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Turn the camera on 21-year-old Shraddha Kapoor, the eye-catching daughter of Shakti Kapoor. After making debut in "Teen Patti" with Amitabh Bachchan, she’s already reaching out for bigger celluloid dreams. “I am getting offers from big production houses but I am not on a signing spree,” she says.

Can any star kid not be bitten by the Bollywood bug? We’ve seen many generations of Kapoors and two Bachchans amongst others. Most recently Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor kick-started their careers with to-die-for debuts.

But, even for these kids who know their way around the industry, it’s a tough world out there. So how do you survive when there are other actors vying for a share of fame, glory and the big bucks? Says Shraddha: “To keep up the hype and the tempo even in your second film is also very important. The fact that one is a star kid will not help in today’s industry if you are zero in your acting capabilities.” (Shraddha has multiple links in the industry: actress Padmini Kolhapure is her aunt and her mother Shivangi is Lata Mangeshkar’s niece).

Of course, these children start with plenty of advantages. For one, they know and understand how the industry works. Says Leena Yadav, director of Teen Patti: “Unlike rank newcomers, these kids instinctively know about films because they have grown up in film families. That makes a director’s job somewhat simpler. Also today’s star kids have a sense of integrity and are willing to slog for hours to give that perfect shot.”

There’s obviously plenty of support from home too. Says Shraddha: “I discuss all my projects with my parents. My father is extremely patient and understanding and advises me to be honest and grounded in order to achieve success.”

For some, the offers are coming in thick and fast. Shraddha says, “Even before my movie Teen Patti released I was flooded with offers. At present, I am still reading scripts and in no hurry to prove myself.” And if all goes well, Shraddha will be doing Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s next film.

Shraddha is a trained Odissi and Kathak dancer and honed her acting skills under acting guru Barry John in Mumbai.

Now, public are waiting for the next projects from this young and beautiful girl!

Shraddha Kapoor, who is making her debut with Leena Yadav’s Teen Patti, calls her dad Shakti Kapoor ‘Baaps’ as she offers him coffee. Both get comfortable for a joint interview in the conference room of the production office of the film.

Dressed in denims and a tee, Shraddha starts off with her childhood dream, “Since childhood, I have seen my father and my aunt Padmini Kolhapure at shoots. I had a natural inclination to follow in their footsteps.”

Doting dad Shakti, looking at his daughter with pride, says, “She is pretty and talented and nothing can stop her. She is very bindaas, and very few people make me laugh like she can.”

Her training started in school where she learnt Kathak and started doing theatre in 9th grade. She says, “That gave me a taste of the stage. Before Teen Patti, I trained with Mr Mohit Tugnait, who taught me acting and diction. For Teen Patti, we did many workshops with Barry John and Ashley Lobo.”

Did Shakti warn her about the wolves in the industry? He says, “I always believe that if you are strong, nothing in this world can hurt you. Wolves are everywhere, but in show business, we are more exposed to them.”

At this juncture, Shraddha quips, “I think there are bad people everywhere and I can also turn into a wolf!”
Shraddha had read several scripts before Teen Patti but no role offered her such scope and range. And, of course, Shakti thinks his daughter is lucky to debut in a film that features Amitabh Bachchan.

He says, “The audience will go to the theatres for Mr Bachchan and will recognise the young talent. In the movie, she plays a college girl, a pick-up, a socialite, a tapori, chaalu ladki eating paan, while all the monsters are ogling at her. She might not have the songs or the romantic angle, but she portrays a wide range of emotions.”

Shraddha gently chides him as she tells him not to give away too much information about the film. Shraddha is open to the idea of bold scenes, and Shakti is supportive of her stance. He only says, “She is an adult and knows what is right or wrong.

All I tell her is that we come from a respected family and that she should know her boundaries.” It’s actually her mother who gives Shraddha advice as she makes frequent visits to the sets. Shakti has the final word as he says, “Good people make good actors.” And, we presume, he’s referring to his daughter.

She’s extremely confident, ‘ambitious’ in her own words and believes in her capabilities, and when it comes to Bollywood — she’s no babe in the woods. Because this gal hails from a khandaan that boasts of father Shakti Kapoor, aunt Padmini Kolhapure and grandfather Pandit Pandharinath Kolhapure. Presenting the latest Kapoor — Shraddha Kapoor!

“I grew up in an atmosphere where I saw my father leaving early for work, having odd hours and then to see the difference between him on-screen and the way he was off-screen. I found the whole process of becoming someone else fascinating!” she smiles.

Considering her lineage, it’s but natural to expect offers on a platter. But Shraddha didn’t take her entry into filmdom for granted. The newcomer, who makes her debut in Serendipity Films’ Teen Patti coming Friday, believes her journey towards acting started the day she was born 21 years ago. Shraddha’s done theatre for four years, learnt acting from Mohit Tugnait and later from Barry John, was part of a dance troupe at Boston University and knows how to play the guitar after six months of learning it for the film (“I play the lead guitarist of a band,” she informs us). Of course, she’s lucky to have an acting guru at home itself. “He is so humorous that I got to learn a lot just by observing him,” she adds about dad and filmi bad guy Shakti.

It’s a given that any newcomer working in a film with none other than Big B would be asked how the experience with such an accomplished actor was. But we threw her a different one — was it more difficult working with one of the biggest superstars of the millennium or to act with her father? “The day I was acting with my father was by far the most challenging for me!” she admits, “I think I must have made the maximum mistakes that day. My dad kept yelling at me ‘I’m not your father here, I’m an actor’!” she laughs at the memory.

Her father’s name might help her to an extent but after that, it’s her talent that would have to speak and Shraddha’s aware of that. “I am ambitious. I like to think and dream about the future,” she says. Considering the competition that lies ahead, would she be able to pitch in her best? Would she, for example, wear a bikini if the role requires it? “Nobody’s made that proposition yet, so I’ll consider that when it happens,” she says. Okay, but does she consider herself sexy? “Sexy?” she asks with a laugh, “We’ll let the audience decide that. Sexy’s not the way I would define myself. Moderately reserved, a little shy and very curious. But sexy? Nah!”

Shraddha Kapoor is a bundle of excitement as the release of her hatke debut film, Teen Patti, draws to a close.

“I feel I was born to be in the entertainment line. There was a time I wasn’t sure about what I wanted to do and lived life like any other teenager. When I was chosen for the film, I was thrilled because I was very sure about wanting to do Teen Patti. I remember telling my Dad (Shakti Kapoor) that. It was great to have found an aim and a routine, to have found something to work for. Teen Patti has been an amazing journey and I can’t wait to get back on a film set and act. I want to be here for a long time and also get into direction and other aspects of film-making,” she says confidently.

“My ultimate dream is to do a film in which I am acting, singing and dancing because I love doing all that. Farhan Akhtar has done all that in one film so he is quite an inspiration. I want to tell people that besides acting, I can sing and dance too as I am a very creatively-inclined person. I don’t know how to do that because I am quite bad at PR!” says Miss Kapoor.

Talking about music and dancing, Shraddha says, “I love dancing to anything with beats. I haven’t clubbed in ages but I used to go to Prive. I am very selective about what I listen to and it depends on my mood. I like old Hindi songs, selective R&B, progressive house and electronica. I think the music of Teen Patti is quite versatile and the title track is my favourite.”

For someone to break into Bollywood, you need to be ready to make incessant trips to production houses and meet directors. Or if you are lucky you get spotted at a party or at some filmi do.

But if you are Shraddha Kapoor the producer and director find you through a social networking site!

Shraddha, the daughter of Shakti Kapoor and Shivangi Kolhapure, was spotted by Leena Yadav as she looked for actors to cast in her soon to be released film Teen Patti.

“Actually something happened before the Facebook incident. The assistant casting director actually saw her somewhere and he suggested her name. And we were like ‘okay…Shakti Kapoor has a daughter who is ready to act. Okay we need to find her’. So before we got in touch formally we just gave it a shot,” says Leena with a laugh, “Because everybody is on Facebook these days!”

“I think Ambika (Hinduja) knows Shraddha’s brother so with that we got entry into Facebook and we checked her out there. And we said ‘there is something there.’ So we got her into the office and that’s where Shraddha’s story began,” explains Yadav.

With the film a fortnight away from release, Yadav is anxious but she says that has nothing to do with the fact that she has four debutants in her film.

“You know I auditioned for these roles for almost a year. It took me a year to find these final four that I settled on. After that we had some real intense and hard core workshops with the best in the business. And then when I saw them in the same frame as the likes of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan and do so splendidly I was so proud of them. It’s not easy being in the position they are in. I completely empathise with them. Through the filming I almost became like a mother to them and now I feel like I am about to give them up for adoption as the film stands for release,” says Leena.

Teen Patti stars Amitabh Bachchan, Sir Ben Kingsley, Madhavan, Saira Mohan and debutants Shraddha Kapoor,

The film is slated for release on February 26 with a big premiere in London.

While most of the debutantes from Teen Patti are going ga-ga over the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work with Amitabh Bachchan, Shakti Kapoor’s daughter Shraddha talks about bonding with R Madhavan.

Shraddha talks about bonding with R Madhavan and being in awe of Amitabh Bachchan and Sir Ben Kingsley. “Madhavan was a great source of entertainment on the sets. He is really funny. I would miss his company on the days he wasn’t shooting. He has these card tricks. In between shots, he would get an audience around him and do these card tricks confidently, while the shot was being set up. We wanted to learn them. He is a great actor, and he is fantastic company. He just kept the mood up while we were shooting,” she recalls.

About working with Big B, she says, “Hundreds and thousands and millions of people would give their bodies, limbs and souls to work with Amitabh Bachchan. The four of us (Dhruv Ganesh, Vaibhav Talwar, Shraddha Kapoor and Siddharth Kher) had to give grilling auditions to work with Mr. Amitabh Bachchan. We have been very lucky to do so in our first film, which is at such high stakes. Interacting with Mr. Bachchan has taught me what humility is because he is so great, yet so humble. I think I must have done something amazing in my past life to get the chance of working with Mr. Bachchan in this life.”

Shraddha Kapoor, the beautiful daughter of menacing on screen villain Shakti Kapoor, is all kicked about her debut venture, Teen Patti. She plays a confident Aparna Khanna who helps a group of gamblers spearheaded by Amitabh Bachchan. But what's giving her chills is the realization that she shared screen space with two legends Bachchan and Ben Kingsley in the movie. She still can't believe that she got unanimously selected from the auditions she gave.

"It's a blessing, that's what I will say. We must have done something very good in our life that we got this chance to start our careers with two phenomenal human beings. I still pinch myself sometimes to actually believe that yes, I am in the movie with Mr. Bachchan. So the feeling is heavenly," says an animated Shraddha.

Talking about her role, Shraddha says, "Aparna is a very quiet person. She's inherently determined to get what she wants. In Teen Patti, she's after her heart. She realises in the film that the betrayal she probably will face from her lover is nothing compared to the betrayal she will go through due to the game."

It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call this the perfect start. Shraddha Kapoor, the 20-year-old daughter of actor Shakti Kapoor will make her debut with Amitabh Bachchan and Ben Kingsley in Teen Patti that releases in February. The only female actor in the cast, Shraddha, who met producer Ambika Hinduja through a social networking site, says that working with the legends was a “surreal” experience. “I feel so humble and thrilled about it and have immense gratitude for this opportunity.”

At a recent dinner, Shraddha was floored when Sir Kingsley kissed her hand. “Ambika had organised a dinner in London and he asked me to sing. I sang one of Lataji’s songs for him and I was overwhelmed by his appreciation, when he just took my hand and kissed it.”

She says that while a filmy background has its advantages, it comes with its share of downsides. “I’ve always wanted to be an actor, but I believe that there are no short cuts. I am sure people have expectations from me because of my father and maasi (aunt Padmini Kolhapure), but I’m willing to give it my all.” Next up, the actress will be seen walking the ramp for the Chennai Fashion Week in December.

In the early 2009, all shoots of Teen Patti has been accomplished in Pune, India before going to abroad. During that time, Amitabh Bachchan has kept his father Harivansh Rai Bachchan immortal through his poems. He used post his favorite poems from his father’s collection on his blog. Apparently the cast and crew of Teen Patti were lucky enough to enjoy Harivansh Rai Bachchan’s poetry through Amitabh Bachchan.

A unit hand told us a notable experience that happened on the last day of the shoot. “To make the last day of the film’s shoot special the entire cast and crew of Teen Patti requested Mr Babchchan to recite of his father’s poetry. After cajoling him, he finally agreed to recite for 20 minutes. However everyone gathered in a classroom when Big B started reciting his favorite poems which continued for almost two hours.” Says a unit hand.

Alongside Madhavan, Mahesh Manjrekar, and Raima Sen this movie also stared by John Barry, who has taught acting to Shah Rukh Khan and Manoj Bajpai, is all set to make his acting debut. The theatre teacher was there to conduct a workshop with Amitabh Bachchan and some college students, who are part of the cast for Teen Patti (Siddharth Kher, Vaibhav Talwar, Dhruv Ganesh, and Shraddha Kapoor). As expected, the students were in awe of Amitabh Bachchan.

Source: www.mumbaimirror.com

If you were to Google Siddhanth Kapoor, you'd be dished out close to six pages of news on his arrest at the Bombay East 72 rave party in October 2008. With no good word on the guy in cyber space, it's ironic when friends and acquaintances tell you he's not your average messed-up celebrity kid. Those who've grown up with Siddhanth aka "Bully" find it tough to share gossip on him, the stuff you'd expect from the Pandora's Box of the rich and famous.

The "most chilled out guy" has the life of any other 25 year-old gyming, kickboxing, catching movies, and meeting his group of 12 friends over dinner. When he isn't doing any of this, he works on improving his Urdu diction. "Sonam (Kapoor) is a childhood friend, so is Boney Kapoor's son, Arjun. But, that's as far as celebrity friends go. The rest are just people I went to school and college with," he shrugs.

Allergic to page 3

While growing up, his parents kept him and younger sister Shraddha away from celebrity parties. And that perhaps has something to do with his allergy for "page 3-type" socialising. It's tough to find a photograph or news piece on him, anywhere, until the rave bust happened, that is. "I stay away from all that. I haven't given interviews either."

Slouching on a couch beside giant glass panes that overlook the sea, comfortable in worn out jeans and flip-flops, he nonchalantly says, "I don't care where people come from, who their parents are, what they wear. Nothing." He holds your gaze constantly with a novel glint in his eye, without blinking much and smiling, however sporadically, with utmost genuineness, some despair and comfort, all at once. A few features (especially the eyes) and the contours of his face bear an uncanny resemblance to his father's Bollywood's favourite bad guy. It's the sort of face, soft but craggy, that instantly speaks of having endured tough times.

"The rave bust was the hardest time in my life. It was disturbing to be singled out, to make it to the headlines, get misrepresented on TV channels and tabloids... all because I was a celebrity kid. He was just DJing at the party, a passion he's harboured for a decade. "But I happened to be at the wrong place at the wrong time," he throws his hands up in the air exasperated. The media that had gone to town over the drug test, turned cold when the result was declared negative. "Nobody did a follow-up to that story," he rues.

I'll never stop DJing

Back in 1999, Siddhanth bagged his first gig at Head Quarters, better known as HQs, Colaba's favourite teen night spot. Since then, he has DJed at sundry clubs and parties. He is a proud collector of 5 Caselogics of music, and loves all forms of electronic. But, he plans to change his style a bit, and focus more on house. "But playing at parties is out of the question. I am going to stick to leading nightclubs, those that are safe to play at."

Direction helps an actor

In last two years, Siddhanth has been busy assisting South director Priyadarshan on Bhool Bhulaiya, Bhaagam Bhag and Dhol. "Direction equips you to understand the nuances of filmmaking, which are necessary for actors to know camera angles, dialogue and discipline on set." After studying acting at the Lee Strasberg Film and Theatre Institute, New York and direction at the New York Film Academy, Siddhant is scouting for quality auditions. At the moment, he is nervously waiting to hear from Anurag Kashyap Productions on a lead role he auditioned for last week. He's clear that he will be picky about roles, the kind of stuff Saif Ali Khan did in Omkara or Abhay Deol in DevD. But for now, he's elated that his 22 year-old sister is making her debut in Leena Yadav's Teen Patti starring Big B. "I am the typical possessive older brother. But we are very close,"
he smiles.

Mom's the word

The family is the closest they have ever been, he admits. "We have been through a lot. But, we have stuck on." He credits this calm, collected outlook to his mother, Shivangi's (Kolhapure) daily Mahikari Japanese spiritual regime. "It purifies the mind, body and soul. Mom, Shraddha and I practise it daily. I think that's what has kept us going, kept us together."

source: http://www.mid-day.com/

Discussing her debut, Shraddha says, “It’s a dream come true. It’s my first film, yet I am sharing screen space with living legend Amitabh Bachchan. I can’t talk about my role because I am under a contract not to give out details. I just want to say that the script is wonderful. I can hardly wait for the film to release. I’m so grateful to my brother Siddhanth. It is because of him that I got the chance to do Teen Patti.” Siddhanth and producer Ambika Hinduja studied together and that is how Shraddha ended up auditioning for the role.

Shraddha’s mother, Shivangi Kapoor, too is extremely excited for her daughter. She says, “As a child, Shraddha always wanted to become an actress and she would watch all of her aunt Padmini Kolhapure’s films. I’m so happy that her dream has finally come true. Before she entered the film industry, she graduated from Boston. She has always been a confident girl.”

Teen Patti will also showcase the debuts of newcomers Dhruv Ganesh and Vaibhav Talwar. In the film, Amitabh Bachchan plays a professor who teaches five of his brightest students how to gamble with high stakes- he is doing this for a cause.

This year is going to be the newcomers' year. After Neil Mukesh, Mimoh, Ranbir and Sonam Kapoor, now it's Shraddha Kapoor – Shakti Kapoor's daughter - who'll be getting into films.

Shraddha has been signed by Ambika Hinduja for her next film Teen Patti directed by Leena Yadav. The girl will share screen space with Amitabh Bachchan. Speaking about Shraddha, father Shakti Kapoor says, "Sharaddha is young and beautiful like her mother. She always wanted to be an actress and now eventually has signed her first movie. I am quite happy about her debut."