RisHIFIVE!

Nonika Singh

MEIN shayar to nahi…but a master storyteller he sure is. And not just because evergreen star and actor Rishi Kapoor has only recently penned his biography, Khullam Khulla: Rishi Kapoor Uncensored, which is already being dubbed a blockbuster biography. At the Zee Jaipur Literature Festival in the front lawns of Diggy palace, Jaipur, the once cherubic star and now a seasoned actor peppers his conversation with many an anecdote, proving his skill as a raconteur.

Right from the making of Shree 420 where a two-yearold Rishi walked down the road in bit part to Mera Naam Joker, which won him an award, he has an amusing back-story to regale his fans. And his fans are many, crowding the venue crazily, wolfwhistling and eager to lap up every word he utters. Then there are several, like this woman who has bought his biography a day prior to his arrival. Yes, indeed, he has very good reasons to pen his story.

Not that he wanted to extol his virtues; rather wanted the world to know he never had it easy. Indeed, he is a star son, had a dream launch with Bobby. But he reminds that his first innings in the film industry, back then, coincided with the rise of action heroes and he had to deal with stalwarts like Amitabh Bachchan and Dharmendra. Bachchan, whom he hails as one of the finest actors and also as the biggest star of those times, was not a competitor and they never stepped on each other’s toes. In many films, Rishi rubbed shoulders with him, particularly the hugely successful Amar Akbar Anthony.

Recalling the director, Manmohan Desai, Rishi reenacts how he was offered the part, which he mistook as one of Mughal emperor. He quips, “You know Maanj was capable of anything. He could show three men offering blood at the same time.” Indeed, he is aware that back then he did act in a lot of forgettable films. But then there were many memorable ones too, like Karz, the cult film, which could have done even better had it not been overshadowed by Qurbani, released a week after.

In his second innings, he is more proud of movies like Kapoor & Sons, where he played a 90- year-old that required him to put on make-up for five hours and one hour to remove it. But when he was first asked to turn a new leaf as the despicable Rauf Lala in Agneepath, he wasn’t convinced and flatly said no in the beginning. However, the director Karan Malhotra and producer Karan Johar stood their ground.

That perhaps was the discovery of the actor in him, which Shah Rukh Khan has gone on record to uphold as the finest actor in Bollywood. That he was a born actor, he understood early in life. He shares how after being considered to play younger Raj Kapoor in Mera Naam Joker, he immediately began practicing his autograph. Of course, being a star is never easy and its talent alone that sees you through. Chronicling 44 years of his journey as an actor, he has been as candid as humanly possible and unfurled many chapters of his life that could have easily remained undercover.

Not surprising, lovely wife Neetu Singh Kapoor calls it an inspirational book. He believes, “My book will make readers smile and make their eyes moist too.” The verdict on the book we reserve for now, but Rishi, the entertainer, certainly brings tears in our eyes as he brings the house down with his inimitable mirthful style of narration. If the book has even an iota of his engaging ways, it sure would be a roller-coaster ride worth its while.

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AAM AADMI

Fearless Rishi sure is and it’s not only his biography that unveils his candid self. His tweets too hit home with noholds-barred attitude. Those who think his observation against naming of monuments, bridges and building was directed against any family, he clears the air. “I am not a BJP chamcha. I have spoken against their misdemeanors too as and when they have erred. I have no political agenda. I am all for aam aadmi.” 

STAR POWER

Stars are, well, stars and even at literary festivals they draw crowds like magnets. Of course, those of us who were wondering what the team of Baahubali, including the director SS Rajamouli and actor Rana Dagubatti ,was doing at the Zee Jaipur Literature Festival, well they were here to unveil the book cover of Bahubali’s prequel — The Rise of Sivagami. Written by popular Malayali Writer Anand Neelakantan, the prequel traces the indomitable courage and self-righteousness of the matriarch in whom the spirit of many mythical Indian women can be seen. As the franchise of Bahubali has grown way beyond the film and moved to comic books, games and more, perhaps, a book was only expected. But the bond between books and cinema is neither new nor likely to cease anytime soon. Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, whose book The Mistress of Spices, has already been converted into a film by Gurinder Chadha shared how her book Palace of Illusions too will be adapted as film by none other than Aparna Sen.