Mausam may not have done too well at the box office, but it will still be remembered as a significant movie in Shahid Kapoor’s career. After all, it’s not every day that we hear actors learning how to fly real aircraft for their movie roles. According to Hindustan Times, Shahid Kapoor is the first Bollywood actor to fly the American F-16 Super Viper and underwent training for over a month, before taking his big flight.
06. Shahid was a background dancer in Taal and Dil Toh Pagal Hai!
Taal featuring Aishwarya Rai Bachchan is a 1999 film. One of the songs featured Aishwarya Rai Bachchan getting wrapped in a white cloth. The guy draping her was none other than Shahid Kapoor. Shahid Kapoor was a part of Shiamak Davar’s dance group before joining Bollywood and was a background dancer in Dil Toh Pagal Hai as well.
07. Shahid was rejected 100 times before his debut film!
Shahid Kapoor was rejected as many as 100 times before he made his debut in Ishq Vishk. He further mentioned that there were days when he did not have money to eat food or go to the auditions.
08. Shahid is related to Bollywood OG Naseeruddin Shah!
Many people may not know this but Shahid Kapoor is actually related to veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah. According to a report in the Times of India, Shahid Kapoor is the step-nephew of Naseeruddin Shah. His step-mother Supriya Pathak is the sister of Ratna Pathak Shah, who is married to Naseeruddin Shah.
09. Shahid seeks this man’s advice on career-related matters!
Shahid Kapoor is an ardent follower of the Radha Soami Satsang Beas sect! And it was Baba Gurinder Singh, the leader of the sect who pushed Shahid to sign the mega-budget Sanjay Leela Bhansali film ‘Padmavat’. Apparently, Shahid was wary of signing ‘Padmavati’ as it stars Ranveer Singh and Deepika Padukone, whose on-screen chemistry overshadows everything and everybody else. They have given big hits together like ‘Bajirao Mastani’ and ‘Goliyon Ki Rasleela Ram-Leela’ and Shahid probably wasn’t sure if it would be a good idea to star in a movie featuring these two powerhouses. Similarly, it was Baba Gurinder Singh only who played cupid to Shahid Kapoor and Mira Rajput.
10. Shahid is part Delhiite!
Shahid completed his initial schooling years in New Delhi. He studied in Gyan Bharati School till class 4, before he was shifted to Rajhans Vidyalaya in Mumbai. Born to veteran actors Pankaj Kapur and Neelima Azim, Sasha (as he is fondly called) was three-year-old when his parents got separated. The actor has cordial relations with step-mom Supriya Pathak. He has three siblings—sister Sanah and brothers Ishaan Khattar and Ruhaan Kapur.
