look news india
The festival of Ganesh Chaturthi in Mumbai has always been very special, but the Ganesh Utsav of the biggest and prestigious family of Hindi cinema i.e. ‘Kapoor family’ was once the biggest center of attraction for the entire film industry. The confluence of grandeur and simplicity with which Bappa was welcomed at the famous RK Studio in Chembur is still an example of that.
Recently, on the auspicious occasion of Ganesh Chaturthi, actress Karisma Kapoor remembered those golden days of her childhood. In an emotional interview, he revealed how grand RK Studio’s Ganesh Utsav used to be during the era of his grandfather and the ‘showman’ of Indian cinema Raj Kapoor and why this tradition stopped forever after his departure.
Karisma Kapoor told that the establishment of Bappa in RK Studio was started by Raj Kapoor himself. It was not just a family festival, but a shared celebration by every single person in the studio, from spotboys, technicians, cameramen to the biggest stars of Bollywood:
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The courtyard is deserted in grandfather’s absence: Karishma shared, “Ganesh Chaturthi at RK Studio used to be the biggest day of the year for us kids. But when Dadaji (Raj Kapoor) left us in 1988, that tradition could not continue and Bappa’s visits to the studio stopped forever. Without Dadaji, it was as if the soul of the place was gone.”
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Tradition of Kapoor brothers: After Raj Kapoor, his sons Randhir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and Rajiv Kapoor took over the dignity of the festival for a few years, but with time and amid the disintegrating family circles, Bappa’s public establishment in the studio came to an end.
Reminiscing about her childhood, Karisma Kapoor said that the immersion procession of RK Studio’s Ganesh Utsav was a treat to watch on the streets of Mumbai:
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The entire Kapoor family used to take to the streets: On the day of immersion, Randhir Kapoor, Rishi Kapoor and Rajiv Kapoor themselves used to dance barefoot in the procession from Chembur to the beach, sprinkling gulal on the beats of drums and playing cards.
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The studio remained open without any VIP culture: The doors of RK Studio remained open to the general public during festive days. Any common citizen could come inside and have darshan of Bappa and partake of the modaks and prasad distributed by the Kapoor family.
After the massive fire that broke out in RK Studio in 2017 and the subsequent sale of the land of this historic studio in 2019, this tradition was completely recorded in the pages of history. Karisma said that even though RK Studios is no more, every generation of the Kapoor family has kept this faith alive:
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Now Randhir Kapoor, Babita Kapoor, Karisma Kapoor and Kareena Kapoor establish eco-friendly Ganpati Bappa in a very personal and family atmosphere of their respective homes.
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According to Karisma, every year whenever she performs Bappa’s Aarti, she still clearly feels the face of her grandfather Raj Kapoor and the echo of RK Studio.