Rishi Kapoor on naming public properties after politicians, demonetisation & his only issue with Big B

Veteran actor Rishi Kapoor unabashedly questioned the practise of naming public properties after politicians yet again on Friday, saying there are other personalities whose contribution to the country is bigger and better.

The actor, who is known for his quips on Twitter, said that he feels it is injustice to several prominent figures from all other walks of life as roads, buildings, bridges and hospitals are all named after political leaders.

“There are so many structures and roads named after the Gandhi family in Delhi alone. Is it necessary to have it in such numbers? What purpose does it serve?,” Kapoor said during a session at the Jaipur Literature Festival.

“I was angry when I saw a bridge being named after Rajiv Gandhi. I mean it may be a way of paying respect, good that he was there but why name structures after him even now? Can you ignore the contribution of Lata Mangeshkar or JRD Tata? Why not name these structures after such figures rather than political leaders,” Kapoor asked in response to a question on his Twitter posts.

In conversation with author and professor of Indian Culture and Cinema at the University of London, Rachel Dwyer, Kapoor was in Jaipur to discuss his recently launched book ‘Khullam Khulla’.

“I have no complaints against any one family but when I saw structures being named after the family, it irked me because there are so many others like Lata Mangeshkar and JRD Tata who have contributed to Mumbai.

“Whichever political party comes, they name the structures and yojnas after them. I think the constitution should ban the naming of such structures after politicians,” he said.

The 65-year-old actor also said that he has no political inclinations and does not wish to join any political party as he is ‘content, happy and satisfied’ with his life.

The ‘Kapoor and Sons’ actor also wished that more people from the film fraternity and other walks of life came forward and expressed their concerns over important matters on social media.

Later, while addressing a press conference, Kapoor also said that demonetisation has had no effect on Bollywood as there is no ‘stashed money’ in the film industry.

“I can tell you Bollywood has not been affected by demonetisation. There is no stashed money there. It is the real estate and the black market that is, rightly, suffering,” he contended.

When asked about his inclination towards the present government, Kapoor said, “I have no political ambitions and I am not a BJP chamcha. I say and do what I feel is right. I spoke against the beef ban. I am not doing any chamchagiri.”

Kapoor’s book, ‘Khullam Khulla’, has also been in the news because it addresses his only ‘lingering issue’ with fellow actor and contemporary Amitabh Bachchan.

“To go back to Amitabh, I must confess there is still a lingering issue I have with Amitabh Bachchan…He has never given due credit to the actors who have worked with him. He has always credited his writers and directors, Salim-Javed, Manmohan Desai, Prakash Mehra, Yash Chopra and Ramesh Sippy. But it is also true that his co-stars had an undeniable role in his success. Shashi Kapoor in Deewaar, Rishi Kapoor in Amar Akbar Anthony and Coolie or Vinod Khanna, Shatrughan Sinha and Dharmendra all contributed to the success of his films where they shared credit with him, even if in secondary roles. This is something no one has realized or acknowledged,” it reads.