While Boney Kapoor is now a renowned producer and belongs to one of the richest families in Bollywood, did you know it wasn’t an easy journey for him and his family at all? The producer, whose latest venture ‘Maidaan’ is doing fairly decent, has taken a trip down memory lane in a conversation with Galatta Plus and opened up about the struggles he, his brother-actor Anil Kapoor, and father-producer Surinder Kapoor faced initially.
These struggles were during the early years, and were primarily financial hardships. He recounted a poignant story of his father, who encountered considerable hardships, including losing ten jobs due to his staunch advocacy for workers’ rights, resulting in their family relocating to Mumbai, a move facilitated by Prithviraj Kapoor.
“My father was brought to Bombay by Prithviraj Kapoor. My grandfather handed over my father to Prithviraj ji because my father left about 10-12 jobs. Left, in the sense, he was thrown out because he was siding with and supporting the workers, fought for their causes. My father was in debt. We lived in Raj Kapoor’s outhouse, where servants and drivers lived.”
Determined to overcome these obstacles, he added, “When my grandmother passed away, Anil and I decided that he will do acting and I will take over the production. Somebody had to run the show at home also. My father had a heart problem; we didn’t want to give him stress.”
When that journey started, Boney Kapoor became embroiled in a financial mess because of the debt his father carried. “My father was in debt. We were in a sh**hole,” he shared.
Ever since, the producer has made significant contributions to the industry. Despite these challenges, he has forged a thriving career in the film industry. His latest endeavour, ‘Maidaan,’ starring Ajay Devgn has garnered success, and has crossed the Rs 30 crore mark worldwide.
