Annu Kapoor
Anil Kapoor (Hindi: अनिल कपूर, Urdu: انو کپُور; born 20 February 1956), known by his screen name Annu Kapoor, is an Indian film actor and television presenter best remembered for hosting the vocal reality show Antakshari from 1993 to 2006 and his role in Vicky Donor (2012). He received Filmfare award as well as National Film Award for Best Supporting Actor for Vicky Donor.
Early life
Annu Kapoor was born in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, on 20 February 1956, to Madanlal, a Punjabi father and Kamal, a Bengali mother. His father owned a travelling Parsi theatre company which performed in cities and towns, and his mother was a poetess and a trained classical singer. His grandfather Dr Kripa Ram Kapoor was a doctor in the British Army and his great grandfather Lala Ganga Ram Kapoor, a revolutionary who was executed during the Indian freedom struggle.
Due to poor financial crisis, he had to quit school following secondary education. With a salary of ₹ 40, his mother worked as teacher. On his father's insistence, he joined his theatre company. Following a stint there, he joined National School of Drama in 1976, after his brother Ranjit Kapoor, who was already a student there insisted. After graduating from the National School Of Drama and a brief stint with its repertory company, in 1981, he played a 70-year-old man in the play Ek Ruka Hua Faisla in Bombay (now Mumbai). Film director Shyam Benegal who saw Kapoor perform, sent him a letter of appreciation and signed him for his 1983 film, Mandi.
