Rishi Kapoor, who passed away in 2020, was one of the most versatile performers in the Hindi film industry. Neetu Kapoor had once shared that while people know Rishi for his ‘brash and loud behaviour’, he never “raised his voice in front of the children Ranbir Kapoor and Riddhima Kapoor”.
Neetu had said, “This is the way I to be, this is the way I’ll be, and this is the way I’ll heal,” in reference to how she and her kids Ranbir Kapoor and Riddhima Kapoor wish to always honour Rishi. Some people can cry and heal, while others can smile and heal. My partner will always be here, with me and my children, therefore I will never forget him. Even now, when we get together for a meal, we spend half the time talking about him, that’s how much we miss him.
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She shared that Ranbir misses his father the most, “Ranbir still has him on his (phone’s) screensaver. That’s the way we miss him, we don’t have to be sad to miss him, we can celebrate him. We remember all the good times and what a great person he was. The way he was with my children, I can’t even tell you, the way he’s nurtured them. He’s never ever screamed at them, he never raised him voice at them. He was so good.”
Ranbir opened several times about the strained bond he had with his father. In fact Rishi even wrote in his book, “The distance that exists between us is similar to the one between my father and me. Ranbir and I see each other through this space but can’t feel each other. At least, I can’t. There are times when I feel I’ve missed out on being a friend to my son.”
Commenting on the relationship Rishi shared with Ranbir and Riddhima, Neetu shared, “He was intimidating to the children but he never said anything to them directly. Maybe he said it through me, like ‘tell your children…’ I also used to do something like that, when I would sign their report card, I’d tell them, ‘now next year, get your father to sign your report cards,’ so I used to scare them also. These things keep happening between a husband and a wife, but he was a very very good father, he instilled some great qualities in them for which I’ll always be thankful to him. The qualities he had, were amazing, besides his brash behaviour and loudness, inherently he was a very very good human being.”
After Rishi passed away, Neetu found comfort in talking about her partner and returning to the world of cinema. People are grateful to see her on Instagram. However, she had recently shared that a section on the internet slams her for being “happy” and not a “crying widow” and she said “I just block them” because she wants to “heal happily” from the loss.
Neetu stated that she misses her husband and is learning new things about life every day. She had said, “Hota hai na. You have a partner for years, and one day he is not there. He was my constant companion. Your husband doesn’t remain your husband after so many years. He becomes your friend. Gussa bhi karte hai. We used to fight. But, I found comfort in the fact that he was there. Somebody was there for me at all times in my house. If he would cough, I would listen to him. if I coughed, he would listen to me. I miss him, the house feels empty without him, there’s a kind of silence that I was never used to.”