Shekhar Kapur recalls his ‘middle-class’ father’s response when his debut Hollywood film Elizabeth was nominated for 8 Oscars: ‘This means you might get another job?’

Shekhar Kapur made his Hollywood debut with Cate Blanchett-starrer Elizabeth in 1998, which earned eight Oscars, including Best Picture.

By: Entertainment Desk

Mumbai | Updated: April 23, 2025 04:01 PM IST

3 min read

Oscar-nominated filmmaker and visionary storyteller Shekhar Kapur on Sunday visited the Ahmedabad campus of MICA for the launch of the School of Applied Creativity (Express File)

Shekhar Kapur famously left the Hindi film industry behind to pursue a career in Hollywood with his 1998 historical drama Elizabeth. The Cate Blanchett-starrer was nominated for eight Oscars, including Best Picture. It even won an Academy Award for Best Makeup in 1999. However, Shekhar recalled in a new LinkedIn post how his “middle-class” father wasn’t too pleased.

“When my film Elizabeth was nominated for 8 Oscars (don’t forget it was my first film in the West). I called my father to tell him… for he was always against me coming into the film business.. and this is how the conversation went: ‘Dad, my film was nominated for 8 Oscars.’ ‘Hmm .. well done, Son.’ ‘It was also selected as one of the 5 best films in the world (those days only 5, not 10 were nominated).’ ‘Proud of you, Son.’ ‘Son?’ ‘Yes, Dad? ‘Does that mean you might get another job?” Shekhar wrote.

Shekhar said that he has inherited his middle-class lens from his father, which limited his prospects in many ways. “I am so middle class. And carrying the burden of being middle class is something I have always had to fight against. The middle class values that were thrust on us, were once held in very high esteem, but became the burden you carry in the new world. ‘Never borrow money, never be in anyone’s debt!’ ‘Hold on to a steady job. Make sure you build towards your pension.’ Oh well, That’s any Start Up out of the window for me,” said Shekhar.

“But then being middle class really helped me. I found something to rebel strongly against. For creativity is born of rebellion .. and my life is a series of rebellions .. against being middle class .. Though I will never forget one thing my Father said : ‘ Son it’s easy to earn money, very difficult to earn respect’ So some values I retain .. a sense of duty to family,” added Shekhar.

Shekhar will soon introduce his daughter through Masoom 2: A New Generation, the sequel to his 1983 seminal film Masoom. That will mark Kaveri Kapur’s theatrical debut, since she already made her acting debut with Kunal Kohli’s romantic comedy Bobby Aur Rishi Ki Love Story on Disney+ Hotstar earlier this year.

Also Read — ‘Shekhar Kapur abandoned project with Shah Rukh Khan when Hollywood came calling’: Tigmanshu Dhulia recalls making ‘ghatiya chai’ for SRK

Kaveri is Shekhar’s daughter from his past marriage with actor Suchitra Krishnamoorthy. They tied the knot in 1999, but parted ways in 2007. In a recent interview with SCREEN, Suchitra said she’s looking forward to Kaveri’s debut in Masoom 2. “Despite the past I’ve shared with my ex-husband, I really admire him as a filmmaker. So I’m glad that my daughter is in safe hands,” she said. She also pointed out that unlike her, Kaveri already has the advantage of her parents’ names and it’s upto her how she banks on that.

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