Ranbir Kapoor reflected on his strict school days, where he barely passed 10th grade, becoming the first male in his family to do so without failing. He also discussed the pressure of his film lineage, aiming to forge his own identity, and contrasted his fleeting stardom with his grandfather Raj Kapoor’s enduring global legacy.
Ranbir Kapoor once opened up about his school days, growing up in a film family, and the pressure of living up to the Kapoor legacy. The actor also recalled how barely passing his exams once made his parents proud.
Life at school and strict upbringing
Talking to TBIP, Ranbir said, “They don’t treat you differently in school, but you do realise that you are somewhere special among the 40 students. They are more curious about you. But over a period of time when you have grown up with them, like 10 years in school… they get used to it.” He added, “I went to Bombay Scottish. It was a very strict kind of convent school, I got beaten up a lot by the principal. Once he slapped my face from one corridor of the school to another, held my head, turned me the other way, and then slapped me on the way back.”
First male in the family to pass school without failing
Elaborating further, he added, “I was a bad student. I was among the last three in the class, but I never failed. I always managed to pass the year. I got 54.3 percent in my 10th standard. I was in New York at that time and my father was directing the film Aa Ab Laut Chalen. My mom was in Mumbai and she called me crying. She couldn’t believe that I passed the 10th grade. Because I was the first male member of my family to have passed school without failing. I remember my grandmother, uncles and father were in New York and they were jubilant.”
Challenges of being from a film family
When asked about the challenges of being from a film family, Ranbir said, “I don’t like being called a star son. Yes, I had opportunities early and grew up in a comfortable life, but in recent years, I’ve worked hard to make a name for myself.”He further shared, “I feel responsible for that. I don’t take it for granted. I’m not arrogant about that. I want to make my family proud, but I am here for myself and to make a name for myself and not be called Raj Kapoor‘s grandson or Rishi Kapoor’s son. I want my father to be known by my name.”
Ranbir on stardom and his grandfather’s legacy
Ranbir also spoke about his view of stardom, recalling his grandfather Raj Kapoor’s immense popularity in Russia. He noted that the fame he and other actors of his generation experience is much more fleeting compared to the lasting fame his grandfather enjoyed.Recalling the incident, he shared, “When he went to Russia for the premiere of Awaara, he came out of the theatre, and there was a huge mob of Russians waiting to see him and he went and sat in his car. And you won’t believe, all these people carried his car and took him to the hotel. That’s another kind of stardom. The stardom that we see is so short-lived because there will be another heartthrob after you go. But what these guys have done is permanently etched in people’s minds.”On the work front, he will next be seen in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s ‘Love and War’ with Alia Bhatt and Vicky Kaushal. He will also be seen in Ramayana with Sai Pallavi, Yash, Sunny Deol and others. Go to Source
