On the occasion of Bollywood’s most iconic and legendary star Shammi Kapoor’s birth anniversary, we remember an actor who was not only a remarkable performer but also a beloved public figure. Shammi Kapoor, one of the megastars of his era, made his film debut with Jeevan Jyoti in 1953 and dominated the Bollywood scene from the late 1950s to the early 1970s. As October 21 marks his 93rd birth anniversary, lets take a trip down memory lane when his first wife Geeta Bali asked him to get married and apply “lipstick in her maang”. 

Much like his talent on screen, Shammi Kapoor’s romance with Geeta Bali captured the hearts of many. The two first crossed paths during the production of Miss Coca Cola (1955), which was helmed by Hari Ahluvalia.

As Shammi came to the realization that he was in love with Geeta, he proposed to her multiple times, but she initially turned him down. However, on August 23, 1955, while at the Juhu Hotel in Bombay, Shammi proposed once more, and this time Geeta accepted his marriage proposal.

Shammi recalled that after four months filled with agony, tears, and desperate attempts to win Geeta over, the unexpected happened one day.

On August 23, 1955, while they were at the Juhu Hotel in Bombay—where he had been staying alone since his parents were away in Bhopal with the Prithvi Theatres troupe—he proposed to Geeta once again, fully expecting her to decline with a smile.

In an old interview with The Quint, Shammi described it saying, “I proposed to Geeta again, knowing she’d shake her head once more and smile. But she didn’t. Instead, she knocked me out of my wits. She said, ‘Ok Shammi, let’s get married. But it’s got to be now’.”  

With help from friends like Johnny Walker and producer Hari Valia, Shammi and Geeta exchanged vows at the Banganga Temple on Napean Sea Road in South Bombay (now Mumbai).

Shammi recounted that Hari had undergone a similar experience and led them to the renowned Banganga Temple early in the morning.

Despite the heavy rain, they arrived at the temple, with Geeta in her somewhat wrinkled salwar-kameez and Shammi in a kurta-pajama. With only Hari Valia as their witness, the priest conducted the ceremonial rites, and they completed the seven pheras (rounds) around the sacred fire, officially becoming husband and wife.

Geeta then took a lipstick from her purse and asked Shammi to apply it to her maang (the parting of her hair) as a symbolic gesture of their marriage, similar to applying sindoor (vermilion). 

Durgesh Kumar became a household name with his portrayal of Bhushan, aka Banrakas, in the beloved series Panchayat. The social media’s meme favorite actor is celebrating his birthday today, i.e. October 21. On the special occasion, revisiting the time when the actor had revealed Alia Bhatt became a fan of his dancing skills on the sets of Imtiaz Ali’s Highway. 

In an earlier interview with Spotlight Magazine, Durgesh Kumar talked about his experience working with Alia Bhatt in Highway. He mentioned the actress was a “chirpy little girl” when he met her for the first time, as opposed to his expectation of meeting a diva. The birthday boy hailed it as a great time working with the Jigra actress.

The Panchayat actor explained that his character in the film would understand the equation between Randeep Hooda and Alia Bhatt’s character, and he was supposed to treat the actress’ character like a younger sister.

“The dance sequence I performed with her has generated a lot of buzz, and I had a blast shooting it. After we shot the scene, Alia told me she was a fan of my dancing skills I take that as a huge compliment because I just did what I felt like and didn’t care too much about my moves,” he said.