Shammi Kapoor (1931-2011) was a famous Indian actor and director. He was known for his flamboyant dancing style and playboy lifestyle in his films. He has worked in several hit films including Dil Deke Dekho (1959), Junglee (1961), Professor (1962 ), China Town (1962), Kashmir Ki Kali (1964), Teesri Manzil (1966), Brahmachari (1968), Vidhaata (1982), and Rockstar (2011). Shammi Kapoor passed away at the age of 79 on 14 August 2011 due to chronic kidney failure.
Wiki/Biography
Shammi Kapoor was born as Shamsher Raj Kapoor on Wednesday, 21 October 1931 (age 79 years; at the time of his death) in Bombay (now Mumbai), Bombay Presidency (now Maharashtra), British India (now India). His zodiac sign is Libra. He completed his Kindergarten and Montessori education in Kolkata. He then moved to Mumbai and studied at St. Joseph’s Convent and Don Bosco School. He completed his matriculation (Xth Class) from New Era School. He then joined Ramnarain Ruia College for a short while before joining Prithvi Theatres. He started working in films in 1953.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 11″
Weight (approx.): 110 kg
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Blue-grey
Family
Shammi Kapoor belonged to the Kapoor family, who have been an integral part of Hindi film cinema for more than four generations. The Kapoor family is also known as the First Family of Indian Cinema.
Parents & Siblings
Shammi Kapoor’s father, Prithviraj Kapoor, was a famous actor and director known for his films such as ‘Alam Ara’ (1931), ‘Sikandar’ (1941), ‘Vikramaditya’ (1945), ‘Awaara’ (1951), ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ (1960), and ‘Kal Aaj Aur Kal’ (1971). His mother, Ramsarni Mehra, was a homemaker.
Prithviraj Kapoor and Ramsarni Mehra
Shammi Kapoor had two brothers, Raj Kapoor and Shashi Kapoor. Raj Kapoor is known as the ‘Greatest Showman Of India’ and has contributed to several memorable films as an actor, director and producer. Shashi Kapoor was also a well-renowned actor and producer.
Shammi Kapoor with his brothers, Raj Kapoor (sitting) and Shashi Kapoor (right)
Wife & Children
Shammi Kapoor married twice. He married his first wife Geeta Bali, a renowned actress, in 1955. They have two children, a son named Aditya Raj Kapoor, a well-known assistant director and actor and a daughter named Kanchan Kapoor, a film producer. Geeta Bali passed away on 21 January 1965 at the young age of 35 due to smallpox.
Shammi Kapoor with Geeta Bali
Shammi Kapoor married again in 1939 to Neila Devi, a princess of Bhavnagar, Gujarat. They didn’t have any kids of their own, a conscious decision on Neila Devi’s part as she wanted to raise Aditya and Kanchan as her own.
Shammi Kapoor with Neila Devi
Relationships/Affairs
Shammi Kapoor was in a relationship with Nutan and they were both childhood friends. Shammi Kapoor wanted to marry her but her mother’s friend, Motilal, didn’t approve of it and she was sent to Switzerland for further studies, thus ending their love story.
Shammi Kapoor with Nutan
In 1953, Shammi Kapoor had a brief relationship with Nadia Gamal, a famous cabaret dancer from Egypt. Nadia, who was 17 at the time had travelled to Sri Lanka for her performance while Shammi Kapoor was touring with his brothers, Raj and Shashi Kapoor. Being underage, Nadia didn’t want to marry immediately, so they planned to marry 5 years later. Nadia later went to her home country and Shammi returned to India and their plan never came to fruition.
Shammi Kapoor with Nadia Gamal
He met socialite Bina Ramani after the death of his wife. He promised to marry her and suggested to elope if they faced any resistance from the family. But the marriage did not take place as her parents and Shammi’s elder brother, Raj Kapoor were both against their marriage.
Bina Ramani with Shammi Kapoor
In 2011, actress Mumtaz revealed that after Geeta Bali’s death, he wanted to marry her. She refused the proposal as she was only 18 with several offers for films and marriage to Shammi Kapoor would mean she would have to give up her career, which she wasn’t prepared for.
Shammi Kapoor with Mumtaz
Religion/Religious Views
Shammi Kapoor was a Hindu. He followed the teachings of his spiritual guru, Shri Haidakhan Babaji, introduced to him by his wife Neila Devi in the 1970s.
Caste
He belonged to the Punjabi Khatri family.
Signature/Autograph
Shammi Kapoor signature
Career
In 1945, he performed in his first play with Prithvi Theatres, ‘Shakuntala’ as Bharat. By 1948, he had started working as a junior artist, at a salary of Rs. 50 per month in Prithvi Theatres. He continued working there for the next four years and received his final paycheck of Rs. 300, in the year 1952. Shammi Kapoor has appeared in over 100 films, predominantly in Hindi. He has also dabbled in different language films other than Hindi. He had a guest appearance as a singer in ‘Dhadaka’, a Marathi film released in 1990.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Dhadaka
In 1992, he appeared in the Tamil film, ‘Amaran’ as Don Miranda.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Amaran
In the same year, he appeared in the Bengali film, ‘Mahashay’ as Prem Singh Chadda.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Mahashay
In 1994, he appeared in the Malayalam film, ‘Sukham Sukhakaram’.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Sukham Sukhakaram
Film
Shammi Kapoor debuted in 1953 with the film ‘Jeewan Jyoti’ as Shyam Sundar “Shammi” which was followed by other films including ‘Thokar’ and ‘Rail Ka Dibba’ as Sundar. He also appeared in ‘Laila Majnu’ as Qais / Majnu.
Shashi Kapoor in a still from Jeevan Jyoti
In 1954 he appeared in ‘Shama Parwana’ as Gul Mirza and ‘Chor Bazar’ as Prince Murad / Salim. In 1955, he appeared in ‘Miss Coca Cola’ as Kamal alongside Geeta Bali.
Shammi Kapoor on the poster of Miss Coca Cola
His breakthrough role came in 1957 with the film ‘Tumsa Nahin Dekha’ as Shankar Bhat and became an overnight sensation because of his youthful presence and unique style. In 1959, he appeared in another hit film ‘Dil Deke Dekho’ as Roop / Raja along with Asha Parekh.
Shammi Kapoor in Dil Deke Dekho
In 1960, he appeared in the Indo-Malaya co-production film, ‘Singapore’ as Shyam. In 1961, he starred in ‘Junglee’ as Chandrashekhar “Shekhar” along with Saira Banu.
Shammi Kapoor on the poster of Junglee
In 1962, he appeared in the comedy ‘Dil Tera Diwana’ as Mohan Badriprasad. In the same year, he starred in ‘Professor’ as Professor Pritam Khanna for which he was nominated for the Filmfare Award for Best Actor.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Professor
In 1963, he starred in ‘Shaheed Bhagat Singh’ as Bhagat Singh and in ‘Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya’ as Rajesh. In 1964, he starred in ‘Kashmir Ki Kali’ as Rajeev Lal and in ‘Rajkumar’ as Prince Bhanupratap / Bhagatram.
Shammi Kapoor in Kashmir Ki Kali
In 1966, he starred in the superhit films, ‘Teesri Manzil’ as Anil Kumar / Rocky and ‘Budtameez’ as Shyam Kumar. In 1967, he starred in ‘An Evening In Paris’ as Shyam Kumar / Sam.
Shammi Kapoor in An Evening In Paris
In 1968, he starred in the critically acclaimed film ‘Brahmachari’ as Brahmachari. In 1969, he starred in the fourth highest-grossing film of the year, ‘Prince’ as Prince Shamsher Singh / Sajjan Singh.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Prince
In 1974, he starred and directed in ‘Manoranjan’ as Dhoop Chhaon. The film was adapted from the French play, ‘Irma la Douce’, that Shammi had wanted to star in. He talked about the film in an interview and said,
Manoranjan was taken from Irma la Douce. And I saw Irma la Douce in London… That was a French play that was first on the stage in London. And I wanted then to play the role of Jack Lemmon—it was wonderful—but by the time I made the movie I was too old so I decided to direct the movie.”
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Manoranjan
By now, he had started to gain weight because of several knee operations and started to lose his image of a dancing hero. Never the one to lose hope, he stayed with his first love, i.e. acting and started to appear in character roles. In 1975, he starred in ‘Zameer’ as Thakur Maharaj Singh. Although the film was critically panned, it became a box office hit.
Shammi Kapoor on the poster of Zameer
In 1976, he directed and starred in the critically acclaimed film, ‘Bundal Baaz’ as Genie. In 1977, he starred in the hit film, ‘Parvarish’ as D.S.P. Shamsher Singh. In 1981, he appeared as himself in a cameo appearance in ‘Rocky’. In 1982, he appeared in ‘Prem Rog’ as Bade Raja Thakur and in ‘Vidhaata’ as Gurbaksh Singh.
Shammi Kapoor on the poster of Vidhaata
In 1983, he appeared in two commercially successful films, ‘Betaab’ as Sardar Dinesh Singh Girji and ‘Hero’ as Police Commissioner Shrikanth Mathur. In 1984, he appeared in ‘Sohni Mahiwal’ as Peer Baba. In 1989, he played DIG Sher (Sheroo) Ali Khan in ‘Daata’.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Daata
In 1988, he starred in ‘Vozvrashchenie Bagdadskogo Vora’, a Russian language version of the Hindi film ‘Ajooba’, which was released a few years later in 1991.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Vozvrashchenie Bagdadskogo Vora
In 1992, he played R. K. Kaul in ‘Chamatkar’. In 1996, he played Nandlal in ‘Prem Granth’, which starred Rishi Kapoor.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Prem Granth
In 2006, he played Swami Trilokanand in ‘Sandwhich’. In 2011, he appeared in his final film, ‘Rockstar’ as Ustad Jameel Khan with his grandnephew, Ranbir Kapoor in the lead.
Shammi Kapoor in Rockstar
Television
Shammi Kapoor has appeared in a few television shows as well. In 1986, he appeared in ‘Katha Sagar’, a show based on short stories from writers around the world. He appeared in ‘Bible Ki Kahaniyan’ as Nimrod in 1992.
Shammi Kapoor on the poster of Daya Sagar
In 1993, he starred in Anubhav Sinha’s directorial debut, ‘Shikast’. In 1994, he starred in ‘Dastaan-E-Hatim Tai’ as Sultan e Yemen, Shahe Alam. In 1997, he starred in the social drama, ‘Chattan’ as Shamsher Raj.
Shammi Kapoor in a still from Chattan
Awards, Honours, Achievements
- In 1968, Shammi Kapoor won the Filmfare Award for Best Actor for ‘Brahmachari’.
Shammi Kapoor won the Filmfare Award for Brahmachari
- In 1982, he won the Filmfare Award for Best Supporting Actor for ‘Vidhaata’.
- In the year 1995, he won the Filmfare Lifetime Achievement Award.
- He won the Special Award for his “Contribution in Indian Cinema” at the Kalakar Awards in 1998.
- He won the Zee Cine Award for Lifetime Achievement in the year 1999.
- On 18th January 2001, he won the Lifetime Achievement Award at the eighth annual Star Screen Awards.
- In 2001, he won the Lifetime Achievement Award for “Contribution in Indian Cinema” at the Anandalok Awards.
- In the same year, he also won the IIFA Award for Invaluable Contribution to Indian Cinema.
Shammi Kapoor received the IIFA Award for Invaluable Contribution to Indian Cinema in 2001
- In 2005, he was honoured with Lifetime Achievement Award at the Bollywood Movie Awards.
- In the year 2007, he received the Living Legend Award from the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI).
- In 2008, he received the Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to Indian Cinema at the Pune International Film Festival.
- In 2010, he received the Rashtriya Gaurav Award.
- In 2012, a life-sized brass statue was installed at Walk of the Stars at Bandra Bandstand.
- In 2013, a postage stamp with his image was revealed by the India Post on the occasion of 100 years of Indian Cinema.
Shammi Kapoor postal stamp released in 2013
Car Collection
- Chevrolet Intercontinental convertible
- Buick BMY 3009
Shammi Kapoor’s Buick BMY 3009
Death
Shammi Kapoor died in 2011 at the age of 79 due to chronic kidney failure. His kidneys suffered due to the heavy antibiotics he took during the treatment of his lungs. He had been on dialysis since 2003. While talking about how lively he used to be even during his hospital visits, in an interview, his wife, Neila Devi said,
As long as he was able to drive his car, he was chirpy. He used to enter the dialysis room, singing a song. He said that three days belonged to dialysis but four days of the week were his.”
Favourites
- Food: Yakhni pulao and dumpukht chicken
- Films: ‘3 Idiots’ (2009) and ‘Munna Bhai M.B.B.S.’ (2003)
Facts/Trivia
- He created and maintained a website, ‘The Kapoor Family Website’, which was dedicated to his family.
‘The Kapoor Family Website’ designed by Shammi Kapoor
- He was one of the earliest adopters of the Internet in India. In an interview, Shammi Kapoor talked about his early usage of the internet and said
Internet use in India started in 1995 but I had started using it in 1991 (because of a special application by Apple). I also made an Internet users’ society with Mafatlal, Harish Mehta and Devang Mehta.”
- He was the chairman and the founder of the Internet Users Community of India (IUCI). He also founded the Ethical Hackers Association.
- Shammi Kapoor would often travel with the members of IUCI, carrying an Apple Macintosh Performa 5400. They would then connect it to the homes and offices of people to show them the internet and its benefits.
- He talked about a magazine that he produced in an interview and said,
For a short period of time I produced my own Video Entertainment Magazine called “Shammi Kapoor presents Manoranjan”. Six volumes have been already released and then I stopped because there were too many people doing the same thing.
- He admits to his accident-prone nature on his website and while describing how he injured his knee which eventually contributed to his weight gain, he wrote,
My knee trouble started in 1964. I was shooting for “Raj Kumar” in Ooty. I was singing a song seated on an elephant and to steady my self on it’s bareback I entwined my feet in the rope tied round it’s neck. At some time during the shot the elephant started twisting it’s neck and I could not extract my right leg from it’s neck. That I think was the beginning.”
- He was also known as the “Yahoo star” because of the hit song, Chahe Mujhe Koi Junglee Kahe from ‘Junglee’.
- He was known as the “Elvis Presley of India” because of the similarities in their dancing style.
- In 2022, Outlook India magazine placed him in their list of “75 Best Bollywood Actors”.
- Early in his life, he did not want to join the family business of acting, rather, he wanted to become an aeronautical engineer.
- He signed up for his first film in 1951, titled ‘Main Aur Woh’, but it got shelved.
- He was an avid hunter and the Maharani of Jodhpur gave him his first weapon, BSA Air Gun.
- When Yahoo! Inc. opened its office in Mumbai, Shammi Kapoor was invited by the then-CEO of Yahoo, Jerry Yang who informed him how big of a fan he was of Shammi Kapoor and his infamous Yahoo scream.
- In an interview, he talked about his relationship with Mohammad Rafi and said,
Rafisaab was my voice. After his death, I lost my voice. I cried like hell. He had a great sense of humour. Generally, I used to be present at the recordings of all my songs. I always requested him to sing the songs with the nuances that I will portray on the screen. He used to happily oblige. And after the recording, when I listened to the songs, I wondered how he could sing exactly the way I wished him to!”
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education