When Rishi Kapoor Said He Did Not Get His Due As An Actor: My Contemporaries…

Rishi Kapoor was one of the celebrated actors of Bollywood. He has given the Hindi film industry many memorable movies, such as Bobby, Prem Rog, Coolie, Bol Radha Bol,  Khel Khel Mein, Karz, Yeh Vaada Raha, Namastey London and Fanaa. In 2018, he was diagnosed with leukaemia and went to New York City for treatment. After a two-year battle with the disease, Rishi Kapoor died in April 2020. So, on his 4th death anniversary, let's go down memory lane and revisit one of his old interviews where he shared about "not being credited as an actor". 

They used to call me Sweater Man: Rishi Kapoor

In an old interview, Rishi Kapoor said that he never got audiences and film critics to like him as he only did romantic movies for almost 25 years. In an interview with Bollywood MDB, the veteran actor said that he never gave the audience a chance to like him by doing something different in his early 25-year career. He added that it was his fault as he was only "romancing the heroines, running around the trees, singing songs in Ooty, Kashmir, and Switzerland".

"I was only wearing jerseys, they used to call me sweater man all over the world, and I never got roles, never got characters to play, whereas my contemporaries, they got all kinds of roles to play," Rishi Kapoor continued. 

Clarifying that he is not complaining, Rishi Kapoor added that he was always among the first 5 stars of this country and during his 25-year career, he didn't give his audience a reason to like him. However, the actor was happy that he could last for 25 years in the film industry.

Rishi Kapoor changed the course of his career after 25 years by taking up meaningful roles that suited his age. Since the 2000s, Kapoor played character roles in critically acclaimed movies such as Fanaa, Namastey London, Agneepath, 102 Not Out and Mulk.

Rishi Kapoor did 92 romantic movies in his career spanning 50 years

Son of legendary actor and director Raj Kapoor, Rishi forayed into acting as an adolescent in his father's film Mera Naam Joker. As an adult, his first lead role was alongside Dimple Kapadia in the teen romance drama titled Bobby. Between 1973 and 2000, Kapoor starred as the romantic lead in 92 films, including Kabhi Kabhie, Laila Majnu, Amar Akbar Anthony, Prem Rog, Coolie, Chandni, Henna, Deewana, Bol Radha Bol and Damini.