Veteran actress Mumtaz recently opened up about her unfulfilled romance with one of Hindi cinema’s most charismatic stars, Shammi Kapoor. Speaking to Vickey Lalwani in a candid chat, the actress revealed how deeply she admired the Brahmachari star and wanted to marry him, but the love story was cut short by family traditions laid down by Shammi’s father, the legendary Raj Kapoor.
‘I liked him… I wanted to marry him’
“Shammi Kapoor was a very good-looking man, and I liked him,” Mumtaz said without hesitation. “There is nothing to hide, nothing to deny.” The actress confessed she was never bothered by the significant age gap between them — around 17 to 18 years — and even hoped for a future together. “I wanted to marry him,” she admitted.
However, things took a turn when Raj Kapoor, fondly referred to by her as Papa ji, stepped in. “He was very strict in those days,” she said. “There was a rule till he was alive, that ghar ki bahu kaam nahi karegi. It was as straightforward as that.”
Raj Kapoor rejected her for Mera Naam Joker over a costume clause
Their love story wasn’t the only casualty of Kapoor family rules. Mumtaz also revealed that she lost out on a role in Raj Kapoor’s iconic Mera Naam Joker because of concerns about the character’s attire. She had done a look test for the film and loved how the pictures turned out — but Raj Kapoor backed out, fearing her association with Shammi might complicate matters.
“He said the character would need to wear very short clothes. What will happen if you get married in our family?” she recalled him saying. “I told him that we weren’t getting married, and that he could confirm this with Shammi ji. But he was worried. What if we changed our minds halfway through his film?”
Despite Mumtaz’s reassurances, Raj Kapoor remained firm. She sensed that his concern wasn’t just about the film but about preserving the image of the Kapoor family. “He didn’t want to take a chance,” she said, looking back at how his protectiveness over his family name often extended into his casting choices.