Rishi Kapoor, Bollywood star, dies of leukaemia aged 67

The Indian actor Rishi Kapoor, who built a career as one of Bollywood’s romantic heroes, has died of leukaemia at the age of 67.

Kapoor, part of a famous Bollywood family, was admitted to hospital in Mumbai on Wednesday and died on Thursday, according to a family statement.

“The doctors and medical staff at the hospital said he kept them entertained to the last,” said the family in a statement.

“He remained jovial and determined to live to the fullest right through two years of treatment across two continents. Family, friends, food and films remained his focus and everyone who met him during this time was amazed at how he did not let his illness get the better of him.”

Kapoor had returned to India last September after undergoing treatment for cancer in the US for almost a year, and was admitted to hospital twice in February.

His father, Raj Kapoor, and grandfather, Prithviraj Kapoor, were doyens of Bollywood, the vast Hindi-language film industry based in Mumbai. Kapoor began acting as a teenager and received the National Film Award for his debut role as a child artist in his father’s 1970 film Mera Naam Joker.

He went on to act in more than 90 films, often as the romantic lead, and became well known for his talents in singing and dancing. In one of Bollywood’s most legendary love stories, he ended up marrying Nitu Singh, who had co-starred as his love interest in several films. Their son Ranbir Kapoor is now also a current top Bollywood actor.

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