Could Shahid Kapoor become a Bollywood legend to rival the Khans and Kumars? On his 40th birthday we look back at the actor’s remarkable rise from music videos to Kabir Singh
- Upstaged for years by the likes of Aishwarya Rai, Deepika Padukone and Kareena Kapoor, his major films are now streaming on Netflix, Amazon Prime and Disney
- Kapoor features in almost 100 music videos on YouTube and his new cricket-based film Jersey debuts over Diwali 2021 in November
It’s taken Shahid Kapoor some 20 years and several bumps on the road to reach an exalted position in Bollywood. The now certified A-list actor – who turned 40 this week – Kapoor has proved time and again his capabilities as an actor and dancer, but when Kabir Singh was released in the summer of 2019, no one anticipated its mega box office success. A genuine Bollywood blockbuster, it has made over 3.8 billion rupees (US$52 million) and turned Kapoor into a superstar.
A controversial film that’s so unlike the typical boy-meets-girl musical romcom narrative than dominates Bollywood, its flawed characters, mature themes and the lack of the usual song and dance routines makes it stand out as a harbinger of change in an industry desperately needing some.
Kapoor has collected several awards
A decorated actor with an impressive set of trophies, Kapoor has finally confirmed a place in the pantheon among the Khans and Kumars, after being in the industry for decades and having survived fluctuating box office results in a career spanning more than 30 films. In 20167 he won best actor at the International Indian Film Academy Awards for his role as a reformed drug addict rocker in Udta Punjab.
Teenage Kapoor was a dancer with Shiamak Davar’s troupe
From a child actor in commercials, to a scrawny teen in music videos, then a background dancer in Bollywood movies – the rise of the now-married father-of-two has been slow.