Published : 09 Sep 2026, 05:36 PM
Updated : 16 Sep 2026, 11:49 AM
Raj Kapoor had already established himself as one of Hindi cinema’s biggest stars by his late 20s — and had also begun building a reputation as a filmmaker with international reach.
The son of actor Prithviraj Kapoor, Raj entered films as a child artiste in “Inquilab” in 1935 before emerging as a leading man in the 1940s.
His first major success came with “Neel Kamal” in 1947, followed by “Andaz” and “Barsaat” in 1949.
“Barsaat” became one of the biggest Indian hits of its time and helped place Raj alongside Dilip Kumar and Dev Anand among Hindi cinema’s leading stars.
But his ambitions extended beyond acting.
In 1951, at the age of 27, Raj directed and starred in “Awara”.
The film became a major commercial success and found a particularly strong audience in the Soviet Union, helping turn Raj Kapoor into one of the best-known Indian film stars overseas, Indian broadcaster NDTV reports.
According to the report, “Awara” earned about Rs 1.5 million worldwide at the time — a figure it estimates would be worth roughly Rs 20 billion today after adjusting for inflation.
The film also competed at the Cannes Film Festival, while “Boot Polish” later appeared in competition there and “Jagte Raho” won the Crystal Globe at the Karlovy Vary International Film Festival.
Raj went on to direct 10 films, eight of which were commercially successful.
He was also associated with the launch or early careers of performers including Nimmi, Rishi Kapoor, Dimple Kapadia and Zeenat Aman.
With “Sangam”, Raj also took Indian filmmaking overseas on an ambitious scale, shooting extensively outside the country.
“Mera Naam Joker”, meanwhile, featured an unusually large international cast for an Indian production of its era.
Across a career spanning decades, Raj acted in more than 60 films.
His lasting influence came not only from his commercial success but from the way he combined popular cinema with social themes — helping shape Hindi cinema at home while also expanding its reach abroad.
