If there is one thing that binds the sprawling Kapoor clan as tightly as cinema, it is food. From Raj Kapoor and his sons Rishi, Randhir, and Rajiv, to his grandchildren Ranbir, Riddhima, Karisma, Kareena, Armaan Jain, and Aadar Jain, the family has always celebrated life around the dining table. That shared legacy is what Armaan Jain attempts to capture in the new Netflix India special Dining with the Kapoors, directed by Smriti Mundhra — the filmmaker behind The Romantics, the acclaimed deep dive into Yash Raj Films’ storied history. In a conversation with SCREEN, Armaan and Smriti discuss why this show needed to exist, the challenges of bringing it together, and some treasured culinary secrets of the Kapoor household.
The project arrives at
a poignant moment: the 100th birth anniversary of Raj Kapoor. And yet, it also comes after a deeply turbulent year for the family — the death of Karisma Kapoor’s former husband Sunjay Kapur, and the chilling knife attack at home on Kareena Kapoor’s husband, Saif Ali Khan. In these difficult months, one question naturally arises: how much of a lighthouse does Raj Kapoor remain for the generations that followed?
Armaan reflects on his grandfather’s unwavering devotion: “Raj Kapoor would eat, breathe, and sleep cinema. That was it for him. He would put everything on the line. The sacrifices were so much that sometimes he didn’t even have enough money in his pocket to make a movie.”
He remembers how Raj Kapoor risked everything for his art. Mera Naam Joker — now considered visionary — was, at the time, a monumental box office failure. “Before he bounced back with Bobby in 1973, he’d lost pretty much everything, financially as well. But the one thing he didn’t give up was the roof over his wife and children’s heads — the Deonar bungalow.”
That sense of resilience, Armaan explains, is the Kapoor inheritance.
“In times good and bad, the Kapoor family are very strong for each other. We come together as an army. That started with the Raj Kapoor–Krishna Kapoor era, and I’ve seen that pass on to my mum. She will always have a smiling face.”
The past year — marked by personal tragedy and unsettling incidents — has tested that strength. But Armaan says the impulse to rebuild is instinctive, almost encoded.
“With certain incidents recently and a lot of losses within our family, it’s been very tragic and difficult. But the best part, and the intent behind Dining with the Kapoors, is family being there for each other at all times. Bouncing back is part of our DNA. It’s generational.”
