Bollywood has seen a number of families in the industry but there is no family like the Kapoors. The foundation laid by Prithviraj Kapoor has given the industry four generations of superstars while the fifth generation is not far away.
Prithviraj Kapoor relocated to Mumbai from Peshawar (now in Pakistan) with three sons- Ranbirraj, Devinder and Ravinder in the early 90s’. Unfortunately, Devinder succumbed to pneumonia somewhere in the 1930 and Ravinder died by accidentally swallowing rat poison.
Kapoors’ Debut in the Industry
Prithviraj Kapoor entered the film industry in the year 1929 with the movie Cinema Girl and established the name in the industry.
He established the theatre company Prithvi in the early 1940s while his eldest son Raj Kapoor founded the RK Studio and catapulted their family success in the glamour world.
The Second Generation of Superstars:
Prithviraj Kapoor married Ramsarni in the year 1923 and gave birth to Ranbirraj Kapoor (Raj Kapoor) in 1924, Shamsherraj Kapoor (Shammi Kapoor) in 1931, Urmila Kapoor in 1933, and Balbirraj Kapoor (Shashi Kapoor) in 1938.
Raj Kapoor
The eldest son of Prithviraj Kapoor, Raj Kapoor dropped out of his school to pursue a career in the films and theatre. He debuted as an actor with the movie Neel Kamal in the year 1947 and earned recognition with the movie Aag under his home production as he acted, directed and produced the movie himself.
Shashi Kapoor
Following the footsteps of his elder brother and father, Shashi Kapoor spent his childhood in the backstage of the Prithvi Theatre and started his acting career as a child artist under the RK Films production banner. Shashi Kapoor made his debut as a lead in the year 1961 with the movie Dharmputra.
Shammi Kapoor
Shammi Kapoor made his way into the movies in the year 1952 and achieved success in the year 1961 with the release of his movie Junglee.
Third Generation of the Kapoor Family:
Known as the greatest showman of Indian Cinema, Raj Kapoor tied a knot with Krishna in the year 1946 and gave birth to five children. His sons- Randhir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and Rajeev Kapoor took the legacy forward while daughters, Reema Kapoor and Ritu Kapoor, couldn’t enter the acting world because of the Kapoor family diktat.
Shammi Kapoor married Geeta Bali in the year 1955 and gave birth to two children- Aditya and Kanchan. Shammi married Neila Devi post the demise of Geeta due to a bout of smallpox in the year 1965.
The only daughter of the great Prithviraj Kapoor, Urmila Kapoor, married businessman Charanjit Sial and gave birth to fourth children- Anuradha, Priti, Namita and Jatin.
The youngest son of Prithviraj, Shashi Kapoor, married Jennifer Kendall in the year 1958 after a courtship of two years. The couple gave birth to three children- Karan, Kunal and Sanjana.
Randhir Kapoor
The eldest son of greatest showman of Indian cinema, Randhir Kapoor started his career in the acting industry as a child artist in the RK Films production ventures. Randhir made his debut as an actor with the movie Kal Aaj Aur Kal in the year 1971 which also marked his directorial debut. He emerged as a romantic star and kept his success for the entire decade.
Rishi Kapoor
Rishi Kapoor, undoubtedly, took the Kapoor franchise forward with more than 150 films. Rishi made his much-awaited debut at an age of 20 with the romantic drama Bobby and became a star overnight. He ruled between the 70s to 90s as the leading actor in the Bollywood industry and is still amazing everyone with his acting charm.
Rajiv Kapoor
Rajiv Kapoor is the youngest of the Raj Kapoor’s children and made his acting debut in 1983 with the movie Ek Jaan Hai Hum. Rajiv earned recognition with the home venture Ram Teri Ganga Maili in the year 1985 and ventured into production in the 90s.
Jatin Sial
Son of Urmila Kapoor and Charanjit Sial, Jatin Sial is a popular television personality and worked in daily soaps like Kasam Se. Jatin has also appeared in a number of movies including Vivah and Aa Ab Laut Chalein.
Sanjana Kapoor
The youngest child of Shashi Kapoor, Sanjana Kapoor, featured in a number of movies like Hero Hiralal and Salaam Bombay before she gave up her acting career to revive the Prithi Theatre.
Karan Kapoor
The second son of Shashi Kapoor, Karan Kapoor, appeared in a number of movies including Sultanat and Loha in the 80s. After failing to achieve success as an actor, Karan relocated to London and works as a photographer.
Kunal Kapoor:
The eldest son of Shashi and Jennifer made his acting debut in 1972 with the English language film Siddhartha and featured in his first mainstream Bollywood film in 1981. However, he quit his acting career to establish his company which produces and directs television commercials.
Fourth Generation of Superstars:
Randhir Kapoor married to Babita Kapoor in the year 1971 and gave birth to two daughters- Karisma Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor.
The second superstar of the Kapoor family, Rishi Kapoor, married his costar Neetu Singh in a hush-hush affair and gave birth to Riddhima Kapoor and Ranbir Kapoor.
Karisma Kapoor
Karisma Kapoor became the first daughter of the Kapoor family to pursue an acting career defying the age-old diktat. Karisma became the leading lady of the Bollywood industry and appeared in a number of superhit and blockbuster movies during the 90s and the early 2000s. Karisma was one of the highest-paid actresses of her era. Karisma Kapoor married industrialist Sanjay Kapur and gave birth to Samaira and Kiaan before splitting up.
Kareena Kapoor Khan
Following the footsteps of her elder sister, Kareena Kapoor made her acting debut in 2000 with Refugee and established herself as one of the most refined actresses in the industry by playing a variety of characters in a range of film genres. In 2012, Kareena Kapoor tied a knot with his long term lover Saif Ali Khan and gave birth to Taimur Ali Khan, who has already become a superstar.
Ranbir Kapoor
Taking the Kapoor mantle forward, Ranbir Kapoor has established his name in the Bollywood industry with a number of praiseworthy performances. The actor made his debut with romantic-drama Saawariya and appeared in various genre of cinema which has earned him several awards including six Filmfare Awards.
The Kapoor family is considered to be the first family of the Indian cinema which has ruled the industry for almost a century and continues to be the most prominent family of Bollywood. While the fourth generation of the Kapoor family is still performing actively, it is not far away when the fifth generation of superstars make their way into the Indian cinema.
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