Bollywood actor Sanjay Kapoor: 'Entertainment doesn't mean naach gana only'

Brothers Anil Kapoor, Boney Kapoor and Sanjay Kapoor. Sanjay Kapoor has been posting yesteryear photos on his Instagram for some time now. (Image / Instagram / @SanjayKapoor2500)

Actor Sanjay Kapoor is coming up on a big work anniversary: he completes 30 years in Bollywood in April 2025. Brother to Bollywood producer Boney and actor Anil Kapoor, Sanjay made his Hindi film debut opposite Tabu in 'Prem' (1995), written by Javed Akhtar and directed by the late Satish Kaushik.

Sanjay Kapoor with Prem co-star Tabu. (Image via Instagram/@SanjayKapoor2500)

Indeed, Sanjay Kapoor's Instagram these days is a chequerboard of stills from new releases and old. Case in point, this post he shared about his debut film:

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A post shared by Sanjay Kapoor (@sanjaykapoor2500)

More recently, Sanjay Kapoor has been seen in films from Shriram Raghavan's 'Merry Christmas' to Netflix's 'Murder Mubarak' that was adapted from Anuja Chauhan's book 'Club You to Death' and now 'House of Lies' on Zee5. 'Merry Christmas' starring Vijay Sethupathi and Katrina Kaif apart from Kapoor, is the story of a murderer in search of scapegoats. 'Murder Mubarak' has an ensemble cast, including Karisma Kapoor, Vijay Verma, Sara Ali Khan and Pankaj Tripathi, among others. Sanjay Kapoor plays a gay Maharaja who has a royal title but no money. In 'House of Lies', Sanjay Kapoor plays an investigating officer in a murder case.

In an interview with Moneycontrol, Sanjay Kapoor talked about working with all the leading ladies of the 1990s, from Madhuri Dixit Nene and Tabu to Karisma Kapoor and Manisha Koirala; how working in whodunnits one after another just sort of happened; his brief appearances on all three seasons 'Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives' with his wife Maheep Kapoor; his daughter Shanaya Kapoor's film debut and what he told her about the movie business; and how their family full of actors and producers is like an industry in itself. Edited excerpts:

We saw you in Murder Mubarak on Netflix and now in House of Lies on Zee5. Both whodunnits... Is this a conscious choice?

Both are whodunnits, but in one I am the suspect and in the other I am the investigating officer. 'Merry Christmas', which released a few months earlier, is also a thriller. It may not be a whodunnit, but the concept is a thriller concept. I had not planned it like that, it just happened this way.

Actually, I started 'House of Lies' much earlier - about two years back. Unfortunately, we lost our producer, Mr (Ajay Kumar) Gupta. He passed away and things got a bit delayed. The film is out on Zee5 now. And 'Murder Mubarak', which I signed just last year, is on Netflix. ('Merry Christmas' released in theatres in January 2024, and it is now on Netflix as well.)

It's not a conscious effort (to do more whodunnits), but I do love thrillers. As a viewer also, I love watching whodunnits - but that's not the only reason. I had never played a cop. So for 'House of Lies', I liked the script and one of my reasons for doing it is that I had never played a cop in a career spanning 30 years.

House of Lies is a pretty short film, with a run time of less than 80 minutes...

To be honest, if we had not lost the producer, you would have seen more grandeur. There are no songs. We had to compromise on the climax; we could have gone to the airport, we were supposed to go to Goa. But sometimes there are things that are not in anyone's hands, there's a budget constraint and the person who is putting in the money is no longer there. As actors, we understood the situation. And we made sure the picture was completed. But whatever you are seeing, it could have been 50 percent larger - it's not just the length.

Sanjay Kapoor in 'House of Lies' on Zee 5.

We are seeing an explosion of different types of content today. What do you think is the North Star - is it being authentic or entertaining?

At the end of the day, it's entertainment. There are creative people involved and the concept could be a drama, it could be a thriller, it could be a comedy, it could be a larger-than-life film. Whatever it is, at the end of the day, we are trying to make something which the director feels is something he/she wants to do, which is new and to entertain the audience.

Entertainment doesn't mean naach gana only. You can be a very serious film and you can be very entertaining. For me, being engrossed in a project, engrossed in watching something or engrossed when I am working on a project is the most important things. So yes, all kinds of content is being made but the idea is to engage people.

Speaking of different types of content, you've also been on 'Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives' on Netflix. How did that happen?

It's a reality TV show. I am part of it in Seasons 1 and 2, but the show is obviously about the wives and we are padded up just to give a bit of entertainment. I've been very honest on the show. What I am in real life is what you see.

Shooting for Season 3 is also done. It should come out around October. I am part of it in a small way.

What next?

I have another project which I have just finished. It's called 'Laal Batti', it's directed by Prakash Jha.

Do you think Bollywood stylists get due credit? For example, the way you are styled in 'Murder Mubarak' where you play an impoverished Maharaja compared with your look in 'House of Lies', are worlds apart.

I don't agree that they don't get credit. When they do good work, they get enough credit. That's the reason when I heard Anaita (Shroff Adajania) is doing the costumes for 'Murder Mubarak', I was very excited because of the kind of work she has done. She's a well-known person, and you know that what she gives won't just look good, it will also have a lot of thought put into it.

To give another example, look at 'Heeramandi'. Of course, the director gets the final say, but the designer also gets an opportunity to do something very different.

In 'House of Lives', it is very contemporary day-to-day life (attire). When I heard the script, I discussed with the director that I see Rajveer wearing a blazer. The designer was there and of course we chose it together.

But when you are doing a film like 'Murder Mubarak' or a historical film, then there is a lot more thought put into it: if the brooch is in the right place; if it's a uniform, it has to have the right number of stars in the right place. And when they do it correctly, they do get credit for it.

A still from Murder Mubarak on Netflix. (Image via X)

You've said in previous interviews that you decided to be cleanshaven initially to differentiate yourself from your brother Anil Kapoor...

That was in the initial four to five years. I thought how do I look different from a person who has been in the line for more than 10 years before me, is an established hero and we have a lot of similarities.

Today it doesn't matter because that comparison occurs in the early days. Now no one talks about it.

Your daughter made her Bollywood debut last year. Apart from your brothers, Boney and Anil Kapoor, you have nephews and nieces (Sonam Kapoor, Harsh Varrdhan Kapoor, Arjun Kapoor, Janhvi Kapoor, Khushi Kapoor) in the films now...

(Laughs) Yes, yes, a lot of us. We are like an industry in our family itself - there are producers, there are actors, actresses, a reality star in Maheep - we've covered it all.

You made your debut in 1995. Your daughter Shanaya Kapoor made her film debut in 2023. What are the things that have changed in this time, and what advice did you give her?

My daughter has seen my journey so closely. I am always there to give her advice but she is a very intelligent girl... I always say it's not a bed of roses, it's a lot of hard work. You have to be very passionate. People see the glamour, but you have to work your a**e off. She works hard. During Covid, when everyone was doing their fun Zoom calls, she was doing her diction and dancing.

Half of 2024 is over. What has changed (since 1995) is that things have become more professional. Today, the studio culture has come in. Infrastructure is much better today. OTT is great; there is a lot of opportunity for talent. New people are getting more opportunities, especially in OTT. Films depend a lot on stardom... kitne ki bikegi, log ayenge nahi ayenge, yeh hero bikta hai (how much will we make, will people come to see it, which hero pulls in the crowds). I remember when I saw 'Jamtara' on Netflix, I didn't know anyone in the cast, but I loved it. Hypothetically if this was planned for a theatrical release, it may not have been made also. Now, you are doing your reading, your workshops, you are spending so much time with the director. You are only thinking about your performance.

There are cons also - it's become too cutthroat. I remember there was a passion for filmmaking when my father was a single producer or when Boney (Kapoor) started, when we made movies like 'Mr India' and 'Hum Paanch', everyone sitting together like a family. Now, it's very business-like, everything is about numbers. Everyone is friendly but that apnapan (closeness) is missing.

When I did 'Auzaar', the contract was made after the shooting was complete. Itna trust hota tha (there was so much trust).

You've worked with some of the best actresses...

Yes, Madhuri, Juhi Chawla, Manisha Koirala... I am working with them again. I did 'Fame Game' with Madhuri a couple of years ago. With Manisha I did 'Lust Stories' and another film called 'Anjaane'. Everyone is doing so well, we are all getting the opportunity to work together again.