Raj Kapoor and Nargis, The Untold Story
Raj Kapoor, an Indian film actor, producer, and director, is widely regarded as one of the greatest and most influential actors and directors in the history of Bollywood. Raj Kapoor made his Bollywood debut in 1935 Inquilab as a ten-year-old . He has entertained audiences with films such as Awaara, Shree 420, Chori Chori, Anari, Boot Polish, Ab Dilli Door Nahin, Sapnon Ka Saudagar, and many others. Aside from being an incredible actor he was also the founder of RK films.
One will never forget his epic saga with co-star Nargis. Although Raj Kapoor famously stated that his wife was the mother of his children, Nargis was the mother of his films. In 1945, Raj Kapoor met Nargis when she was a star, a veteran of eight films. She was 20 years old, Raj was 22 years old, and they were both new to the film industry. They were paired together in Aag in 1948. They became close after appearing in a number of films together. Nargis was completely devoted to Raj Kapoor, investing her heart, soul, and even her money in his films.
Raj Kapoor also adored Nargis, but he was already married and had children. Despite this, Raj Kapoor had repeatedly promised Nargis that he would marry her. Nargis was madly in love with Raj and wished to marry him. Nargis began to suspect that Raj was not paying attention to her after 9 years of marriage. She began to feel alienated in his films and was dissatisfied with the roles he was assigning her.
Nargis was dissatisfied with her non-glamorous role in Shree 420 in 1955. As a result of her rage, she signed Mother India in 1957 without informing Raj Kapoor. This was extremely painful for him. The set of Mother India caught fire during filming, and Nargis’ co-star Sunil Dutt saved her. He was so badly burned while saving her that he had to be hospitalized. Nargis and Sunil fell in love as a result of this incident.
In the year 1958, the two were married. When he learned of Nargis’ marriage to Sunil Dutt, Raj Kapoor was devastated. According to his wife, Krishna Kapoor, “night after night he would come home drunk and collapse in the bathtub weeping.” Raj Kapoor was convinced that Nargis had duped him. Raj Kapoor stated in an interview in 1986 that Nargis cheated him by signing Mother India, and he never forgave her. Even after Nargis left the world, Raj Kapoor stood with the outsiders at her funeral. While everyone urged him to approach her lying corpse, the actor refused.
For the uninitiated, Nargis died of pancreatic cancer in 1981, just three days before her son Sanjay Dutt made his Hindi film debut with Rocky. In her honor, the Nargis Dutt Memorial Cancer Foundation was founded in 1982. In her honor, the Nargis Dutt Award for Best Feature Film on National Integration is given at the Annual Film Awards ceremony.
Raj Kapoor suffered from asthma in his later years and died of asthma complications in 1988, at the age of 63. He collapsed during the presentation of the Dadasaheb Phalke Award and was taken to the hospital for treatment. He was hospitalized for about a month before succumbing to asthma complications.
