The first box office star from the Kapoor family was once an extra, got typecast as villain, but then broke records
Over a 90-year presence in the Indian film industry, the Kapoor family has established itself as the first family of Bollywood. And while it has given countless stars and icons over the years, the one that started it all, had a less than storied start to his career. But eventually, he established himself as the first superstar from the family, one whose hit count gives even his children and grandchildren a run for their money
1. Kapoor family’s first superstar
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Prithviraj Kapoor, the patriarch of the Kapoor family, was also the clan’s first successful actor in films, establishing himself as a lead hero in the 30s and 40s, paying both swashbuckling hero and dreaded villain
2. Prithviraj Kapoor’s early career and road to stardom
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Born in 1906, Prithviraj Kapoor began acting in the theatres of Lyallpur and Peshawar in the undivided India of the 1920s. In 1928, he moved to Bombay and began acting in films. Initially, he did minor roles before bagging a lead role in Cinema Girl, released in 1930
3. Prithviraj Kapoor’s turn from villain to hero
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Prithviraj’s first claim to fame was playing the villain in India’s first talkie – Alam Ara (1931) but it was with the 1933 hit Rajrani Meera, that he first tasted stardom. Prithviraj went on to appear in big films like Vidyapati (1937) and Sikandar (1941)
4. The birth of Prithvi Theatre
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By 1944, Prithviraj has founded the travelling Prithvi Theatres and he became less active in films. Over the next 16 years, Prithvi Theatres staged 2600 performances across India. During this time, Prithviraj did only supporting roles in a handful of films such as Awara
5. Prithviraj Kapoor’s later career
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By the late-1950s, Prithviraj had returned full-time to film acting, gaining huge success and fame as Emperor Akbar in Mughal-e-Azam, the highest-grossing Indian film ever. He appeared in supporting roles through the 60s till his death in 1972
6. Prithviraj Kapoor’s legacy
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All his three sons – Raj, Shammi, and Shashi – became hugely successful actors. Over a dozen of his grandkids and great grandkids are also successful actors in their own rights, including Ranbir Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor. However, interestingly, none of them have managed to outdo Prithviraj’s record of over 50 box office hits in his career
