‘When Shahid, Ishaan and I are together, it is a madhouse because we are all performers.’
IMAGE: Shahid Kapoor with his mother Neelima Azeem. Photograph: Kind courtesy Shahid Kapoor/Instagram
“I am happier watching them dance than dancing myself,” Neelima Azeem says proudly, referring to her sons, Shahid Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter.
She reveals much more about her star sons, and tells Rediff Senior Contributor Roshmila Bhattacharya, “My sons are similar in the way they walk and neither has worked with an eye to the box office.”
‘Though the divorce was by mutual consent, I was worried the subject may be a little too close to home and might upset him’
IMAGE: Shahid Kapoor and Ayesha Takia in the Complan ad.
When Shahid was seven, he acted in a series whose title I can’t recall, but the episode was called Child Custody.
His parents, played by Anita Kanwar and Kanwaljeet Singh, are divorced and in court for the custody of their child.
There was a scene where the judge awards custody to the father. When the mother informs the child that he will have to wait till he is 18 before deciding whom he wants to be with, he hugs her tightly and bursts into tears.
By then, Pankaj (Kapur) and I had separated. Though the divorce was by mutual consent and there had been no ugliness, I was worried the subject may be a little too close to home and might upset him.
But even when Pankaj and I were together, Shahid had lived in Delhi with my parents and me, his aunt, uncle and cousin Meghna. He would come to Mumbai once a year, on his birthday, to meet his father, who had moved here to pursue a career in acting.
When Shahid was 10, I shifted to Mumbai as well, to work as an actress and was waiting for him to finish his school term before he joined me.
During those eight-nine months, I would fly down to Delhi frequently.
When he started shooting for Child Custody, I would accompany him to the shoot and was amazed to see how professional he was for a child of his age, discussing technical aspects like lighting and colour blocking with confidence.
Five minutes before the final heart-wrenching scene was canned, Shahid was playing football outside but as soon as he faced the camera, he broke down, beautifully bringing out emotions hard for a seven-year-old child to understand.
Looking at the performance, so natural and evocative, I knew he was a gifted actor.
‘He auditioned for Ishq Vishk, but was rejected because he was too skinny’
IMAGE: Shahid Kapoor with Amrita Rao and Shenaz in Ishq Vishk.
I’m a popular actress myself, with a huge fan following, who back then was constantly in the news for my performances, dancing, looks and charm.
My career took a backseat after Shahid, and then Ishaan, was born.
I got busy bringing up my children and later, spending time with my grandchildren.
Now that they have all grown up, urged on by my sons, I want to get back to acting and dance.
Pankaj too is a talented and famous actor, well established in the Hindi film industry now, but Shahid has never sought our help.
He’s a self-made actor who has done everything on his own, even going to auditions alone.
He was cute then, with lovely expressive eyes and a smile to die for, and quickly bagged big commercials like Pepsi and Close-Up, along with music videos.
Several filmmakers were waiting for him to grow up.
Ramesh Taurani wanted to launch him after seeing him in the Aryans’ music video Aankhon Mein and he auditioned for Ishq Vishk, but was rejected because he was too skinny.
He bulked up and went back for a second audition, this time landing the film.
I would visit the sets often and was impressed with his talent, energy and charisma.
‘Neither sons have worked with an eye to the box office’
IMAGE: Janhavi Kapoor and Ishaan Khatter in Dhadak.
Ishaan is also a fine and charismatic actor, who, since his debut, has raised expectations and got a lot of love.
My sons are similar in the way they walk and neither has worked with an eye to the box office.
Ishaan enjoys working with mainstream filmmakers. At the same time, he is not big on success and wants to collaborate with directors with whom he can grow as an actor irrespective of whether they are from a different cinema or school of filmmaking.
I still remember how excited he was when Majid Majidi, the internationally acclaimed Iranian filmmaker of classics like Children of Heaven, The Colour of Paradise and Baran, offered the lead in Beyond the Clouds.
But he was afraid he might have to turn down the coveted project because he had already signed Dhadak.
I asked him to speak with Karan Johar, Dhadak‘s producer, who generously told him he would not stop him from working with Majid Majidi and despite giving him a break, let him be introduced by another filmmaker.
I was stunned when I saw his performance in his first film, it wasn’t that of a debutant.
Beyond the Clouds was followed by Dhadak, a serious mainstream Bollywood film with songs, dance and tragic drama.
‘Haider marked a turnaround in Shahid’s career’
IMAGE: Shahid Kapoor and Tabu in Haider.
When Shahid entered the industry, there weren’t too many opportunities for Indian actors to collaborate with directors from other cinemas like Majidi.
Ishq Vishk also made him a popular star in Bollywood’s mainstream and as a senior actress, I appreciated Vivah‘s Indian and sensitive Prem and Jab We Met‘s soft and empathetic Aditya.
The double role in Kaminey left me awe-struck while Chup Chup Ke proved my boy had a knack for comedy too.
Then some of his regular commercial films which had him as a chocolate box hero flopped and I think that’s when he made a conscious decision to do something bold and out-of-the-box.
Haider was an eye-opener and marked a turnaround in his career.
Over the last decade, we have seen him in a procession of diverse roles, from Tommy Singh in Udta Punjab to Kabir Singh, from Farzi to the more recent Deva which is doing very well on Netflix.
Jerseyis another favourite, a masterful performance, with so much finesse and subtlety.
Like Beyond the Clouds, I have watched Jersey 10 times already, both being my favourite performances.
I would have seen Haider 10 times too had there been more screenings and if it was streaming on OTT.
Today, Shahid has found his own niche with a strong understanding of the technicalities of his craft and Bollywood’s biggest and best should exploit this powerhouse of talent more.
‘When Shahid, Ishaan and I are together, it is a madhouse because we are all performers’
IMAGE: Ishaan Khatter in The Royals.
Ishaan has been transitioning effortlessly from the British miniseries A Suitable Boy to a Bollywood horror comedy Phone Booth, from the war drama Pippa to the American Netflix limited series The Perfect Couple.
The Netflix show The Royals has just started streaming and his senior co-star, Zeenat Aman has praised him highly, calling him a ‘rising superstar’ to watch out for.
While he has impressed in the company of fine actors from other cinemas in intelligent films and shows, Ishaan has often been advised to keep one foot in commercial Indian cinema which gives him a chance to sing, dance and do some herogiri.
The Royals is right up the street.
He will also be seen in Neeraj Ghaywan’s Homebound, an emotional drama, very different from The Royals.
I will accompany Ishaan to Cannes where Homebound is premiering and walk the red carpet with him.
Earlier, I had gone with him to London and Istanbul for the screenings of Beyond the Clouds.
More recently, we took a mother-son trip together for Singapore Tourism.
When Shahid, Ishaan and I are together, it is a madhouse because we are all performers.
Despite doing so much work myself, I am a loyalist, admirer and fan of my sons.
I am happier watching them dance than dancing myself.
For one of my own screenings, I just walk in, but when it’s one of their films, there is so much enthusiasm, excitement, expectations and euphoria.
I revel in their excellence and achievements as only a mother can.
