In a candid conversation at the Celebrate Cinema 2025 festival, Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor reflected on his journey in the film industry. Speaking at a session paying tribute to legendary filmmakers Raj Kapoor and Guru Dutt, held at Subhash Ghai’s Whistling Woods institute, Kapoor openly addressed the topic of nepotism.
Acknowledging his familial legacy, Kapoor stated, “I’m a product of nepotism and I got it very easy in my life.” However, he quickly followed up by emphasizing the necessity of hard work and an individualistic approach to succeed in the competitive film industry. He shared, “I always had to work hard because I realised that I come from a family like this and if I don’t have an individualistic approach and if I don’t make a name for myself, I’ll not succeed in the film industry.”
Kapoor also touched upon the less-discussed aspect of his family’s career – the failures. “You guys celebrate a lot of the successes of my family, but there are a lot of failures also, and as much as you learn from the successes, you also learn from the failures,” he remarked.
Recalling his upbringing, Kapoor mentioned that he didn’t perceive his family background as particularly extraordinary during his childhood. “What do I feel about being born in this family, for me it was like any other normal family, I didn’t know any better,” he said, adding that while arguments were common, they were usually about creative differences rather than domestic issues.
Ranbir Kapoor, son of veteran actors Rishi Kapoor and Neetu Kapoor, and grandson of the iconic Raj Kapoor, is currently gearing up for several upcoming projects. He was last seen in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s ‘Animal’ and will next appear in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Love and War,’ alongside Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal. He is also slated to play Lord Ram in Nitesh Tiwari’s adaptation of the Ramayana.