‘Papaji’ of Indian cinema, earned name by playing Jholewala Fakir, played lead role in 2662 shows

New Delhi: That famous personality of Indian cinema and films, whose heavy voice and dialogue delivery made even the best actors pale in comparison. The story is of Prithviraj Kapoor, the owner of a powerful voice and tremendous acting ability, who further strengthened the cinema world with his acting.

Born on 3 November 1906 in Punjab, undivided India (present-day Faisalabad, Pakistan), Prithviraj Kapoor was fond of acting from a young age. When the educated and handsome young man reached the film city of Bombay (now Mumbai), he soon started playing the role of a hero after being a supporting actor.

Started acting from theater
Even during the silent movie era, Prithviraj Kapoor left his mark and made one realize his capability through even the smallest of his later acting roles. Prithviraj Kapoor started his acting career with theatre. Be it his first talking film ‘Alam Ara’ or films like ‘President’ with KL Sehgal or ‘Dushman’, Prithviraj Kapoor was always recognized for his unique style and powerful voice. People who knew Prithviraj Kapoor used to call him ‘Papaji’, perhaps because he helped everyone and often spoke in favor of junior artists.

Prithviraj Kapoor was a true artist
But there is also an incident in his life, when he used to stand outside the theater carrying a bag. Prithviraj Kapoor started Prithvi Theaters in 1944. As difficult as the journey to reach here was, there were more challenges in keeping the theater running, because Prithviraj had put everything at stake for Prithvi Theatre. The income was not enough to live properly. If there was some income, he would be engaged in theater work only. The circumstances in front were as huge as a mountain and to survive in front of them, Prithviraj picked up the fakir’s bag. When people used to leave the theater after watching the show, Prithviraj himself would stand there carrying the bag. People leaving the show used to put some money in that bag. This story related to Prithviraj Kapoor is mentioned in newspapers.

Honored with many big awards
Prithvi Theaters ran for 16 years till 1960. 2,662 shows were done in 5,982 days. Prithviraj Kapoor played the lead role in every single show, that is, on an average, one show every third day. However, it had to be closed in 1960 due to the ill health of Prithviraj Kapoor. Prithviraj Kapoor left this world on 29 May 1971. Prithviraj Kapoor was posthumously awarded the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, the biggest award of Hindi cinema, in 1972 for his significant contribution to cinema and theatre. However, he received the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award in 1954 and 1956 and the ‘Padma Bhushan’ award from the Government of India in 1969.