Revisiting RK Studio’s iconic Ganesh festival that had Ranbir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor doing aarti

It was a tradition for the Kapoors to come together for Ganesh Chaturthi and visarjan every year. Grand celebrations were done amid the sounds of dhol and majiras. Since a very young age, the Kapoor kids were often seen participating in the festival with full zeal.

Raj Kapoor’s son Rishi Kapoor, Randhir Kapoor on the flower-decked vehicle, and daughter Rima standing on the top behind the RK Banner. The photograph was taken on September 30, 1967. (Photo: Express Archive)

Rishi Kapoor performing Ganesh puja at RK Studio. (Photo: Express Archive)

R K Studios was not just an address, it played a major role in the movie history of Indian cinema, and the celebrations there were special too. For the local community, the annual Ganpati festival was a thing to look forward to. The huge crowd lined up for a glimpse of the Kapoors as they danced down the streets.

After a large portion of the two-acre studio was destroyed by a fire in September 2017, things changed. This happened during the shoot of a television reality show and the studio was gutted.

A photo inside RK Studio. (Photo: Express Archive)

The Kapoor family then decided to sell the iconic studio due to escalating losses. Rishi Kapoor had said then that the family will let go of the studio that his father built. He added in a interview that the Kapoor family is doing this “chhati pe pathar rakhkar” (with a heavy heart).

Speaking to Mumbai Mirror, Rishi Kapoor said on behalf of the family, “The investment in rebuilding the studio would just not have yielded sufficient revenue to keep it going. Even before the fire, for years RK Studio had become a huge white elephant, toting up losses.”

He had also mentioned that the number of bookings at the R K Studios had decreased substantially over the years with producers preferring studios near Goregaon and Andheri. The Kapoors had considered renovating the whole space with cutting-edge technology; however, the fire made their plans to revive the studios even more unrealistic.

Not to miss, just before selling it out too, the last Ganpati festival at the RK Studios in the year 2018, was celebrated like other past years. In a video shared by a fan club, Raj Kapoor’s sons Randhir and Rajiv were seen visiting the pandal set-up inside the studio situated in Chembur, Mumbai. The Kapoor brothers were seen performing the aarti together. Rajiv was also spotted interacting with the devotees visiting Ganpati’s temporary residence inside the studio premises.

Rishi’s son Ranbir Kapoor joined his uncles to celebrate Ganesh Chaturthi in RK Studios. (Photo: Express Archive)

Ranbir Kapoor joined his dad Rishi Kapoor, and uncles Randhir and Rajiv to keep alive tradition as they celebrated Ganpati Visarjan the same year, for the one last time. The celebration took place with full enthusiasm amidst a sea of fans at the iconic RK Studios.