Sonil Dedhia (MID-DAY; September 9, 2017)

Few people have impacted Bollywood more than the original showman, Raj Kapoor. So it is no surprise that rumours of a biopic being planned on the legendary filmmaker often do the rounds. Over the last few months, buzz about Ranbir Kapoor bringing his grandfather’s journey to the big screen has gained credence. However, Rishi Kapoor dismissed the idea of a biopic on his father.

Talking to mid-day, the senior actor said, “The discussion has been going on for 15 years. Producer Bobby Bedi has been on it. He offered to make a film, but we, as a family, have an objection.”

Given how Kapoor was instrumental in shaping the Hindi film industry, Rishi understands that the filmmaker’s journey makes for a great story. “We are aware that a lot of people are curious to know the story of Raj Kapoor,” he said, adding, “But, we have decided that we won’t allow anyone to make the biopic till our mother [Krishna Raj Kapoor] is alive. If anyone still goes ahead and makes it, we will negate it.”

The senior actor also pointed out that a biopic may end up ruffling feathers. “My father had relationships that cannot be denied. We don’t want to hurt anybody’s emotions, neither do we want to stir up any controversy.”

He added how Sunil Dutt too was against the idea of a biopic on Kapoor, who was a close associate of the former’s wife Nargis. “My sister [Ritu Nanda] had once asked Dutt sahab whether he would give anybody the permission to make a biopic on our father. His reply simply was ‘Let sleeping dogs lie.’ So as of now, I don’t think it’s a good decision. If and when we plan to make it, we want it to show who Raj Kapoor truly was.”