Anil Kapoor is one such evergreen actor who, defying all odds coming his way, has survived in Bollywood for more than four decades. Many actors have come and gone since he made his acting debut with Hamare Tumhare (1979) in a small role, but none could shake his throne in the Hindi film industry. Even at the age of 61, Kapoor works with the energy of a tiger and can give many young heroes a run for their money.
However, reaching where the superstar is today was obviously not a cake walk. It takes hard-work, unwearied perseverance, and patience to achieve success in showbiz. Like many showbiz success stories, Anil Kapoor’s story is also filled with struggle and failure.
During a recent interview for his latest film Fanney Khan, when asked if there was anything which he could relate to while playing the character of Prashant Sharma in the movie, the actor shared some of the incidents from his personal life, including the one which changed his life forever.
“There are 3-4 parts of the film I could relate to. One of them being the whole struggle period before my daughter is born in the movie. I could easily recall the period when I thought to step out of the home and start working. It was around 1977-78. My father had heart problems. In those days, having a heart problem was a very big thing. If someone suffered a heart attack, it was like the sky would fall. Nowadays, it is a common ailment.”
The actor revealed that when he came to know about his father’s ailment, he was shaken. He decided to quit studies and stepped out of home to look for work.
“So, when I came to know about my father’s heart problem, I was shaken very badly. That was the period when I thought I should start working. I was too young at that time. Neither I looked like a hero, nor a child actor. But I had decided to work. So, I started going out to find work. I had just completed my school and was in the second year of college. I had made up my mind to quit studies and look after my family. I started looking for work when I was almost 18-year-old. So, that time in the 80s till the time I got a little bit of recognition was my struggle period. I used that as a reference in Fanney Khan. I could easily relate to that.”
The actor went on to add that in his growing up years, he would visit many of the areas where Fanney Khan has been shot.
“The areas where we shot the film, I used to visit in my growing-up years. Like Bhindi Bazar, Lal Bagh, Wadala, Masjid Bandar, VT station, etc. I remember I used to take a local train from Kurla to VT station. That also helped me while playing Prashant in Fanney Khan, because I could go down memory lane.”
Anil Kapoor said that going to such rich places like Malabar, Colaba, Kemp’s Corner and Breach Candy in Mumbai was like visiting Europe back then.
“Malabar, Colaba, Kemp’s Corner and Breach Candy, these places were like going to London. The feeling would be that I was going to Europe. I used to go there with a bunch of friends. All these areas were inhabited by rich people, sprawling houses, huge shops, etc. It was a foreign land for me. Those memories helped me a lot while playing my character in Fanney Khan.”
Also starring Aishwarya Rai Bachchan, Rajkummar Rao and Pihu Sand, Fanney Khan is running successfully in cinemas.
