Why did Mumtaz & Shammi Kapoor Split Up?

Yesteryear actress Mumtaz opened up about her relationship with veteran star Shammi Kapoor.

Mumtaz began her career in the early 1960s. She reigned supreme in Bollywood through to the 1970s.

Her popular films include Ram Aur Shyam (1967), Khilona (1970) and Aap Ki Kasam (1974).

In 1968, she featured opposite Shammi Kapoor in Brahmachari. 

During the time of shooting the film, Kapoor was a widower. His first wife Geeta Bali had died of smallpox in 1965.

The former actress explained that she and Kapoor had fallen in love but she refused to marry him due to career aspirations.

Mumtaz recollected: “His wife Geeta Bali had passed away.

“During the shooting of the song ‘Aaj Kal Tere Mere Pyar Ke Charche‘, we came closer and fell in love.

“We were together for two-three years. He professed his love to me and asked me to marry him.

“I loved him deeply but he told me that I couldn’t work after marriage as women marrying into the Kapoor clan didn’t work.

“I told him I couldn’t marry him because I wanted to work and fulfil my dreams.

“I didn’t want to be a homemaker, taking care of his children and managing the household.

“He was angry and told me, ‘If you would have truly loved me, you would’ve accepted my proposal and left working in films. You only pretend to love me because you wanted to score big films opposite me’.

“This left me completely heartbroken.”

Although Shammi Kapoor had wanted Mumtaz to quit films, his grand-niece Karisma Kapoor stated that the idea of married women in the Kapoor family not working was a “myth”.

She cited examples of Geeta Bali and Shashi Kapoor’s wife Jennifer Kendal.

In an interview, Karisma said: “I think it was a myth that Kapoor ladies were not allowed to work.

“My mum and Neetu aunty wanted to settle down so they stopped working.

“But Geeta Bali Ji, Jennifer Ji – they worked in films right up until 36 Chowringhee Lane (1981).

“But then there was a long gap. My father’s sisters were not interested in films so a myth was created that Kapoor girls don’t work.”

Meanwhile, Shammi Kapoor had also shed a light on his relationship with Mumtaz. He admitted:

“Mumtaz was a very beautiful thing in [Brahmachari].

“At that time, I was a widower and Mumtaz happened to be a very pretty girl.”

“For a short while, we both had dreams and then it turned into a nightmare.”

Kapoor later went on to marry Neila Devi in 1969. They remained together until his death on August 14, 2011.

After Brahmachari, Shammi Kapoor never worked with Mumtaz again. After marrying Mayur Madhvani in 1974, the actress retired from the film industry after starring in Aaina (1977).

Mumtaz made her Bollywood comeback 13 years later in David Dhawan’s Aandhiyan (1990).