‘Raj Kapoor used to eat, drink and sleep only his films,’ says Boney Kapoor

Talking about Raj Kapoor, Boney says, “To begin with, he is the only filmmaker-actor-director-producer-editor who has lasted for five decades and given a blockbuster in each decade. He caught up with trends, created trends and even changed with time. He used to eat, drink and sleep only his films. There is nobody like him, and there never will be. He grew with every decade, and that made him a legend. Prem Rog, Bobby, every film was different and so many were ahead of his time. A lot of his thoughts are my thoughts now.”

‘I learned the craft of making films from Raj Kapoor’

Boney Kapoor shares that he learned a lot from Raj Kapoor. “I haven’t directed films, but as a producer, I have been involved with every aspect of filmmaking, with full independence to the director. I always become their first assistant director (AD) before starting the shoot. As he was a complete filmmaker, I learned the craft of making films from Raj Kapoor,” he says.

Not just professionally, Boney bonded with Raj personally as well. “I had a very close and affectionate relationship with him. After seeing my first film Hum Paanch, he said, ‘You will be responsible for the first branch of Kapoors.’ We discussed not only professional matters but personal matters too. He was my mentor. He had contributed in so many ways to my growth. He was my God. His career motivated me. I made up my mind that even if I achieve one percent of what he has, I will attain whatever I want to achieve.”

He adds, “We were like friends, and I was also his student. He gave me that love and respect. I was very close to him. There are so many things we have spoken of that I will never speak of. I used to consider him my God, ki ‘Mere bhagwan Raj Kapoor hain.’ That’s the way I looked up to him. I will remain indebted to him for eternity.”

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Known as Cinderella in Raj Kapoor’s house

Boney Kapoor mentions that he was known by the name Cinderella in Raj Kapoor’s house. “We used to live in Chembur in the same neighbourhood. There were times when his car used to be parked waiting for me to come from the office. Then, we used to have dinner together and chat till 4-5 am in the morning. I used to be known as Cinderalla in their house. Dabboo and Neetu used to call me by that name because Cinderella only used to go out only around midnight.”

Raj Kapoor wanted to honour Sridevi

Sharing how Raj Kapoor wanted to honour his wife and actor Sridevi with an award, Boney Kapoor tells us, “The last function we attended before he went to Delhi and ultimately passed away was Mr. India’s silver jubilee. I wanted him to give the award to me, but he insisted that he wants to give it to Sridevi. He said, ‘I will give it to her.’ He gave the award to her. He made sure she sat on the same table where he was sitting. He confessed to me that he wanted her to do the film Ghunghat Ke Pat Khol.”

Raj Kapoor’s highs and lows

Boney Kapoor reveals Raj Kapoor also went through highs and lows and Mera Naam Joker was one such film where he “banked a lot on it, but it didn’t do well initially.” “Later on, it started doing well. It was a money spinner in the re-rounds. He re-edited the film. A person who was so fond of drinking, he used to give it up when the film was in its final stage. He never used to touch alcohol during that period, till the copy was out. The entire post-production period used to go without him drinking. I was the privileged one who he used to share his most expensive alcohol with, so I know about this really well.”

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The story behind Sun Sahiba Sun

Boney went on to share an anecdote about Kapoor’s last film Ram Teri Ganga Maili. “At dinner, he was working on Ram Teri Ganga Maili and he played two songs that he had recorded. Ravinder Jain was the music director. They played Sun Sahiba Sun and Raj uncle showed the entire movement of how the song has to be picturised and it wasn’t yet recorded. While leaving, he just told me before you go to the office, come and see me in the morning,” he says, adding, “He woke up and we discussed the songs. I told him that the first song is going to be a blockbuster song. He said, ‘Son, you are right.’ Then, for four and a half hours, he narrated the entire script to me and the plans he had for this film. I told him that this will be his career’s biggest hit.”

When the legend passed away

Boney Kapoor says that he didn’t even want to see his ‘hero’ Raj Kapoor in his final moments. “When I went to see him in Delhi when he was in the ICU, I didn’t want to go inside and have a look at him because he was my hero and I didn’t want to see him like that. Ultimately, I had to when his body came to Bombay. I didn’t want to do any posturing, so I stayed away. Anyway, his whole family was present to do the last rites.”