Anil Kapoor (Hindi: अनिल कपूर; born December 24, 1959) is a prominent National Film Award-winning Indian actor and producer who appears in Bollywood films.
Born in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, Kapoor started off his career with a supporting role in Umesh Mehra's Hamare Tumhare (1979) and played his first leading role in the Kannada film Pallavi Anu Pallavi (1983). He won acclaim for his roles in Yash Chopra's drama Mashaal (1984) and Shekhar Kapur's sci-fi Mr. India (1987), and won a Filmfare Best Supporting Actor Award for his performance in the former.
After a series of successful films, Kapoor earned his first Filmfare Best Actor Award for his performance in N. Chandra's Tezaab in 1988, and later for Indra Kumar's Beta in 1992. Since then, he has starred in several critical and commercial successes, including Biwi No.1 (1999), Taal (1999), Pukar (2000), for which he won his first National Film Award in the Best Actor category, and No Entry (2005), his biggest commercial success to date. Kapoor thus has established himself as one of the most successful and popular actors of Hindi cinema.
Living in a Chawl in Tilak Nagar, Punjabi-speaking Anil was born in 1959 to Surinder and Nirmal aka Suchitra Kapoor. He has an elder brother, Boney, a sister, Reena, and a younger brother, Sanjay. His dad used to be Shammi Kapoor's Secretary. A loner, without many friends, he studied in the nearby O.L.P.S. (Our Lady of Perpetual Succor) School, and was an ardent fan of Bollywood flicks that were telecast during the Ganesh Maha Ustav every year. He was a fan of Raj Kapoor, and it was this that influenced his acting, and people saw him as a mimic of the legendary showman. He landed a role as a child artiste with Shashi Kapoor in the lead, but the movie (Tu Payal Main Geet) was never released. After school, he went to study in St. Xaviers College. He commuted by bus and train from Chembur to Bombay V.T., and the walked the rest of the way. It was here that he met Mazhar Khan. A distracted Anil was kicked out of College in the second year due to his lack of presence. His attempts to join the Pune Film Institute were in vain, as he failed in the written examination. He then decided to join Roshan Taneja's Acting school. He first appeared on the silver screen in Hamhare Tumhare in a character role. His first lead role was in 'Woh 7 Din' and from thence on there has been no looking back. He has acted in close to a 100 movies, and has 5 in production. He has produced two movies (Gandhi My Father & Badhaai Ho Badhaai), as well as been a Casting Director/Outdoor In charge for 'Hum Paanch'. Anil met wealthy and chic model, Sindhi-speaking Sunita Bhambhani, and married her in 1984. Since then they have given birth to 3 children, two daughters and a son. His eldest, Sonam, is ready to make her entry in Bollywood soon.
