By News18,Parishmita Saikia

Copyright news18

He was launched as the next big Kapoor in Bollywood, but Sanjay Kapoor’s debut film took six years — and a failed love story — before it even hit theatres.
Coming from a film dynasty, expectations were sky-high. Boney Kapoor, the eldest, had already made a name for himself as a successful film producer, while Anil Kapoor had become a household name. But for Sanjay Kapoor, the path to stardom turned out to be far more turbulent.
Bollywood Debut
Sanjay Kapoor made his Bollywood debut in 1995 with the film Prem, opposite Tabu. At one point, he candidly spoke about his relationship with her. In a 2014 interview with E-Times, Sanjay Kapoor admitted to having dated Tabu briefly. He revealed that although they were in a relationship, it was short-lived and had ended before the film’s release.

“I dated Tabu in the beginning, but by the time the shooting of Prem wrapped up, we had stopped talking. The film eventually released when I was 31. I used to joke that I was the oldest newcomer”, said Sanjay Kapoor.
Though Prem failed at the box office, fate had other plans. Just four weeks later, his film Raja, co-starring Madhuri Dixit, was released and turned out to be a blockbuster.
Why Was ‘Prem’ Delayed?
In the same interview, Sanjay Kapoor also spoke about the prolonged delay in Prem’s release. He revealed that the original director, Shekhar Kapur, was largely responsible.
“Shekhar Kapur is a very talented man but also very lazy. That’s why he’s directed so few films in the past 30 years. He never really wanted to start this project, and it became frustrating”, said Sanjay Kapoor.

Eventually, Satish Kaushik took over the direction. Before Prem, Satish Kaushik had worked on another film with the same title in 1989, which also turned out to be a flop.
He then shifted his focus to Roop Ki Rani Choron Ka Raja (1993), starring Sridevi, which too was a box-office failure. Only after that did work on Prem resume. The film finally released in 1995, nearly six years after it was first conceived.
Latest Bollywood Appearance
On the work front, Sanjay Kapoor was last seen in the 2025 film Param Sundari, which starred Sidharth Malhotra and Janhvi Kapoor. He played the role of Sidharth Malhotra’s father, a businessman. However, the film did not perform well at the box office.