Shahid Kapoor

Biography: Shahid Kapoor, one of the most talented and established actors in the Bollywood hails from a prominent family. His maternal grandfather Anwar Azeem was a noted Marxist journalist and author from Bihar. Shahid was born to actor Pankaj Kapoor of Karamchand fame and actress and classical dancer Neelima Azeem on 25th February 1981 in Mumbai. He has a brother Ruhan and sister Sana. After his parents divorced when he was three years old, Shahid lived with his mother while his father remarried actress Supriya Pathak and had son Ishaan Khattar from this marriage.

Shahid completed his early education from Gyan Bharathi (Delhi) and his further studies were completed in Rajhans Vidyalaya (Mumbai). His career was launched with a music video by ‘The Aryans’ and he was also seen in TV commercials including a Pepsi ad with Shahrukh Khan and Kajol. A fabulous dancer, he was trained by the dance Maestro Shiamak Dhawar and made his movie debut as a background dancer in ‘Taal’ in 1998. His big break however, only came four years later in 2003 with Ken Ghosh’s ‘Ishq Vishq’ which proved his acting prowesses and won him the Filmfare Best male debut award.

The 2004 year saw him in the thriller Fida and a romantic comedy Dil Maange More. Both movies generated an average response from movie-goers .2005, His releases Deewane Huye Paagal (based on the Hollywood comedy there is something about Mary) and Wah! Life Ho To Aisi, were both entertaining without creating uproar at the box office. Shikhar, in which he worked with Ajay Devgan, was critically acclaimed and earned him a Star Screen awards nomination for Best Actor.

In 2006, Shahid moved away from romantic comedies when he played Raj Malhotra in the murder mystery ‘36 China Town’ and Jeetu in Priyadarshan’s comedy ‘Chup Chup Ke’, both falling into the average-success category. ‘ Vivah’, a drama of love, was a blockbuster and a high grosser. His on screen chemistry with co-star Amrita Rao, with who he also debuted in ‘Ishq Visq’ was widely appreciated. In 2007, ‘Fool and Final’ slid by, while for his role as Aditya Kashyap in ‘Jab We Met’, Shahid was nominated for the Filmfare Best Actor Awards and the movie was one of the year’s biggest hits. In 2008, ‘ Kismat Connection’ with Vidya Balan failed to shake the box office and only added to the list of averages.

On the personal front Shahid has had a few tumultuous relationships. Though he went out with actress Hrishita Bhatt prior to joining the industry, his love life grabbed the lime light when he started dating actress Kareena Kapoor in 2004. While his on screen chemistry with her in ‘Jab We Met’ set the box office on fire, ironically, they broke up just before it’s release in 2007.Since then he has been single, though linked to actress Vidya Balan, both maintaining a staunch ”just friends” tag.

Shahid will enthrall his fans further with Milenge Milenge in 2009. With his charming boyish looks, great dancing skills and energetic smile, this young rising Piscean star, is sure on his way to greater heights of success in Bollywood.

AKA & Alternative Spellings: Shahid Kapur