Following a career downturn, with critical and commercial failures such asDaawat-e-Ishq (2014),Fitoor (2016),Ok Jaanu (2017) andKalank (2019), Kapur starred in the thriller filmMalang (2020), the black comedyLudo (2020) and the thriller seriesThe Night Manager (2023).[1]
Kapur was born in Bombay on 16 November 1985[2] to aPunjabi Hindu father,[3][4] Kumud Roy Kapur, and aJewish mother Salome Aaron.[4] His paternal grandfather, Raghupat Roy Kapur, was a film producer in the early 1940s.[5][6][7] Kapur is the youngest of the three siblings; his eldest brother,Siddharth Roy Kapur, was the chief executive officer ofUTV Motion Pictures and is married to actressVidya Balan. His second elder brother,Kunaal Roy Kapur, is also an actor.[8]
His maternal grandparents, Sam and Ruby Aaron, were qualified dance teachers who introduced the Samba dance to India.[6] He did his schooling from G.D. Somani Memorial School in Cuffe Parade, where both his siblings studied and his mother directed school plays.[6]
Kapur enrolled in St. Xavier's in Class XI, but failed. He had to enroll inSt. Andrew's College to avoid losing a year.[4] Subsequently, he graduated fromSt. Xavier's College, affiliated to theUniversity of Mumbai.[2] During his school years, he wanted to be a cricketer but he quit cricket coaching after sixth standard.[9]
Kapur was initially aVJ on the music channelChannel V India, where his comic timing and "unique style of hosting" was appreciated.[4] He starred in a show titledPakao and also hosted the popular show,India's Hottest withVJ Bruna Abdullah till 2008.
Kapur made his acting debut with a supporting role in the musical dramaLondon Dreams (2009) starringSalman Khan,Ajay Devgn andAsin Thottumkal in lead roles.[10] The film opened to mixed reviews from critics upon release, and emerged as a below-average grosser at the box-office.[11] The series of supporting roles continued with his two releases in 2010–theAkshay Kumar-Aishwarya Rai-starrer science-fiction romantic comedyAction Replayy and theHrithik Roshan-Rai-starrer dramaGuzaarish. However, none of these films performed well at the box office but gained Kapur notice among the audience.[12] For his performance inGuzaarish,Khaleej Times stated, "Kapur is natural and vivacious and in-sync with the film’s spirit of celebrating life."[13]
Breakthrough and career fluctuations (2013–present)
Kapur withShraddha Kapoor promoting their film 'Aashiqui 2' in 2013.
Kapur achieved his breakthrough with the musical romanceAashiqui 2 (2013) co-starringShraddha Kapoor.[14] Premiering on 26 April 2013,Aashiqui 2 emerged as a commercial success at the box-office and was one of thehighest-grossing Bollywood films of 2013, earning₹1.45 billion (US$17 million) worldwide within the first four weeks.[15]Taran Adarsh ofBollywood Hungama praised his performance, writing that "...Aditya Roy Kapur's depiction of the intense character is outstanding... [which] clearly demonstrates his potency as an artist of caliber and competence."[16]Hindustan Times criticAnupama Chopra noted that Kapur "gives Rahul's angst a certain charm... He is earnest and broken."[17]
The same year, Kapur played Avinash Arora in the romantic comedyYeh Jawaani Hai Deewani, which not only became one of thehighest grossing Indian films but also the highest grossing film of his career.[18][19] Praising him,Rajeev Masand ofCNN-IBN stated, "Aditya Roy Kapur is entirely likeable as the goofy Avi."[20] While Rachit Gupta ofFilmfare opined, "Aditya seems to be picking up where he left off inAashiqui 2 and it works for him."[21]
In 2017, Kapur starred as Aditya Gunjal in the romantic drama filmOk Jaanu alongsideShraddha Kapoor[28] which received mixed reviews from critics,Bollywood Hungama wrote, "Aditya Roy Kapur plays his part well, though he struggles with the emotional scenes. His portrayal of an urban career oriented boy is very believable."[29] In 2019, he starred as Dev Chaudhry in the romantic drama filmKalank alongsideAlia Bhatt,Varun Dhawan andSonakshi Sinha. The film received mixed reviews upon release, and was unsuccessful at the box office.[30][31] Shomini Sen ofWION wrote, "Aditya, is pitch perfect as the righteous, lonesome Dev who is stuck between his two wives."[32]
Kapur withDisha Patani promoting their film Malang
Kapur had three releases in 2020. He first starred as Adavit Thakur in the romantic action thrillerMalang alongsideDisha Patani.[33] Kapur's performance got positive reviews from critics. Harshada Rege ofThe Times of India wrote, "Aditya impresses in the role of a guy whose life goes through a major upheaval. He shows restraint and finesses in his performance. The actor's physical transformation adds weight to all the kicks and punches he pulls in the film."[34]Bollywood Hungama called his performance as "very convincing as a fearless man with a vengeance who can take on dozens of goons.[35]
He then starred as Vishal Agnihotri in the road filmSadak 2 alongsideSanjay Dutt andAlia Bhatt, which released on the streaming platformDisney+ Hotstar. The film was universally panned by critics, with criticism for its performance, script, dialogues and use of clichés.[36]Anupama Chopra ofFilm Companion wrote, "The storytelling, performances dialogue, cinematography, songs, background music – all seem to belong to the 90's".[37] He starred in the black comedy crime filmLudo as Aakash Chauhan alongsideSanya Malhotra which released onNetflix as his last film of the year.[38][39] Tanul Thakur ofThe Wire noted, "Kapur is easily the best of the lot, assured, funny, relaxed, lending Ludo the breeziness it badly needs."[40]
Kapur andSanjana Sanghi starred in the action thriller filmRashtra Kavach Om.[41][42] It released theatrically in 2022 with received negative response from critics towards the storyline eventually becameBox office bomb.[43][44] Nairita Mukherjee ofIndia Today wrote "Aditya Roy Kapur's glistening biceps, though impressive, may not be strong enough to hold the weight of this strictly average actioner".[45]
In 2023, Kapur starred inThe Night Manager, a remake of the British television series of thesame name, playing the part originally played byTom Hiddleston.[46]Saibal Chatterjee ofNDTV opined, "Kapur's performance isn't a patch on Hiddleston's. But the adaptation allows him to be himself. That works to his advantage."[47] In April 2023 he starred inGumraah alongsideMrunal Thakur, which was the Hindi remake of the 2019 Tamil filmThadam.[48] Zinia Bandyopadhyay ofIndia Today noted, "Aditya Roy Kapur is earnest in playing both the characters and tries to make you feel how they are starkly different from each other with his performance."[49] The film underperformed commercially, becoming a box-office disaster.[50]
In addition to acting, Kapur is a football enthusiast and supports charities and organisations.[52] He has often participated in football matches for charity. Kapur has also been involved with the "Pillars Of Humanity" initiative by the Ankibai Ghamandiram Gowani Trust,[53] and has also contributed to the environment, with planting 150 trees withPragya Kapoor.[52][54] Kapur performed in various cities in theUnited States for the "Dream Team" tour in August 2016, alongsideKaran Johar,Varun Dhawan,Sidharth Malhotra,Parineeti Chopra,Katrina Kaif,Alia Bhatt andBadshah.[55][56]
Kapur is frequently featured in theTimes 50 Most Desirable Men list. He was ranked 28th in 2018, 11th in 2019 and 3rd in 2020[57][58][59] Kapur is a celebrity endorser for brands and products, includingNautica,Diesel,Oppo andSlice among others.[60][61][62] In 2019, Kapur launched his own fashion label named Single, in partnership with Universal Sportsbiz.[63] Kapur was included inFemina India's list of "Beautiful Indians 2022". He won the Standout Performer Of The Year - Male, at the ceremony for winning hearts on-screen and making the world a better place off-screen.[64][65]GQ India placed Kapur in their list of "Best Dressed Indians" of 2021.[66]
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