Mumbai: Arjun Kapoor recently spoke on Raj Shamani’s podcast about his childhood experiences and the impact of his parents’ separation. Reflecting on the challenges he faced, Arjun shared how his parents, producers Boney Kapoor and Mona Shourie, separated when he was just 10 years old. He spoke openly about how much it affected him emotionally and how it shaped his personality over the years.
Arjun revealed that, at the time of Partition, his father was under a lot of pressure due to his professional commitments. Boney Kapoor was producing two major films, Prem and Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja, which left little room for a traditional father-son relationship. “He was busy making these big films. We never had a normal father-son relationship, where he would come to pick me up or drop me to school. It’s not that they didn’t try, but I never had that,” said Arjun, adding that the partition brought a significant change in his life.
Although he did not see his parents fight, Arjun admitted that the process of their separation was difficult. “I have never seen him fight. I was very lucky. They respected it,” he said, calling their split “amicable.”
The partition forced Arjun to mature early and become responsible. “I grew up too fast,” he admitted. “I realized I had to behave well because I knew what was happening. It was also a high-profile situation because my father is well-known.
Arjun also revealed that during this time he had to carefully work on his emotions, balancing his struggles while maintaining composure. He shared, “I may not have thrown tantrums or behaved poorly about it, but I think somewhere along the way I lost interest in being good at academics as a form of rebellion.”
Arjun reveals how isolation affected his academic performance. “Till fourth grade, I was very interested in studies. After partition I lost interest. I guess it was my way of rebelling. I decided to stay away from education because I felt people were making their own choices, and I wanted to make my own choices.”
Despite this phase, Arjun credits his friends and family for providing him support and a sense of normalcy, which helped him avoid feelings of isolation.
Arjun shared that his relationship with his father Boney Kapoor has evolved a lot in recent years. “Now, I have developed an equation with him, and I spend a lot of time with him. “Over the past five years, in painful circumstances, our relationship has blossomed.”
Arjun also opened up about the deep impact of losing his mother Mona Shourie at the age of 25, just before the release of his debut film Ishaqzaade. Describing it as a “painful time”, he said, “I lost my spine when I was stepping into an uncertain career.”
Despite the challenges, Arjun admitted that his childhood was not entirely bleak. “It wasn’t like I went through hell because of it. It was balanced. Dad’s family was there, and Dad was there too.”
Her candid revelations reflect not only the pain of enduring personal hardships in the public eye, but also her resilience in finding balance over time and building deeper relationships with her family.
