Top Indian actor Rishi Kapoor, a scion of Bollywood’s most famous Kapoor family, passed way on Thursday. He was 67 and had leukaemia.
According to Hindustan Times, Rishi's brother Randhir Kapoor confirmed the development.
The 67-year-old actor fought a two-year-long battle with leukaemia and passed away at the Sir HN Reliance Foundation Hospital in Mumbai, a statement from the family said.
Rishi was hospitalised in Mumbai on Wednesday and died on Thursday, according to a family statement.
He returned to India last September after undergoing treatment in the United States for almost a year. In May 2019, Rishi had confirmed that he was cancer-free after first being diagnosed with the disease in 2018. He was hospitalised twice in February.
This is the second death to shake the Indian cinema industry this week. Only yesterday actor Irrfan Khan passed away in Mumbai after battling medical complications arising from a colon infection.
Fellow Amar Akbar Anthony actor Amitabh Bachchan tweeted about Rishi's passing:
Prime Minister Narendra Modi said Rishi was a powerhouse of talent. “I will always recall our interactions, even on social media. He was passionate about films and India’s progress.”
Indian National Congress leader Rahul Gandhi also tweeted his condolence:
He received the National Film Award for his debut role as a child artist in his father’s 1970 film Mera Naam Joker. He acted in more than 90 films, including hit films such as Coolie, Laila Majnu, Sargam, and Bol Radha Bol. In the last few years, he was seen in films such as Kapoor and Sons, D-Day, Mulk and 102 Not Out.
The actor had recently announced that he would be part of a Bollywood remake of the Robert De Niro and Anne Hathaway's The Intern alongside Deepika Padukone.
His father Raj Kapoor and grandfather Prithviraj Kapoor were doyens of Bollywood, the vast Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai.
His wife, Nitu Singh, co-starred in several of his films. His son Ranbir Kapoor is a current top Bollywood actor.
He is survived by his wife, a son and a daughter.