Recently, actress Khushboo Sundar opened up about her strong friendship with the late actor-producer, Rajiv Kapoor. She fondly recalled how they became friends and the many lessons he taught her.
Veteran actress and politician, Khushboo Sundar shared a strong bond with the late actor, Rajiv Kapoor. The duo’s close friendship is even more surprising, given that they never worked together on any projects. Rather, Rajiv and Khushboo’s relationship developed during the production of Ram Teri Ganga Maili when the actress was initially considered for the role but eventually turned down due to her young age. Recently, Khusbhoo Sundar elaborated on how her friendship with Rajiv began as well as the many things he taught her throughout the years.
Recently, actress, Khushboo Sundar sat down for a tell-all interview with Vickey Lalwani, during which she opened up about her strong friendship with Rajiv Kapoor. Khusboo was first introduced to the Kapoors when Ram Teri Ganga Maili was in production. In fact, the actress had been actor-producer, Raj Kapoor’s first choice for the role. However, due to her being ‘not even 14’ at the time, he eventually passed on her.
However, Khushboo continued visiting RK studios frequently to meet Raj Kapoor, whom she referred to as ‘Papaji.’ During those visits, Khushboo met Rajiv Kapoor, and their lifelong friendship began. The actress shared another anecdote about Rajiv Kapoor from the sets of Lava, in which he starred alongside Dimple Kapadia. Khushboo had apparently acted in a flashback scene from the movie, but Rajiv and director, Iqbal Singh weren’t too happy with the outcome. Khushboo narrated:
"Film ki shooting ho gayi. Jab brushes dekhe gaye tab Iqbal Singh Uncle ko, aur Chimpu (Rajiv Kapoor) ko, aur Tinu Uncle ko laga ki nahi. This wouldn’t be the right launchpad for her. Pehle film mein hi woh ek flashback mein aa rahi hai ja rahi hai. Nahi, ye ladki bechari isko hum introduce toh kar rahe hai lekin full-fledged ho toh kare, iss chote se character mein nahi karenge."
Khushboo further revealed that despite her entire scene being shot, it was then taken out of the film. However, Rajiv Kapoor stood by her through it all, and that is why their friendship remained so strong until the very day he passed away. So much so that the actress admits she still has his name and number saved in her phone and is reluctant to ever delete them.
In the same interview, Khusbhoo Sundar fondly recalled the many things she had learnt from the late actor, including the right nail polish to wear on her toes. Yes, you read that right! Khushboo Sundar revealed that it was somewhere in 1983 that Rajiv Kapoor had taught her to always wear white nail polish on her toes as that spelt ‘class.’ The actress smiled as she stated that in all the years since then, she had never applied any other colour to her toenails.
Not only that, the late Rajiv Kapoor even taught Khusboo how to walk in stilettos. The actress recounted how he would scold her because of the way she walked and elaborated on how he trained her to walk in heels, saying:
"Main chalti bhi thi toh itna daantte the Chimpu mujhe ki bas aa gayi. Pata laga jata hai 10 km durr se ki aa gayi. Thap thap thap itni awaz rehti thi. Toh Chimpu mujhe heel pehenakar, stilettos pehenakar, sar pe kitab rakh ke mujhe kehte the ki flooring ki mosaic ki jo line hai uss pe chalna hai. Ek per ke upar ek, so you don’t go sideways."
Khushboo noted that she had learnt a lot from Rajiv Kapoor, from placing a book on her head as a means of improving her walk to keeping her back straight and never hunching. He was also the first one to teach her to wear heels while donning a saree, as it gave her the correct posture. However, the actress sweetly mentioned that the most important thing Rajiv taught her before leaving was friendship and how to maintain that bond.
What do you think about Khusbhoo Sundar’s fond recollection of her friendship with Rajiv Kapoor?
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