Actor Rishi Kapoor breathed his last on Thursday, having fought a two-year-long battle with cancer. The Kapoor family’s official statement reminded his fans that he’d want to be remembered with a smile, and not with a tear.
One of the biggest reasons why the actor managed to stay in high spirits during his treatment was his wife, Neetu Kapoor, who stood by him like a rock through it all. Immediately after his diagnosis, Rishi and Neetu shifted base to New York City, where they remained stationed for almost a year.
In an interview to Mid Day, Rishi had said, “I have learnt to remain calm with my family and fans. I owe it to them; they have given me so much love and sent good wishes. Neetu has been my rock and has shouldered all the responsibilities. So has been my family, who would drop in to give me the strength to battle my illness.”
Rishi and Neetu appeared together for an interview with Times Now, in which Neetu detailed how they had reacted to the devastating news. She said, “My first reaction was, obviously very bad, I was devastated, my kids were devastated. We didn’t know what to do. But then we thought to ourselves that this is it, we have to deal with it. Where he (Rishi) is concerned, he was in denial. For 4-5 months, he was not himself. I think when you start accepting that this is your issue, then you are stronger. I feel he is much stronger for the past, maybe 5-6 months.”
Neetu said that she began looking at him as if he was her child. She said, “Mujhe laga, I became his mother. Like, like he was my third child…khana, sona, dawaiyaan…jaise bacche ko look after karte hain. I just became a mother. A mother wants to do the best.”
