Ritu was related to a lot of famous public people, but was not a public person herself. I don’t want to reveal too much of her life which (by choice) she kept private. But I want to point to how she affected those around her who have chosen to lead a public life.
Raj Kapoor and his wife Krishna had 5 children, in three sets (as is not uncommon in families). In the older set, there was Randhir born within a year of their marriage when his parents were only 22 and 16. And then Ritu, born a year later. And then Rishi by himself, 4 years younger than Ritu. Ten years after that, Rima and Rajiv arrived.
With the age gap like this, Ritu and Randhir became a bit of second parents to their younger siblings. Ritu was a full 14 years older than Rajiv, but even Rishi saw her as a littler more than a big sister. Ritu acted like more than a big sister as well. She had to, the way their family was.
Through out Rishi’s childhood, his father was an abusive drunk. He remembers the kids huddled together hiding when they heard him come home at night, listening to him shout at their mother and break furniture and glasses, and sob to himself. Raj never really became a “nice” man, or a good father, but as he matured and his life changed, he was calmer. By the time Rishi was a teenager and Rajiv and Rima were little, Raj was a distant but indulgent figure in their lives, instead of a monster who came in the night.
Raj died in 1988, and Randhir was “supposed” to be the new head of the family. But Randhir by then had turned into his own version of an alcoholic. He and Rishi banded together and tried to keep the studio going, to help their teenage youngest siblings grow up, do all of that. But both of them were now struggling with their own addiction issues, and the wreck they had made of their personal lives.
Reading between the lines, during all this time, it was Ritu who was the true head of the family. She didn’t have the public respect or the public power, none of that. But if you talk about the Kapoors as a family, it was Ritu who folks called late at night when they were lonely, who remembered birthdays, who did all of that stuff.
Ritu’s life is familiar one to anybody who has studied the children of alcoholics. She spent her childhood protecting her younger siblings and, eventually, covering for the growing alcoholism in her brothers . She married at 20 to a man from a totally different background (solid quiet industrialists) who lived very very far away from her family. She kept her children connected to her family of birth but also distant, they visited over school breaks and for holidays but they lived in Delhi and went into her husband’s business, not her father’s. And over the years as her brothers fell to alcoholism and depression one by one, she was the solid sane reliable person they could count on.
What I find very interesting is that Ritu’s daughter-in-law fled to the Nanda family from a similar background to Ritu’s. Amitabh is certainly not an alcoholic, or an abusive father. Shweta was raised in a safe loving steady household. But she was also raised as the daughter of the Most Famous Man in India, just as Ritu had been. The crazy world of Hindi film was everywhere and Shweta couldn’t seem to escape it. Until she met a nice Delhi industrialist at a party and he proposed, and they were married when she was 21. Shweta fled to Delhi just as Ritu had and, like Ritu, has kept her children close but distant from Bombay. They visit their Bombay family constantly, but they don’t go to school their, and their careers will not be there. I can easily imagine Shweta finding a second mother in Ritu, a woman who could fully understand the challenges of being a shy young woman born to a very famous man.
Ritu got cancer about ten years ago, and everything stopped for the Kapoor brothers. They couldn’t function without their big sister, they flocked around her and badgered her and made her reassure them instead of the other way around. I wonder if perhaps Ritu’s husband was the only person in her life who took care of her instead of the other way around? I don’t know of course, but I wonder. He sounds like a very nice man, one who built free hospitals and paid for college for his employees and was everything good that you would want int he world. After he died in 2018, perhaps it became harder for Ritu to go on?
Ritu, in terms of Hindi film, is important because of her father and brothers and daughter-in-law. But she has her own small fame in another arena. After marriage and after the children were a bit older, because her husband was so wonderful, he encouraged her to find her own passion in life. Ritu tried running a housewares company but wasn’t successful, and instead she switched to an insurance agency. She ended up winning awards and the best selling insurance agent in India. It’s not a typical “female” kind of job, not the way running a housewares company would have been, but it was perfect for her. I wonder, perhaps that famous Kapoor charm was used in one on one meetings in private offices just as effectively as her father and brothers used it on the big screen?
Ritu died suddenly, and I think this will have changes among the “famous” people in her family that we may not expect. Shweta Bachchan might finally get her divorce, or she might move back to Delhi and unite with her husband. Rishi and Randhir might suddenly get a lot better now that their emotional prop is gone, or a lot worse. Ranbir might marry Alia, or break up with her.
dontcallitbollywood 
For what it’s worth, I think Shweta and her husband have reconciled based on how often they have been spotted lately. He was present at the Bachchan Diwali party and there were family photos. Shweta later hosted a birthday party for his sister and he was there again in family photos. Recently they went on vacation in Thailand during Christmas and New Year’s break with their kids. I have not seen so much of them together in years.
It’s possible they’re going the Hrithik/Suzy ex-couple way but that was not the case before so it would be a strange turn of events.
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Well that’s good news! I always liked them as a couple just based on one really old interview I read with her husband. I wonder if his father’s death changed things? At the very least made them come back together in grief?
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It could be. Even Amitabh has been sick a lot lately. He often cancels engagements.
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Can we take bets on who Hrithik will hook up with now?
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This is reminding me of a family friend I grew up with who, no exaggeration, was as attractive as Hrithik when he was younger (tragically I couldn’t enjoy it because he fell into the “ew, gross, I’ve known him since diapers” attraction dead zone). He’s got kids now and has kind of aged into more of a “Dad” look, but from about 14 to 28, he was stop traffic attractive. Anyway, when he was around 17 he was explaining to my Mom how dating worked. Like, how do you meet girls. In his version of the world, this is how dating was “the thing to do, is just kind of sit there, and then women come up and and give you their phone numbers”. And he thought that was normal! Like, all couples meet because the guy just goes about his day and women come up and introduce themselves. It happened once while he was having lunch with my sister and his sister, they were just talking in a restaurant, and an older woman at the table next to them paid her bill and then came by on her way out and said “hi, here is my phone number, call me”. And he was all charming and nice and casual about it, because this is just his life.
Anyhoo, in Hrithik-land, I picture something similar. He just kind of sits there, and women happen to him. And I am now imagining a vast lottery among the available woman of the film industry to see who will happen to him next.
On Tue, Jan 14, 2020 at 9:31 PM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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I literally cackled over that story of your friend with women’s phone numbers raining down on him. Bless him. And bless Hrithik. I’m sure having people react to you that way must do all kinds of weird things to your mind and self-esteem.
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My friend is just the nicest guy! Of course, why wouldn’t he be? In his world, everyone is always so nice and kind all the time. His sister is as attractive, and she had a similar story when we were asking her if she took public transit, did she have a monthly pass or what? No, no pass, it was free. See, every time she went to the station, some nice person would just swipe her on with their card. People in the city are so kind!
And again, I imagine it is the same for Hrithik. Except that he only became “Hrithik” at age 25, so he still has that memory of the “bad times” when people used to mean to him. Also, this is why I believe his version of the Kangana story. I think it is probably very very common for random women to knock on his hotel room door, and he has gotten very good at figuring out who is nutty and who he can let in. If the Shweta story is true, that confirms it, someone he has known his entire life, who will never go public or turn nutty, and who won’t demand more from him than he wants to give because she doesn’t want anything serious either.
On Wed, Jan 15, 2020 at 9:14 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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“The Bubble” episode from 30 Rock (Season 3; Episode 15).
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He is still so clingy with Suzanne. What woman would want to be part of that set-up? They go out for dinners and movies and vacations regularly. It’s just weird.
I don’t think he will have any luck until he creates some serious boundaries.
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Loads of women would want that! Women in Shweta’s position. They can’t have a public relationship, and maybe don’t want it because their lives are too full, but they would still like sex, and the occasional date night. I am sure there are other middle-aged wives in loveless marriages who would LOVE the very specific limited things that Hrithik can offer. Problem is, I have no idea whose marriages are loveless right now. Do you? Who is in that “separated but not really” kind of zone? Or is there some young divorcee/widow I don’t know about? What about a super super successful and busy producer type who has no time or interest for a traditional relationship?
Oh oh!!!! SUSHMITA SEN! Single Mom, never wanted marriage, would probably be totally cool with Hrithik’s whole thing. What do you think?
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Nah, Sushmita has a boyfriend that she’s been showing off for at least 2 years now. He’s happily integrated with her daughters and they all look thrilled.
Here’s Sush and her boyfriend celebrating Christmas with her daughters. The handsome guy playing the guitar is her boyfriend, Rohman. They are adorable!
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Okay, I will let them be happy together.
What about Karisma? I know she’s supposed to have a boyfriend, but if that isn’t still on, I feel like she could do with some Hrithik love, a little spoiling and happiness and no commitment.
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And Sush’s boyfriend looks like this.
So I don’t think Hrithik’s looks would sway her at all.
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Ooh, the Karishma idea is a really good one! She doesn’t have a boyfriend as far as I know. She broke up with that married (now divorced) guy a while back. She also says she never wants to get married again.
Perfect. Make Karishma and Hrithik happen.
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Bonus, it would complete Hrithik’s psychological domination of Abhishek, first he dates his sister and then his ex.
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Daaaaaaamn, Sushmita’s boyfriend is HOT.
I love the idea of Karisma & Hrithik together but I kind of think they’re both too emotionally fragile to be in a relationship with each other.
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I don’t know, Karisma’s been divorced for like 2 years now and separated for almost a decade. Maybe she’s in a good place and ready for a no strings transition relationship!
On Wed, Jan 15, 2020 at 9:16 AM dontcallitbollywood wrote:
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I am not convinced Shweta and Nikhil have reconciled. The Bachchan Diwali party was thrown for the first time in over two years and everyone was expected to come. Nikhil may have joined the family in Thailand but there are no pictures of him with Shweta or even a family photo. And finally, Shweta has always been kind of close to Nikhil’s sister, Nitasha (Tashu) and the birthday party was a big 50th birthday celebration at a hotel in Mumbai and again more of a “big Bollywood” celebration.
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Well now I am sad because I was all set to move Hrithik on to Karisma!
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Oh I think Karisma and Shweta would be find taking turns with Hrithik. Neither are looking for anything serious, I suspect and Hrithik is perfect for that.
I love that Hrithik and Suzzane are still friends and go out for dinners and movies and vacations regularly, especially with their children. And, yes, if I were a single mom with no interest in actually getting into another relationship/marriage, Hrithik could be great. Although, I strongly suspect Hrithik is way too emo IRL so unfortunately, I don’t think it would be easy to just have a silly fling with him. He would want to talk about feelings and stuff and noone wants to do that with Hrithik.
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I don’t know, it seems like Hrithik has his parents and his Guru for all the emo stuff, I think you could get away with keeping him strictly focused on fun times with his casual single Mom fling.
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He would want to talk about feelings and stuff and noone wants to do that with Hrithik.
Literally LOL!
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There were pics of them in Thailand. Shweta herself didn’t post them but someone else did in their insta stories. I didn’t save them because I don’t care that much. Not that posting or not posting pics really means anything.
I’m not talking about the big 50th party that was held for Tashu. There was a private small gathering held the night before at someone’s home by Shweta just for people close to them. Her husband was there too.
Perhaps they’ve always been like that but instagram is making it more public. Hard to know.
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