Shakti Kapoor (born Sunil Kapoor; 3 September 1952)
is an Indian actor and comedian who appears in
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
films. Known for his villainous and comic roles in
Hindi
Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
films, he has featured in over 600 films.
In the 1980s and 1990s, Kapoor teamed up with actor
Asrani
Govardhan Asrani (born 1 January 1940), popularly known simply as Asrani, is an Indian actor and director whose Bollywood career has spanned five decades. He has acted in over 350 Hindi films. Asrani has played the lead roles, character roles, ...
and
Kader Khan
Kader Khan (22 October 1937 – 31 December 2018) was an Indian actor, screenwriter and film director. As an actor, he appeared in over 300 Bollywood films after his debut film in the 1973 film '' Daag'', starring Rajesh Khanna, in which he ...
as the comical or evil team in over 100 films. He was a contestant in the Indian reality show ''
Bigg Boss
''Bigg Boss'' is an Indian reality television game show franchise based on the Dutch reality show '' Big Brother''. It is produced by Endemol Shine India through Viacom18 and Disney Star. Subsequently, the various versions of the show are made ...
'' in 2011.
Early life
Kapoor was born in
Delhi
Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders w ...
to a
Punjabi family. His father ran a clothes shop in
Connaught Place, New Delhi. After a long struggle in
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
, Kapoor was spotted by
Sunil Dutt
Sunil Dutt (born Balraj Dutt; 6 June 1929 — 25 May 2005) was an Indian actor, film producer, director and politician. Dutt was one of the major stars of Hindi cinema in the late 1950s and 1960s and continued to star in many successful film ...
while he was making ''
Rocky
''Rocky'' is a 1976 American sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It is the first installment in the ''Rocky'' franchise and stars Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, and Burgess M ...
'' to launch his son
Sanjay Dutt
Sanjay Balraj Dutt (born 29 July 1959) is an Indian actor who primarily works in Hindi cinema. In a career spanning over four decades, Dutt has won several accolades and acted in over 100 films, ranging from romance to comedy genres, though u ...
. He was then cast as the antagonist in the movie. But Dutt felt that his name "Sunil Kapoor" wouldn't do justice to his villainous stint and hence, "Shakti Kapoor" was born.
Personal life
Kapoor is married to Shivangi Kolhapure (elder sister of actresses
Padmini Kolhapure
Padmini Kolhapure is an Indian actress and singer, who works primarily in Hindi films. She began her acting career in 1972 at the age of seven, and her early works include ''Zindagi'' (1976) and ''Dream Girl'' (1977). She had her breakthrough ...
and
Tejaswini Kolhapure
Tejaswini Kolhapure (born 1 January 1980)is an Indian super model and actress.
Personal life
Kolhapure was born in Mumbai in a Maharashtrian family. Her father, Pandharinath Kolhapure, is a classical singer whose family was from Kolhapur. ) and has two children, a son
Siddhanth Kapoor
Siddhanth Kapoor (born 6 July 1984) is an Indian actor and assistant director who works in Bollywood films. Son of actor Shakti Kapoor and brother of actress Shraddha Kapoor, he started his career by working as an assistant director in various ...
and a daughter
Shraddha Kapoor
Shraddha Kapoor (born 3 March 1987 or 1989[Mumbai
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...](_blank)
.
Career
As a struggler in Bollywood, initially Shakti Kapoor did many inconsequential roles in movies, all the while looking out for a suitable role as a leading man. He started his Bollywood journey with movie Khel Khilari Ka (starring Darmendra and Hema Malini) in 1977. The years 1980–81 established Shakti Kapoor as an actor in
Bollywood
Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...
with two of his movies, where he was villain - ''
Qurbani'' and ''
Rocky
''Rocky'' is a 1976 American sports drama film directed by John G. Avildsen and written by and starring Sylvester Stallone. It is the first installment in the ''Rocky'' franchise and stars Talia Shire, Burt Young, Carl Weathers, and Burgess M ...
''. In 1983, Kapoor had roles in ''
Himmatwala'' and the
Subhash Ghai Subhash may refer to:
People
* Subhash Agarwal, Indian professional player and coach of English billiards and snooker
* Subhash Awchat (born 1960), Indian artist and author based in Mumbai
* Subhash Bapurao Wankhede (born 1963), Indian politician ...
directed movie ''
Hero
A hero (feminine: heroine) is a real person or a main fictional character who, in the face of danger, combats adversity through feats of ingenuity, courage, or Physical strength, strength. Like other formerly gender-specific terms (like ...
''. Kapoor had played villain roles in both these movies.
In the 1990s, he often diversified to positive comic roles and performed them with equal finesse in movies like
Raja Babu. He has been nominated for the
Filmfare Award
The Filmfare Awards are annual awards that honour artistic and technical excellence in the Hindi-language film industry of India.Al The Filmfare ceremony is one of the most famous film events in India. The awards were first introduced by th ...
in the Best Comedian category and won once, for his performance as Nandu in David Dhawan's film, Raja Babu. Some of his comic roles have been as Inspector Bhinde in ''
Insaaf'', Prasad in ''
Baap Numbri Beta Dus Numbri
''Baap Numbri Beta Dus Numbri'' (; ) is a 1990 Indian Hindi-language action comedy film directed by Aziz Sejawal and produced by Iqbal Baig. It stars Kader Khan, Shakti Kapoor in pivotal roles. Other cast includes Jackie Shroff, Farah, Aditya ...
'', Crime Master Gogo in ''
Andaz Apna Apna
''Andaz Apna Apna'' () is a 1994 Indian Hindi-language comedy film directed by Rajkumar Santoshi and produced by Vinay Kumar Sinha. It stars Aamir Khan, Salman Khan, Raveena Tandon, Karishma Kapoor, Paresh Rawal (in a dual role) and Shakti Kap ...
'', ''
Tohfa
''Tohfa'' () is a 1984 Indian Hindi-language melodrama comedy film produced by D. Ramanaidu under the Suresh Productions banner and directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. It stars Jeetendra, Sridevi and Jaya Prada. The film upon its release was a massi ...
'', as Batuknath in ''
ChaalBaaz
''ChaalBaaz'' (, ) is a 1989 Indian Hindi-language slapstick film directed by Pankaj Parashar and written by Rajesh Mazumdar and Kamlesh Pandey. It stars Sridevi in dual roles, with Sunny Deol and Rajinikanth. The film revolves around twin siste ...
'' and as Goonga in ''
Bol Radha Bol
''Bol Radha Bol'' is a 1992 Indian Hindi-language crime thriller film directed by David Dhawan, starring Juhi Chawla and Rishi Kapoor. Chawla received her third Filmfare Award for Best Actress nomination for her performance.
Plot
Kishen Malho ...
''.
Kapoor has been a reference for mimicry artistes who emulate his style and dialogues such as "Aaaooo Lolita" from the movie ''
Tohfa
''Tohfa'' () is a 1984 Indian Hindi-language melodrama comedy film produced by D. Ramanaidu under the Suresh Productions banner and directed by K. Raghavendra Rao. It stars Jeetendra, Sridevi and Jaya Prada. The film upon its release was a massi ...
'', "Main Nanha sa Chotta sa Bachcha Hoon" from the movie ''Chaalbaaz'' and "Nandu sabka bandhu, samajhta nahi hai yaar" from the movie ''
Raja Babu''. Since 2000, Kapoor is a regular fixture in
Priyadarshan
Priyadarshan (born 30 January 1957) is an Indian film director, screenwriter and producer who works predominantly in Malayalam and Hindi films, while also having done six films in Tamil and two films in Telugu. He has done about 31 films in Hi ...
films like ''
Hungama Hungama may refer to:
* ''Hungama'' (1971 film), a Bollywood comedy film
* ''Hungama'' (2003 film), a Bollywood comedy
* ''Hungama'' (2005 film), a Telugu comedy film
* Hungama TV, an Indian children's television channel
* Hungama Digital Media ...
'', ''
Hulchul'', ''
Chup Chup Ke
''Chup Chup Ke'' () is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language comedy drama film directed by Priyadarshan. Originally titled ''Khatta Meetha'', it is adapted from Malayalam film ''Punjabi House'' (1998). The film stars Shahid Kapoor (Kismat Konnection), ...
'', ''
Malamaal Weekly
''Malamaal Weekly'' is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language comedy film written and directed by Priyadarshan and starring Paresh Rawal, Om Puri, Riteish Deshmukh, Rajpal Yadav and Asrani. The film received mixed reviews from critics, but was successful ...
'' and the
Malayalam
Malayalam (; , ) is a Dravidian language spoken in the Indian state of Kerala and the union territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry (Mahé district) by the Malayali people. It is one of 22 scheduled languages of India. Malayalam was des ...
remake ''
Bhagam Bhag
''Bhagam Bhag'' () is a 2006 Indian Hindi-language comedy thriller film written and directed by Priyadarshan from the screenplay by Neeraj Vora. It was produced by Sunil Shetty and Dhilin Mehta. The film stars Akshay Kumar, Govinda and Paresh Raw ...
''. He also acted in a few Bengali films of
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
, Odia film and in an Assamese feature film. In 2011, he was in the reality television show ''
Bigg Boss 5
''Bigg Boss 5'' is the fifth season of the Indian reality TV show ''Bigg Boss'', which aired on Colors TV from 2 October 2011 to 7 January 2012 with Sanjay Dutt and Salman Khan as the hosts.
During the launch on 2 October, fourteen hand-picke ...
'' as one of the contestants. He has appeared in the musical comedy ''Aasman Se Gire Khajoor Pe Atke'' with his sister-in-law
Padmini Kolhapure
Padmini Kolhapure is an Indian actress and singer, who works primarily in Hindi films. She began her acting career in 1972 at the age of seven, and her early works include ''Zindagi'' (1976) and ''Dream Girl'' (1977). She had her breakthrough ...
. He is also the brand ambassador of Servokon.
Controversies
In March 2005,
India TV
India TV is a Hindi news channel based in Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India. The channel was launched on 20 May 2004 by Rajat Sharma and wife Ritu Dhawan. The channel is a subsidiary of Independent News Service, which was co-founded by Sharma and Dha ...
released a video allegedly showing Shakti Kapoor asking for sexual favour from an undercover reporter posing as an aspiring actress, in return for entry into the film industry. He told the undercover reporter: "I want to make love to you ... kiss you"
According to India TV, this was a
sting operation
In law enforcement, a sting operation is a deceptive operation designed to catch a person attempting to commit a crime. A typical sting will have an undercover law enforcement officer, detective, or co-operative member of the public play a role a ...
to expose the phenomenon of
casting couch
The casting couch is a euphemism for the practice of soliciting sexual favors from a job applicant in exchange for employment in the entertainment industry, primarily acting roles. The practice is illegal in the United States. Predominantly male ...
prevalent in Bollywood. This incident sparked a controversy in Bollywood and Kapoor was banned by the Film & Television Producers Guild of India. Association of Indian Motion Pictures and TV Programme Producers decided not to ban him as no allegations against him were proved. One week later, however, the Film & Television Producers Guild lifted the ban.
Kapoor claimed that the video clip in question was doctored and he has been framed. He said that the undercover reporter met him several times and threatened to commit suicide if he did not come to the hotel room she had booked.
Accolades
Filmography
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kapoor, Shakti
1952 births
Living people
Film and Television Institute of India alumni
Indian male film actors
Male actors in Hindi cinema
Indian male comedians
Male actors from Mumbai
Punjabi people
Delhi University alumni
Bigg Boss (Hindi TV series) contestants