In a revealing glimpse into Bollywood's most legendary family dynamics, Rishi Kapoor once shared startling details about working under his father Raj Kapoor's direction, particularly the intense pressure to emulate acting legend Dilip Kumar's performance style.
The Prem Rog Pressure Cooker
During the making of their 1982 film Prem Rog, Raj Kapoor expected nothing less than perfection from his son Rishi. According to Rishi's recollection in an old Film Companion interview, whenever a shot failed to meet Raj Kapoor's exacting standards, the legendary showman would direct his frustration squarely at his son.
Rishi Kapoor, affectionately known as Chintu, remembered one particularly telling instance when his father lost his temper on set. "Chintu, mujhe Yusuf chahiye. Look as Dilip Kumar looks in a shot. I want you to do that," Raj Kapoor demanded, using Dilip Kumar's real name, Yusuf Khan.
A Director's Unconventional Admiration
What stood out to Rishi was his father's extraordinary admiration for his contemporary. "I mean no other actor would talk about his contemporary like that," Rishi had expressed with evident awe. Raj Kapoor's confidence and generosity in wanting his son to learn from another acting great revealed much about his character as both a filmmaker and a father.
Rishi went on to praise his father's sensitivity as a director, noting how Raj Kapoor treated actors with immense care, likely because he himself had been one of the finest performers of his generation. Yet, this sensitivity had its limits when artistic vision was at stake.
The Blame Game on Set
With a laugh, Rishi added that responsibility for imperfect shots often fell disproportionately on him. "Whenever he wasn't 100% satisfied with it, he needed one more take, so he would say cut and then put the whole blame on me saying, 'I had told you to do it that way, then why are you doing it wrong.' So you know, I used to get the blame for nothing, for no reason at all."
This family revelation resurfaced during the Netflix special Dining With The Kapoors, which premiered on November 21, 2025. The gathering brought together Kapoor family members including Ranbir Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor, Neetu Singh, Saif Ali Khan, and Karisma Kapoor for a lunch hosted by Armaan Jain to celebrate the 100th birth anniversary of Raj Kapoor.
The absence of Rishi Kapoor, who passed away in 2020, was deeply felt during the special. Throughout his life, Rishi often spoke of his legendary father with a complex mixture of fear, awe, and affection that characterized their relationship both personally and professionally.
The bond between Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar stretched far beyond professional admiration. Their friendship began in childhood in Peshawar, long before they became towering figures of Indian cinema. In an old Lehren Retro interview, Dilip Kumar had reminisced about how Raj encouraged him to consider acting as a career, saying "you go into films, we both will go into films."
This behind-the-scenes account offers a fascinating look into the pressures and expectations within one of Bollywood's most celebrated families, where artistic legacy and personal relationships often intertwined in complex ways.
