Just
days
after
Shashi
Kapoor
turned
77,
news
emerged
on
Monday
that
Bollywood's
evergreen
charmer
will
be
conferred
the
Dadasaheb
Phalke
award.
Congratulations
poured
in
for
the
actor,
whose
now
frail
frame,
wrinkled
face
and
silver
locks
fail
to
erase
the
image
of
his
good
looks
and
smile
off
his
fans'
memory.
Best
known
for
his
nuanced
performance
in
memorable
films
like
Deewar,
Satyam
Shivam
Sundaram,
Trishul,
Kabhi
Kabhie,
Vijeta
and
Kalyug,
Shashi
captivated
Hindi
movie
buffs
for
several
years.
The
veteran
actor-producer,
who
turned
77
on
March
18,
is
the
46th
winner
of
the
honour,
conferred
by
the
government
for
outstanding
contribution
to
the
growth
and
development
of
Indian
Cinema.
His
family
is
joyous
about
the
news.
"Yessssssss!
Shashi
Kapoor
to
get
the
prestigious
Dada
Saheb
Phalke
award
for
contribution
to
Indian
Cinema.
Well
deserved
uncle.
God
Bless," his
nephew,
actor
Rishi
Kapoor,
tweeted
soon
after
the
news
broke.
"Third
Padma
Bhushan
and
third
Phalke
award
in
the
family.
Prithviraj
Kapoor
and
Raj
Kapoor
being
the
other
recipients,"
he
added.
Kunal,
one
of
Shashi's
three
children
--
others
being
son
Karan
and
daughter
Sanjana
--
shared
that
it
is
a
proud
moment.
"I'm
very
proud
and
thankful
to
the
government
for
recognising
his
work.
This
is
the
third
award
in
our
family.
I
am
very
thankful
and
extremely
happy," Kunal
told.
Minister
for
Information
and
Broadcasting
Arun
Jaitley
also
conveyed
his
congratulations
on
the
occasion,
while
Minister
of
State
for
Information
and
Broadcasting
Rajyavardhan
Singh
Rathore,
congratulating
Shashi
Kapoor
on
the
award,
said
in
a
tweet
that
"his
sensitive
portrayal
of
human
emotions
has
touched
many
a
heart".
Present-day
filmmakers
Prakash
Jha
and
Madhur
Bhandarkar
also
lauded
the
government's
decision
to
honour
Kapoor.
"TRULY
DELIGHTED
that
one
of
my
favorite
actors,
the
legendary
Shashi
Kapoorji
has
been
honored
with
Dadasaheb
Phalke
Award!
Many
congrats," Bhandarkar
tweeted.
Jha
posted,
"True
recognition
#DadaSahebPhalke
to
a
brilliant
actor
and
passionate
producer,
who
gave
so
much
to
Cinema!
Love
you
Shashi
Kapoor
Sir."
Together
with
his
elder
brothers,
the
late
Raj
and
Shammi
Kapoor,
Shashi
formed
the
Kapoor
trinity,
who
took
the
film
industry
by
storm.
Shashi
began
his
tryst
with
acting
at
the
age
of
four,
with
plays
directed
and
produced
by
his
father
Prithviraj
Kapoor.
He
started
acting
in
films
as
a
child
in
the
late
1940s.
His
best
known
performances
as
child
artist
were
in
Aag
(1948)
and
Awaara
(1951),
where
he
played
the
younger
version
of
the
character
played
by
his
elder
brother
Raj.
When
he
grew
up,
he
made
his
debut
as
a
LEADING
man
in
the
1961
film
Dharmputra,
and
went
on
to
appear
in
more
than
100
Hindi
films.
A
popular
name
in
Bollywood
during
the
1960s,
1970s
and
until
the
mid-1980s,
Shashi
was
one
of
India's
first
actors
to
go
international
with
British
and
American
films
such
as
The
Householder
(1963),
Shakespeare
Wallah
(1965),
Bombay
Talkie
(1970)
and
Heat
and
Dust
(1982).
He
also
starred
in
other
British
and
American
films
such
as
Siddhartha
(1972)
and
Muhafiz
(1994).
In
1978,
Shashi
set
up
his
production
house
Film
Valas,
which
produced
critically
acclaimed
films
such
as
Junoon
(1978),
Kalyug
(1981),
36
Chowringhee
Lane
(1981),
Vijeta
(1982)
and
Utsav
(1984).
He
also
produced
and
directed
a
fantasy
film
titled
Ajooba,
which
had
Amitabh
Bachchan
and
Rishi
in
the
LEAD
roles.
Shashi's
love
for
theatre
never
died
--
and
that
was
proven
when
he
decided
to
revive
his
father's
Prithvi
Theatre,
along
with
his
late
wife
Jennifer
Kendal.
In
2011,
he
was
honoured
with
the
Padma
Bhushan,
and
he
is
also
a
proud
recipient
of
three
National
Film
Awards.
The
Dadasaheb
Phalke
Award
entitles
him
to
a
Swarn
Kamal
(Golden
Lotus),
a
cash
prize
of
Rs.10
lakh
and
a
shawl.