Pets in film homes sometimes have dual lives. While some members of the family dote on them, others are indifferent to them.
Take the instance of Ranbir Kapoor’s two dogs. When one of his Richie Rich industrialist friends gifted him two Mastiffs almost a decade ago, Lionel and Nido, RK welcomed them into his home with open arms. They were just puppies back then. But in around three years, they had grown so tall that they resembled ‘mini’ ponies. His late father, Rishi Kapoor, had said, “There is nothing Ranbir will not do for his dogs. He has a special area for them in his home with full air conditioning because these guys need to be kept at a certain temperature. They are not used to Indian weather conditions, especially our Mumbai weather, which is hot and sultry. Even the floor in the pet area is special because he doesn’t want their paws slipping. Walking on marble and polished wooden floors is not always ideal for dog paws.”
Ranbir Kapoor’s two dogs |
Rishi would also laugh and good-naturedly say that his pets were treated to ice cream to cool off and indulged in custom-made khana. In other words, RK and now Alia care deeply about their pets.
Those who jog on Pali Hill sometimes notice Lionel being taken for a walk. And since he is a big guy, he would invariably be pulling his dog walker rather than the other way around.
Mrs Krishna Kapoor could not get used to the dogs
The matriarch of the first film family, Mrs Krishna Kapoor, took time to get used to her grandson’s pets. When RK lived with his grandmom at the Deonar cottage for almost a year before he moved into his residence at Pali Hill, the senior Mrs Kapoor would joke about how she had never taken to having dogs running around on her lawns. But since the pets meant so much to her favourite grandson, Ranbir, whom she adored, she was willing to accept his pets with one condition. “I would tell him to keep them away from me,” she laughed. “Except for giving them an occasional petting, I stayed out of their way,” she joked.
History repeats itself in Pali Hill
In another Kapoor home in Pali Hill, the dog story continues in a similar way. The patriarch, Boney Kapoor, doesn’t indulge his daughter Janhvi Kapoor’s 19 dogs. He leaves the indulgence to Janhvi, Khushi and Janhvi’s partner, Shikhar. Another similarity in this Kapoor household is that some of the 19 dogs have reportedly been gifted to the Kapoors by an influential, mega-rich friend who loves animals. So, Shikhar and Janhvi also love their dogs. Janhvi calls the place where her pets stay “my safe space.”
Janhvi Kapoor |
Now, since there’s a large population of dogs at the duplex, you may imagine that they have access to all parts of the house. But a fly on the wall says the dogs have set boundaries. While they are welcome to jump all over Janhvi and Khushi’s living areas and bedrooms, they are reportedly not allowed into the main hall on the lower floor, where Boney Kapoor has all his meetings. There’s a retinue of servants and support staff to care for these animals; these include dog walkers, medical staff, drivers, etc., because the pets are indulged by their owners.
At the Grovers' house in Versova, father and pets rarely mix
Bollywood’s bad man, Gulshan Grover |
Bollywood’s bad man, Gulshan Grover, lives in a well-appointed duplex in Versova. He has been living there for thirty years. But in the last seven years, there has been one change in their ecosystem and social surroundings. Gulshan sticks to the lower part of the duplex while his Hollywood-returned son, actor-producer Sanjay Grover, has occupied the upper floor.
Gulshan’s weak spot is his son, for whom he can move mountains. “And my son’s weakness is his dogs,” laughs the bad man.
Gulshan says that at any given point in time, his son has around seven pets in their safe haven on the sixth floor. And the dogs are pampered and privileged. Speaking of how they have dog walkers and drivers on standby because each breed has a different routine, the baddie says, “I’m not into dogs. However, since they are my son’s family, I will do anything for them.”
On a daily basis, GG doesn’t play with the dogs or even visit them on the floor above. But when it becomes inevitable for him to visit Sanjay, then he is the dutiful elder. Not only does he play with the Grover pets, he also enjoys the warm welcome they reserve for him.
