When Anil Kapoor arranged Rishi Kapoor’s shirt for Satish Kaushik in his debut film

PTI, Apr 18, 2022, 5:32 PM IST

Mumbai: Actor Satish Kaushik says his equation with longtime friend and collaborator Anil Kapoor is extremely special as he has always supported him since the beginning of his career.

Kaushik and Kapoor’s most notable collaboration has been the 1987 blockbuster film ”Mr India”, where the former featured as the funny man Calendar. But the 66-year-old actor said his association with Kapoor dates back to 1983, when the latter was making his Hindi film debut with ”Woh Saat Din”.

”Not many know I did a small part in the film. I played a flower seller and had just two dialogues in it! When I was doing that role, I needed a shirt for the character. ”I remember Anil brought me a shirt, which he said was worn by Rishi Kapoor in ‘Phool Khile Hain Gulshan Gulshan’. I was thrilled because I was getting to wear Rishi ji’s shirt!” Kaushik told reporters. The actor was speaking at the trailer launch of ”Thar”, which features him alongside Kapoor. Kaushik recalled how it was the 65-year-old actor, who first spotted him at Prithvi Theatre and convinced his brother, producer Boney Kapoor, to cast him in ”Woh Saat Din”.

”Anil was not just a hero, he was also the production guy on the film. It was Anil, who saw me while performing in Prithvi Theatre and suggested my name to Boney Kapoor. Boney was paying me RS 201 but Anil pushed him to give me Rs 501 for the film! ”It’s destiny that from doing a two-dialouge role, I became his friend, family member. Our relationship has only grown with time,” he added. Kaushik has also directed Kapoor in films like ”Hum Aapke Dil Mein Rehte Hai” (1999) and the 2000 romantic drama ”Hamara Dil Aapke Paas Hai”.

Kapoor, who was also present at the trailer launch, said both him and Kaushik share same passion towards their work and life.

”We both love films, being on the set and being part of the director’s vision. We both love acting and are passionate about it. We also love laughing and making fun of ourselves. And when we are not together, hum ek dusre ki burai karte hai,” Kapoor quipped.

Directed by Raj Singh Chaudhary and produced by Anil Kapoor Film Company (AKFC), ”Thar” is scheduled to release on Netflix on May 6. The film also stars actor Harsh Varrdhan Kapoor, Fatima Sana Shaikh, Satish Kaushik, Jitendra Joshi and Mukti Mohan.