Bollywood’s ‘Rockstar’ and the newest superstar Ranbir Kapoor celebrates his 31st birthday today. Though the actor confesses that he is ‘shy’, by all means his life so far in B-town says otherwise. Over the time Ranbir Kapoor has received accolades for his performances.
But thanks to his flings, the ‘mumma’s boy’ has also carved a ‘playboy image for himself. Here are some interesting facets of Bollywood’s ‘Rockstar’.
Ranbir Kapoor was born to actors Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Singh on September 28 in Mumbai. He is the great-grandson of Prithviraj Kapoor and the grandson of actor-director Raj Kapoor. His elder sister, Riddhima Kapoor (born 1980) is an interior and fashion designer. His paternal cousins Karisma Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor are both actresses. (Photo: Twitter)
Ranbir Kapoor in an interview had disclosed that the troubled marriage between his parents deeply affected him as a child. And it was his early experience of discordant family relations that built a ‘reservoir of emotions’ in him, which compelled him to look for an outlet in films.
In an interview Ranbir Kapoor recollected the fights between his parents: “Sometimes the fights would get really bad. I would be sitting on the steps, my head between my knees, till five or six in the morning, waiting for them to stop”. (Photo: Varinder Chawla)
Ranbir Kapoor confessed that while growing up, he was ‘petrified’ of his father, a fact reiterated by Rishi Kapoor. He also admitted that he shares a much closer relationship with his mother.
After completing his 10th (Senior Secondary) Ranbir travelled to America to assist his father on his directorial debut ‘Aa Ab Laut Chalen’ (1999), where he developed a closer bond with him. (Express archive photo)
Ranbir Kapoor is undoubtedly Bollywood’s heartthrob and in six years he has carved his image as a flamboyant ‘lover-boy’.
Ranbir Kapoor was first romantically in a serious relationship with his ‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’ actress Deepika Padukone.
The two began dating when they met on the sets of the film in 2008 and split after a year. It was widely believed that Ranbir’s mother Neetu Kapoor was the reason the couple broke up. However, Ranbir clarified on the sets of a TV show that the case was not so. “My mother is also very fond of Deepika. So, at least this was not the reason for the split,” he had said.
Ranbir and Deepika say that despite their break-up the two continue to be good friends. “We have been friends since our break-up and shall continue to remain friends,” Deepika said. The two recently did a successful movie ‘Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani’ this year.
Ranbir Kapoor was next linked to his ‘Rockstar’ actress Nargis Fakhri and Kingfisher model Angela Johnson. However these rumours died as soon as they came as Ranbir was next linked to another co-star Katrina Kaif.
Ranbir Kapoor is currently rumoured to be dating his ‘Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahani’ actress Katrina Kaif. In August this year, Ranbir and Katrina’s pictures holidaying in Ibiza, Spain, went viral suggesting that there was really cooking between the two.
Apart from the pictures it is believed that in an incident Ranbir Kapoor and Katrina Kaif have been sighted in an autorickshaw drive after late in Mumbai.
The couple has also been spotted arriving together at director Karan Johar’s birthday party this year.
However, Ranbir who said in an interview that Katrina is ‘very special’ to him, has neither denied nor confirmed about their current relationship status.
Coming back to his professional life, while pursuing a film-making course in New York, Ranbir Kapoor directed and starred in two short films (entitled ‘Passion to Love’ and ‘India 1964’). He then worked as an assistant director to Sanjay Leela Bhansali on the 2005 film ‘Black’. In an interview Ranbir said: “I was getting beaten up, abused, doing everything from cleaning the floor to fixing the lights from 7 am to 4 am, but I was learning every day.”. He confessed that his main motive for assisting on the film was to ensure that Sanjay Leela Bhansali liked him enough to cast him as an actor for his next project. (Express archive photo)
Ranbir Kapoor made his Bollywood debut in 2007 with Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Saawariya’ alongside Sonam Kapoor and Rani Mukerji. In an interview, Ranbir said that his role in ‘Sawariyaa’ was to pay a “conscious tribute” to his grandfather Raj Kapoor. Saawariya failed to make its mark on the Box Office. However, Ranbir Kapoor did fetch the Filmfare Award for Male Debut that year.
Ranbir Kapoor was next seen in Yash Raj Films ‘Bachna Ae Haseeno’ which was his first commercial success. Ranbir Kapoor romanced not one or two but three actresses – Bipasha Basu, Deepika Padukone and Minissha Lamba – in the the film. Ranbir broke up with Deepika Padukone soon after this film.
In 2009 Ranbir Kapoor featured in three films – ‘Wake Up Sid’, ‘Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani’, and ‘Rocket Singh: Salesman of the Year’.
When Ayan Mukerji narrated the then-untitled script of ‘Wake Up Sid’, Ranbir Kapoor came up with the title himself!
This year Ranbir won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actor for his performances all three films.
In 2010, Prakash Jha’s political thriller ‘Raajneeti’ gave Ranbir Kapoor a new persona altogether. His role a conniving politician was a departure from the ‘lover boy image’ that he was famous for. The film was critically acclaimed with reviewers saying that ‘Rajneeti’ belonged to Ranbir.
The same year, Ranbir Kapoor collaborated with Priyanka Chopra for ‘Anjaana Anjaani’, which was a box office disaster.
Ranbir Kapoor also did a special item number in Salman Khan’s production ‘Chillar Party’ (2011).
Ranbir Kapoor’s popularity reached its height with Imtiaz Ali’s ‘Rockstar’ in 2011.
‘Rockstar’ earned Ranbir Kapoor immense praise form critics and audience. In addition, the film was one of the top-grossing Indian films of the year.
Ranbir Kapoor’s role of a pained musician earned him Best Actor and Best Actor (Critics) trophies at the 57th Filmfare Awards ceremony, along with Best Actor awards at Screen and IIFA.
Ranbir Kapoor revealed that he lived with a Jat family in Pitam Pura and “studied their mannerisms” to prepare for his role. He also learnt to play the guitar and practised extensively at A.R. Rahman’s studio. (Express archive photo)
More appreciation came Ranbir Kapoor’s way with critically acclaimed ‘Barfi!’, where he played the role of a deaf and mute. ‘Barfi!’ received praise from the critics, and the performances of the three lead actors (Ranbir, Priyanka Chopra, Ileana D’Cruz) were appreciated by all.
International magazine Variety noted that “Ranbir, like his famous actor-director grandfather Raj Kapoor, channels Chaplin in tone and affect”
‘Barfi!’ was Ranbir Kapoor’s first release to earn over Rs 1 billion at the domestic box office.
For his portrayal, Ranbir Kapoor was inspired by the work of actors Roberto Benigni, Charlie Chaplin, and his grandfather Raj Kapoor. With ‘Barfi!’ Ranbir Kapoor won second consecutive Best Actor awards at the Screen, and IIFA Award ceremonies. (Express archive photo)
Ranbir Kapoor achieved further success when he reunited with director Ayan Mukerji and ex-girlfriend Deepika Paukone in ‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’. Ranbir’s pairing with Deepika, after their highly publicised break-up, led to a strong buzz surrounding the film’s release.
In an interview Ranbir Kapoor said that he found his character (Bunny) to be an extension of his real self and thus the biggest challenge in playing the role was to use his own experiences as references… ‘without making it boring’.
‘Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani’ eventually opened to record-breaking collections, and emerged as the fourth highest-grossing Bollywood film of all time with earnings of over Rs 3 billion and Ranbir’s third consecutive commercial success in three years.
Ranbir Kapoor’s second release of 2013 ‘Besharam’ will hit theatres in October 2nd. The film’s USP is that it brings Ranbir Kapoor together with his parents Rishi and Neetu kapoor on screen.
He has two other films in production for a 2014 release – Vicky Singh’s romantic thriller ‘Roy’, co-starring Jacqueline Fernandez and Arjun Rampal, and Anurag Kashyap’s period film ‘Bombay Velvet’ alongside Anushka Sharma and Karan Johar. (Reuters)
Ranbir Kapoor is also set to launch a production company in a collaboration with his ‘Barfi!’ director Anurag Basu named Picture Shuru Productions. Their first production ‘Jagga Jasoos’ will feature Ranbir Kapoor and his rumoured girlfriend Katrina Kaif. (Express archive photo)
On his birthday, we wish Ranbir luck in all his endeavours.
Source:http://indianexpress.com/picture-gallery/happy-birthday-ranbir-kapoor-bollywoods-rockstar-is 31/3488-1.html
