Rishi Kapoor slams young Bollywood for staying away from Vinod Khanna's funeral

FP Staff • April 28, 2017, 15:55:00 IST

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Rishi Kapoor lambasted the young generation actors for attending Priyanka Chopra’s bash but not showing up for Vinod Khanna’s funeral.

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A host of Hindi film celebrities, including Amitabh Bachchan, Subhash Ghai, Arjun Rampal, Jackie Shroff and Abhishek Bachchan showed up at veteran actor Vinod Khanna's funeral to pay their last rites to the departed screen icon. However, the funeral ceremony remained devoid of any of the actors of the young generation. This enraged Khanna’s contemporary and his co-star from Manmohan Desai’s 1977 action comedy Amar Akbar Anthony and Yash Chopra’s 1989 romantic drama Chandni, Rishi Kapoor. The senior actor lashed out at the present generation of Hindi film stars and lambasted them for turning up at Khanna’s funeral ceremony but swarming to Priyanka Chopra’s bash, held to celebrate the National Film Awards to her debut Marathi production, Rajesh Mapuskar’s comedy ensemble Ventilator. Rishi also clarified that both his wife Neetu Kapoor and son Ranbir Kapoor are out of the country, so failed to make it to the funeral ceremony. He termed this act of the young lot not showing up as ‘shameful’ and also said that he should start preparing himself to die a similar death. Hindustan Times quotes the actor as saying, “I was angered, not disheartened. What does an actor work for? It’s his last journey and you can’t come to pay [your] respects to man who has worked in over 150 films and been there for over four decades, and even has worked with you? Sad that a respected senior actor was sent away by not actually having a lot of people with him wishing him adieu.”

He sarcastically adds that he expects more young stars to show up for the prayer meet, “Because that’s more of a fashion parade and you want to be in the comforts of air conditioned premises. Why were you not there for this [funeral] event?” Rishi also points out that Khanna’s leading ladies were not there as well. “Even many actors from my generation were not there. You just needed to give him respect for his contribution to cinema and love that he’s spread. No one is expecting you to make a dramatic entry at the funeral.” Kapoor was probably hinting at Varun Dhawan who recently acted with Khanna in Rohit Shetty’s 2015 family drama Dilwale; Sonu Sood who collaborated with Khanna in Arbaaz Khan’s 2012 action comedy Dabangg 2; Sonam Kapoor, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Sikandar Kher who shared screen space with Khanna in Abbas-Mustan’s 2012 thriller Players_._ Only Abhishek and Hooda made it to the funeral ceremony. “I’m not naming any one person. I’m just saying that this generation — actors, filmmakers, producers — none of them came. I’ve seen this happen at Feroz Khan and Rajesh Khanna’s funeral also. It seems these actors have troubled this generation [so] that they don’t really care. I am compelled to think in this manner,” explains Rishi, as per the same report. He welcomed Karan Johar’s decision to cancel the premiere of SS Rajamouli’s war epic Baahubali 2: The Conclusion as a ‘justified tribute’. He also said that even if the young stars were shooting, they could have managed to make it to the funeral. “Just a night before, I saw the most profound people from the film industry and the following morning, barring a few, none was there at his funeral. You could be out of town but the very fact that most of these shootings and most of whatever so called activities were going on were cancelled [after Vinod’s demise], you can’t tell me that didn’t know about it. Knowing that he passed away at 11 in the morning, you had the whole day to plan. All TV channels and radio [stations] were blaring about it, yet it was such a poorly attended funeral,” says Rishi. He also expressed his disappointment that it has become a trend since Rajesh Khanna and Feroz Khan also met the same fate.

Shameful. Not ONE actor of this generation attended Vinod Khanna's funeral. And that too he has worked with them. Must learn to respect.
— Rishi Kapoor (@chintskap) April 27, 2017

Why this? Including mine and thereafter.When I die, I must be prepared.None will shoulder me. Very very angry with today's so called stars.
— Rishi Kapoor (@chintskap) April 27, 2017

Yes it has been expressed earlier on social media my wife and Ranbir are out of the country. Would never had been reason not to be there
— Rishi Kapoor (@chintskap) April 27, 2017

Angry. Met so many chamcha people last night at Priyanka Chopra's do last night. Few at Vinod's. So fuckn transparent. So angry with them.
— Rishi Kapoor (@chintskap) April 27, 2017

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Rishi also called out some of them as ‘chamchas’ for showing up for Priyanka’s bash but choosing not to pay their last rites to the respected actor. Kapoor himself paid tribute to his contemporary when he changed his Twitter profile picture to that of Khanna. Hours after Khanna’s demise, Rishi tweeted a still from Amar Akbar Anthony, bidding him a nostalgic goodbye. Khanna passed away on 27 April due to cancer and breathed his last in the HN Reliance Hospital.

Strange coincidence. Friends Vinod Khanna and Feroz Khan die the same day 27th April. Khan sahab passed away 27th April 2009 Bangalore.
— Rishi Kapoor (@chintskap) April 27, 2017