Ram Kapoor has spoken candidly about losing his father, Anil “Billy” Kapoor, after a long and painful battle with cancer. In a conversation with Nayandeep Rakshit, the actor opened up about his father’s final days, the difficult promise he made to him and the emotions he went through when he eventually passed away.
Ram’s father, Anil, was a businessman who was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer at 63. Doctors said the cancer was inoperable, but he underwent 18 rounds of chemotherapy and eventually went into remission. He was able to live a good life for another decade, until the cancer returned when he was 73.
The cancer came back during the COVID-19 pandemic, when Anil was in Singapore. This time, his condition was far more serious and there were limited treatment options. It was during this period that Ram received a call from his father, who made a request that left the actor stunned. He said, “He asked, 'Can you help me die?' Obviously, my reaction was the same as anyone else's. But he managed to convince me that if I didn't do it, he would die alone”
Ram said his father had asked him to keep the decision to himself and remain by his side in the ICU. By then, there was no treatment left to pursue. He only wanted Ram there with him as he faced his final moments. “No one knew there was no treatment happening. He just wanted me to hold his hand and help him go. Somehow he knew that Ram could do this. He was scared of being alone, but he wasn't scared of dying. He said, 'I don't want anyone to cry at my funeral. If I die, I want you to cremate me the very same day'," Ram recalled.
The actor described those final days as extremely difficult, especially as he watched his father deal with the physical and mental toll of cancer. He added, “I had my hands full with this dying man. It was not easy. Cancer is a very bad way to go. It's a very bad disease. Sometimes he's in severe pain, sometimes he's hallucinating, sometimes he's… So I had to deal with all of that…”
For Ram, his father's death brought a sense of relief because it meant the suffering was finally over. Instead of breaking down, he found himself feeling happy that his father was no longer in pain. He said, “I was super thrilled that his pain was over. So, in that process, I was happy about the death. I was smiling at the death. So, when you start smiling at death, how can you fear it? So, now it's a joke to me”
Ram said his father had always lived life on his own terms. He described him as someone who “lived like a king” and said he wanted to make sure that “he died like a royal”.
Ram said his decision to stand by his father also came at a personal cost. He revealed that his mother and sister have not spoken to him for over five years and only learned about their father’s wishes after his death. “My mother and my sister still don't talk to me. It's been more than five years,” he shared.
Even though it created a deep rift within his family, Ram said he has no regrets about being there for his father in his final moments. Looking back, he believes fulfilling his father’s wishes was one of the most important things he could have done for him. “But I think…it's one of the best things a child can do for their parent,” he said.
Being so closely involved in his father’s final days also changed the way Ram looked at death. “He lived with dignity and passed away the way he wanted. Seeing death so closely changed my perspective completely,” he concluded.
Ram Kapoor participated in the Lock Upp: Sach Ya Saza on Netflix recently. The actor was also seen in web series Mistry and Jolly LLB 3 last year.
Monica Yadav is a senior entertainment journalist with Hindustan Times Entertainment, based in Mumbai, with nearly 11 years of experience covering Bollywood, Hollywood and Asian entertainment, including Korean, Chinese and Thai cinema, television and music. She is among the few Indian journalists in India with a dedicated focus on Korean entertainment, including K-pop and K-dramas, and has interviewed some of the industry's biggest stars while closely tracking the rise of global pop culture. Her reporting has also taken her beyond India, where she has covered travel, culture and entertainment. Alongside her work at Hindustan Times, her bylines have appeared in several international publications. Known for her in-depth interviews, feature stories and engaging storytelling, Monica enjoys exploring the human side of entertainment. From breaking news and long-form features to music coverage, explainers and on-camera conversations with artists, she is passionate about telling stories that connect with audiences across the world.Read More
