Why Shaandaar will establish Shahid Kapoor as one of India’s most bankable stars

Shahid Kapoor is in the midst of promotional duties for his upcoming film Shaandaar (Fabulous), a romantic comedy about two insomniacs who fall in love – and it is anything but low-key.

How can it be? It's one of the most-talked about films this year. His chemistry with co-star Alia Bhatt is even being compared with the pairing of Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in the upcoming film, Dilwale.

Kapoor, 34, looks as though he is on to another winner after the commercial and critical success of Vishal Bhardwaj's Haider, which was released last year. Directed by Vikas Bahl and co-­produced by Phantom Films, Karan Johar's Dharma Productions and Fox, Shaandaar also features his father, actor Pankaj Kapur, who portrays Alia's onscreen millionaire father; and his stepsister, Sanah, who is making her Bollywood debut.

The early years

Kapoor started out in the mid-2000s with appearances in low-key music videos and blink-and-miss television advertisements. It was a hard slog, and in an interview with filmmaker Farah Khan on her television chat show Tere Mere Beech Mein, he revealed that he used to own a motorbike, but often had no money to buy petrol.

“I’m from a very middle-class background. I’ve gone through tough times, when I had a motorbike but didn’t even have 50 rupees [Dh3] for petrol,” he said on the show.

He was paid only 100,000 rupees for his debut in 2003's Ishq Vishk. When he was signed on for his next film, Vivah (2006), he was given 500,000 rupees as the initial signing amount.

“I remember going home with the cheque and telling mum: ‘Mom, in three days, we will have five lakh rupees in our bank account.’ ” he told Khan.

Vivah was the turning point in Kapoor's career, followed by the superhit Jab We Met (2007). He was in danger of being typecast as the sweet, boy next door in urban romances, but has worked hard to pick roles that showcase his range and dependability.

The hard slog

In Jab We Met, he starred alongside his ex-girlfriend Kareena Kapoor. The romantic comedy went on to become a superhit, building a cult following among young Indians and fans of romantic films. Kapoor played a business tycoon, who begins to live life to the full after meeting a girl on a train.

Oddly enough, despite the success of Jab We Met, Kapoor found himself without work for six months – mostly because the films he was offered were "uninspiring"– and sat out the bleak period until Kaminey (2009) came along. He was offered a double role in the thriller, set in Mumbai's underworld, and the film was a hit with the audience and critics. But post-Kaminey, Kapoor again found himself in a slump, with critics writing him off as "finished". That was until Haider, which won him the 2014 Filmfare Best Actor award.

Haider is a modern-day adaptation of Shakespeare's Hamlet, set in insurgency-hit Kashmir, and Kapoor's performance was widely praised as his best to date.

"In this profession, one or two wrong films can make you lose two to two and a half years," he recently told the Hindustan Times. "In the past three to four years, I have found better people to take advice from. I have understood the way the industry functions."

Married life

His marriage in July to Mira Rajput, who is from Delhi, was a discreet affair, strictly for family and friends, with not a single photographer allowed. The quiet wedding was a welcome change from the usual brash, high-decibel extravaganzas often seen in the industry. After being linked with a host of celebrities, from Priyanka Chopra and Kareena Kapoor to Vidya Balan, Kapoor chose to settle down with a woman far removed from the film industry.

There have been rumours that Kapoor’s wife will make her Bollywood debut – she is apparently taking dance lessons – but the claims contradict comments by Kapoor.

In an interview this month with the Hindustan Times, he spoke of how he loves being married to a woman who is not in the film industry and said that he enjoys going home to "a normal person to talk about normal things". He also said his wife is "not interested in what's happening" in the Hindi film industry.

• Shaandaar is out in cinemas on Thursday

artslife@thenational.ae