Mumbai: Actor Ranbir Kapoor, who belongs to the fourth generation of the legendary Kapoor family, admitted that he is a product of nepotism but said he always had to work hard to survive in the industry.
“I’m a product of nepotism and I got it very easy in my life but I always had to work hard because I realised that I come from a family like this and if I don’t have an individualistic approach and if I don’t make a name for myself, I’ll not succeed in the film industry,” said Ranbir, while speaking at a session titled ‘Tribute to legendary filmmaker Raj Kapoor and Guru Dutt’.
“You guys celebrate a lot of success of my family but there are a lot of failures also, and as much as you learn from the success, you learn from the failure also,” added Ranbir, the son of actors Rishi and Neetu Kapoor.
“What do I feel about being born in this family, for me it was like any other normal family, I didn’t know any better,” Ranbir said at the event which was held during the ‘Celebrate Cinema 2025’ festival at filmmaker Subhash Ghai’s film institute Whistling Woods.
He also shared that he grew up watching music directors, singers and lyricist meeting his grandfather Raj Kapoor and discussing movies.
“There used to be a lot of arguments, but not of the domestic kind. They would debate over a scene or the correct lyrics of a song,” Ranbir recalled.
Known for movies such as ‘Wake Up Sid’, ‘Rockstar’, ‘Barfi’, ‘Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani’, and ‘Animal’, Ranbir believes filmmaking is a team effort.
Recalling the words of his great-grandfather Prithviraj Kapoor, he said, “Filmmaking is not dictatorship, it’s a marriage of so many people and artists coming together, and believing in something, and believing in inspiring people.”
“What he said moved deeply ‘Kala desh ki seva mein’. So whatever you can do, do it to inspire the next generation… If you can do that then there’s nothing greater than that,” Ranbir added.
Recounting his experience of working as an assistant director with filmmaker Sanjay Leela Bhansali for ‘Black’, featuring Amitabh Bachchan and Rani Mukerji, the actor said, “When I saw him write scenes and how the actors perform, I was noticing, studying them. I was not trying to ape them but I would tell myself, ‘How would I approach the scene?’. But once you become a working professional you start acting in movies, every film is different and there’s no fixed method. As actors you’ve to be malleable. You can’t say, ‘I work only in this way’. Every filmmaker has a different way of telling a story and filmmaking is a director’s medium. Like, if a director wants it a certain way, then it’s your job as an actor to fulfil that.”
On his advice for budding actors and directors, Ranbir said, “We are not selling the world, we are providing entertainment. So do it to the best of your ability and don’t get stuck with one method.”
Ranbir, who has been in the film industry for 18 years, wishes to nurture young talent.
“Film institutes are always the best place to be around because you see people with so many dreams, talent bursting with so much infectious energy. My dream is that at some point I can become an acting coach, give acting tips, and share my experiences,” he expressed.
“It is something that I would love to do, not only to impart knowledge but also because I’m in a phase in my career where I can feel saturated, and I’ll get so much energy from the newer people,” said Ranbir.
On the work front, Ranbir will next be seen in Bhansali’s ‘Love and War’ and Nitesh Tiwari’s ‘Ramayana’.
At the event, two scholarships in the name of Raj Kapoor and Guru Dutt were announced by filmmaker Ghai for the students of his institute.
