After Karz lost to Qurbani, a traumatized Rishi Kapoor feared heavy studio lights falling on him and believed his romantic star era was over.
When Subhash Ghai released Karz in June 1980, everyone expected it to be a huge hit. The story had everything: a romantic hero, incredible music, and a thrilling plot about rebirth and revenge. Rishi Kapoor, who played the lead role of Monty, was desperately hoping for a massive solo hit. At the time, Amitabh Bachchan’s action movies were dominating Bollywood, and Rishi needed Karz to prove himself as a top solo star.
Instead, the film faced an unexpected disaster at the box office. Just one week after Karz hit theaters, Feroz Khan’s big-budget action movie Qurbani was released. With its massive star cast, glamorous international scenes, and hit songs, Qurbani completely took over the box office. Karz did average business, but it fell far short of what Rishi and the team had hoped for.
The shock of this failure plunged Rishi Kapoor into a severe depression. In his autobiography Khullam Khulla, the actor shared how the stress turned into severe anxiety and panic. On movie sets, he would tremble with fear, feel faint, and worry that heavy studio lights were going to fall on him.
The trauma was so overwhelming that he stopped showing up for shooting schedules of major upcoming films like Naseeb, Prem Rog, and Zamaane Ko Dikhana Hai, leaving entire cast and crew members waiting on set for days while he struggled to face a camera.
Concerned by his son’s condition, Raj Kapoor stepped in to help him cope. He brought in doctors and psychiatrists, took Rishi to their peaceful farmhouse in Loni, brought him to Shirdi, and read verses from the Bhagavad Gita to give him strength. Meanwhile, to cope with the fear, Rishi began drinking almost every evening just to feel confident enough to get through the day.
Sadly, his newly married wife, Neetu Kapoor, had to bear the worst of his breakdown. They had been married for only five months, and Neetu was pregnant with their daughter Riddhima. Struggling with deep insecurity, Rishi started blaming his marriage for the flop, convincing himself that being a married man had ruined his romantic image and lost him his female fan following.
It took a long time and a lot of patience for Rishi to heal, rebuild his confidence, and get back in front of the camera. The irony of the story is that while Qurbani won the initial box office battle in 1980, Karz went on to become one of the biggest cult classics in Indian cinema history. Its songs and storyline inspired future hits like Om Shanti Om, proving that the movie was way ahead of its time.
Starring Rishi Kapoor, Tina Munim, Simi Grewal, and Raj Kiran, Karz revolves around a reincarnated singer who uncovers the truth about his past life and seeks justice against the woman who betrayed him.
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