“I find myself in a good space today,” says Sanjay Kapoor, who has recently been seen in a string of interesting OTT projects. The actor seems to be in a phase where he is reinventing himself with every new project that he is doing. He talks to BT about how it took him so long to get his due and how he feels about where he is.

Self-admittedly, Sanjay, who will soon be seen in Sriram Raghavan’s film ‘Merry Christmas’, is in the best phase of his career with the kind of work he is doing on the OTT medium.

He says, “OTT has ushered in a great phase not just for me, but for most actors. For one, age is not a bar. Secondly, it is not dependent on the hits you’ve given. It’s no longerki ye bikta hai toh agar ye theek bhi kar lega toh chalega. It is sheer hard work, experience, and talent that will get you good projects. It’s a change that we are seeing in the film (big screen) scenario as well. Today, content is king, and good content needs talented artistes. OTT has extended the longevity of an actor as well as films. In fact, it has revived the 90s for me.”

Sanjay was once dubbed ‘the oldest newcomer’ in Bollywood when his debut film, ‘Prem’, took six years to complete. He was 30 when his first film hit the big screen.

He recalls, “Shekhar (Kapur) was to direct it before Satish Kaushik took over. It didn’t happen for some reason, and I lost out on my prime years for no fault of mine. ‘Prem’ and ‘Raja’ were released a month apart in 1995, and people rejected ‘Prem’ as it was outdated. Hurdles and long waits can make you doubt yourself. It was tough to go through that phase, but that didn’t make me disillusioned or bitter because that’s not my personality. I take the good and the bad in my stride.”

The actor, who has been a part of projects like ‘The Fame Game’, the ‘Lust Stories’ anthology, the film ‘Bloody Daddy’ and ‘Made in Heaven 2’, adds, “When people ask me for advice for aspiring actors, I say, ‘Keep on working because nobody can take away your talent from you. I’m living proof of the fact that success in this field may take time. Also, don’t sell yourself short’.”

The actor is no stranger to the whims of showbiz, and the delay of his debut film was not the only time he saw his career slow down. “I often wonder why people didn’t sign me after my work started getting appreciated, especially after ‘Luck by Chance’ (2009). You don’t always have answers to these whys. A short film like ‘Lust Stories’ changed the game for me. I see my glass half full now,” he observes, adding, “How many actors have survived 30 years? Trust me, if you’re a 90s actor having done typical roles, it’s not easy to get a breakthrough in OTT. I got in because of my hard work, sincerity, and dedication. I was always on my toes and when I got the opportunity, I grabbed it with both hands. Many other actors who had started with me have faded into oblivion.”

One day, a message from filmmaker Ali Abbas Zafar seemed to wipe away all the questions that Sanjay may have harboured about the numerous delays and hurdles he encountered throughout his Bollywood journey. “You are the most underrated actor ever,” read the filmmaker’s message to the actor after the release of ‘Bloody Daddy’. Sanjay says, “It feels great to hear this after 30 years!”

Hailing from the illustrious Kapoor family of Bollywood, Sanjay is aware of his place in the industry. He says, “I am not living in la-la land to think all projects shall be around me. I understand that not every project can be a ‘Fame Game’ that revolves around Madhuri (Dixit-Nene) and me. While I don’t live in a fool’s paradise, I don’t want to be a part of a project where I am not contributing anything, especially when things have come to me after such a long time. I am being a little careful and taking up interesting characters that stay with the audience for long.”

DNA (June 19, 2018)

Social media has been abuzz since cricketer Virat Kohli posted a video of wife Anushka Sharma giving an earful to a commuter for throwing plastic on road. The video garnered mixed reactions from netizens. While some labelled it a publicity stunt and slammed the couple for publically shaming the guy, others called the act heroic.

The debate took an uglier turn when the man in question took to Instagram to tell his side of the story. While the guy, Arhhan Singh, admitted his mistake, he also pointed out that a 'a little politeness' would not have made Anushka 'a lesser star'. His mother too joined the bandwagon and alleged that the viral video has resulted in unwanted hostility from people.

Now while skimming through his Instagram handle we stumbled upon a throwback picture where a young Arrhan is seen with none other than Shah Rukh Khan himself. Yes! It turns out that the guy who was caught littering on the road was a child star in the 90s. He was then called Sunny Singh.

Not only has he worked with Shah Rukh Khan in English Babu Desi Mem and with Madhuri Dixit in Raja but also been a part of popular television series Dekh Bhai Dekh. He played the role of Shekhar Suman's son in the show. He was last seen on the big screen in Paathshaala alongside Shahid Kapoor.

What a small world, indeed!

Sanjay Kapoor, 52, got everything late in his life, be it the release of his debut as a hero in Prem at 31, his marriage to Maheep at 35, purchase of his own house at 38 or producing his first film Tevar at 52, but he was born positive and was brought up to always be content, much like his father Surinder Kapoor. He is emotional and sensitive and his high self-respect forbids him from asking his high-profile friends for favours. Over an hour-long conversation in his Juhu house over a cup of coffee, he talks to Bombay Times about his values learnt from his father, his attachment to Boney Kapoor and why he will never offer a film to Anil Kapoor again. Excerpts:

Talk about your family's association with Raj Kapoor's family?
We used to live in Chembur in a two-bedroom hall. We were so connected with the Kapoors that Dabboo (Randhir Kapoor) would joke that we are related via satellite. My mom and Krishna aunty were best of friends and Chimpu (Rajiv Kapoor) and I grew up together. My father, Surinder Kapoor, used to work for Shammi Kapoor and his first wife was my dad's rakhi sister. She was the one who pushed my dad to make films and so, her picture used to come in the beginning in all his films.

Even though my father had not given blockbusters, Raj Kapoor uncle used to respect him a lot due to the goodwill he enjoyed and his honesty. Chimpu had a car and would travel abroad, right from when he was a year old. But our parents brought us up in a way that we never had any complexes. I remember Chimpu became an actor very quickly. Prior to his becoming an actor, when we went out together, if he paid the bill two times, I would pay it once. But we would go to ordinary places then that both of us could afford. But after he became a star, he started going to clubs where he would have whiskey and I, beer, and the bill would come to Rs 2000. Then I could not afford it, so I would often avoid going out with him at night. We remained great friends. But I could not tell him why, but then, we started meeting for lunch as that is all that I could afford. My father had always taught us not to pile on.

Talk about your father?
There are many things that I had learnt from our father. Chimpu would always go abroad and bring us Batmans and strawberry rubbers. So when I was in class X, I took a promise from my dad that if I came first class, he would send me abroad. I studied really hard and came first class, but coincidentally, one of my dad's films did not do well at that time. He said to me, 'If I send you abroad, people will ask me how I could send you abroad when my film had not done well.' I felt bad as I could not go, but later, I realised his honesty and what he was trying to do that time. He has done that even earlier. He had seen a flat in Samudra Mahal in Worli for himself and had done the deal. He was making a film with Bhappi Sonie, who had also seen a flat in Worli, and even though my father did not owe any money to them at that time, they requested him for an advance to buy that flat. So my father gave them the money that he was to buy his own flat with and can you imagine, they bought the same flat that my father was buying. My father would tell us, 'Never see the few people ahead of you. Look at the people behind, some of who may also be more deserving than you. Be ambitious, but also be content.' Later, Bhappi Sonie went through a bad time and had to sell his flat and shift into an even smaller place than where we were staying. My father would say, 'My children are doing so well, so we are going up.' He had a lot of goodwill. He was from Peshawar and would always go and drop any guest to the car. I am a happy guy as I think like my father. And that is why I have never been bitter or ever felt frustrated. I feel I have got a lot and thank God for it.

Your first film was released when you were 31. Why so late?
Shekhar Kapur was initially supposed to direct Prem. But the problem with Shekhar is that he is a very lazy guy, which is why he has made such few films over 30 years. He never wanted to start it and that led to my frustration. We then decided on Satish Kaushik to direct it, who started the film in 1989, but then he also had to direct Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja in between, that finally released in 1993 and was a disaster. With that mind, he directed Prem that finally released after 6 years of starting it in 1995. Again in Prem, I will tell you about my father. We had signed a singer Nalin Dave and we were all convinced that since it took 6 years to make the film, his voice was not sounding young enough for me any more and we should replace it with Udit Narayan's. But my father did not change. He said, 'Just like Sanjay has waited 6 years, Nalin has also waited 6 years. Now, it is their destiny.' I was dating Tabu at that time initially, but by the end of it, we were not talking to each other. It finally released when I was 31 and would joke and say, 'I am the oldest newcomer.' But this was destiny. Prem did not work, but within 4 weeks, Raja released with Madhuri Dixit and that became a blockbuster. Madhuri was such a big star at that time that I did not get the credit for it. It was also the time when Sri was with her mother, who was not well in the US and Boney was with her. Had Boney been here, things would have been very different for me as there was nobody to take care of things as far as I was concerned.

Talk about your relationship with Boney?
Everyone would say that Boney was a manipulator, but the fact is that he has always done things without any harm to anybody. He chose and decided the price for both Anil and me. I had a bank account but till 12 years back, he managed all my money. In the beginning I did big shows and got a lot of money and he managed all of that. Lot of close friends would give me negative advice, but it did not matter to me. Both Anil and I had blind faith in him. He is like a father figure, but he has gone through this phase where he would overspend on his films. He tends to get carried away. He is not a manipulator. Even when my father was lavish. Boney's economics were wrong and so, he got into a role where his losses started. Because he was handling everything, it was affecting the whole family. It was not that he was using the money for his own benefit or anything, but it's just that he was putting it into his films.

Between Anil and Boney, who are you more attached to?
Boney, as we have done films together and he has always shown more concern where my life is concerned.

Your career did not pick up as well as it could have.
I did Auzaar, directed by Sohail Khan, that did not do as well, but I got a lot of appreciation for it. I was a hot newcomer and despite it being a negative role, I agreed to do it at once when Sohail called me. Many actors had said No. Salman was a superstar by this time and I don't know if Salman would remember this, but over a drink, he said to me at Piano Bar, 'When you become a producer, I will do your film.' They are a great family that way. When the hoardings of Auzaar came up, it had a big Salman's picture and a small picture of mine, even though I had a better role. He called up our producer TIPS and said, 'If you want to have this kind of publicity, then don't put my name also. Sanjay stood by us.' Salman made sure that my picture was more than his only and not less. That is how Salman is. Anyways, I thought to myself that I would make a film with Salman and through Arbaaz, who was very close to me, I met Salim sahab, who said a yes. But to my bad luck, my films Sirf Tum and Chhupa Rustum did well and thus, I kept looking out for acting assignments. In the meantime, Boney was making No Entry and Salman, without even reading the script, said a yes, I felt because of me, and that is how Salman came into Boney's life. For whatever, reason for a year, I did not sign any projects after this and had got married to Maheep. In 2002, I needed to buy a house for myself and that is the time to settle my family, I did TV and a host of movies just for the money.

Which was your lowest period?
There was a period when I was not doing much as an actor and was trying to become a producer. I was wanting to do a film with Anil. I spent 3-4 years discussing everything with him and even going with the director he wanted, but at the last minute, he said No. I was totally taken aback that time. I just felt that even if he felt that the film would have been a flop, he should have still done it for me. In the same period, he did Yuvvraaj and Black and White. I felt hurt as I had wasted so much time and gone with all his recommendations, including the director he wanted. Mentally, I was very low. I couldn't believe that despite he being my brother, he had said No. Rajat Rawail managed Anil's work and he told me, 'Sanjay, when you meet Anil with the script, you take the advance cheque also.' I found that very strange as he was my brother. I also felt hurt that Anil could even doubt that the money would not come. After that, there has never been a problem between Anil and me, but I never approached him again. Today at 52, I have finally turned producer with Arjun, who has been the closest kid to me in the family. I remember at the peak of my career, I got some money which I gave to a person to build a house on the beach for me. I later realised that the money I had got was not from a right person and I returned the money. My being positive has saved me. Whatever I am today is due to our parents, who I love the most in this world. And I do know that I get everything in my life, but I have always got it late.