Subhash K Jha shares 10 reasons why Shakun Batra’s Kapoor & Sons, starring Rishi Kapoor, Sidharth Malhotra, Fawad Khan, Alia Bhatt, Ratna Pathak Shah, and Rajat Kapoor, which turns 10 on March 18, is still one to watch.
1. The cast. Three generations of a dysfunctional business family, played by some of Bollywood’s most charismatic actors, from Rishi Kapoor to Alia Bhatt. This is the only multi-starrer with such a cluttered cast since Karan Johar’s Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham.
2. Alia and Siddharth Malhotra, said to be a real-life pair in those days, were back together after Karan Johar’s Student Of The Year. This time, they share a far more comfortable equation. And that comfort level showed.
3. Fawad Khan, who played Malhotra’s brother, was last seen in Khubsoorat. He has a huge fan base, especially among women in India. If nothing else, Fawad, who played a gay character, ensured a huge female following for the Kapoor family that believed in fighting and flirting together.
4. Rishi Kapoor played the 90-year-old patriarch Kapoor of the family. His makeup was done at a staggering cost of Rs 2.5 crore by Greg Cannom, the multi-Oscar nominated makeup man who has won the Oscar thrice. Greg had also done Shah Rukh’s special makeup for Maneesh Sharma’s Fan.
5. Rishi Kapoor said he resembled Alia in his Bobby days. They last came together in Student Of The Year where they didn’t have that many scenes together. In Kapoor & Sons, Alia played RK’s grandson’s love interest. And they have quite a few moments of shared warmth.
6. The highlight of the film are the confrontation scenes between the two brothers played by Siddharth Malhotra and Fawad Khan.
7. Before we forget, the middle generation in this 3-generation Kapoor saga was played by the amazing Rajat Kapoor and Ratna Pathak Shah. Sadly, the entire marketing effort of the film was centred on the three young actors Siddharth Malhotra, Fawad Khan, and Alia Bhatt, bypassing the generation that would actually be expected to deliver the strongest performances.
8. Though Rishi Kapoor and the director had differences, the actor later told me Kapoor & Sons was one of his best films. The director agreed, “He gave me one of my most memorable characters, and I’ll be eternally indebted for what he gave this film. And I don’t think anyone could have brought that warmth and love to the film but him.”
9. Director Shakun Batra’s previous film Ekk Main Aur Ekk Tu featured Kareena Kapoor, while Kapoor & Sons feature’s Kareena’s uncle Rishi Kapoor. The Kapoors are lucky for Shakun. Shakun ka shagun?
10. The film was shot in the green splendour of Conoor. The previous big Hindi film to be shot there was Vikram Bhatt’s Raaz in 2001. Long time no see.
