Rishi Kapoor & Kader Khan Movies Together List — 16 Films

The shape of the work

The 1980s belonged to Coolie; the 2000s to Yeh Hai Jalwa. Rishi Kapoor acted in every film; Kader Khan acted in all of them. Strictly Hindi cinema — they never crossed industries together.

Partnership facts

• They first shared screen space in 'Zamaane Ko Dikhana Hai' (1981), but the real spark came later that same year in 'Naseeb' — where Kader Khan wrote the dialogue for a scene where Rishi’s character gets into a heated argument with his on-screen father. Rishi later said Khan’s lines gave him the confidence to play angry-young-man roles.
• In 'Coolie' (1983), Kader Khan played the villain who constantly outsmarts Rishi’s character. But off-camera, Khan would rehearse the scene with Rishi multiple times, showing him exactly where to pause for maximum comic effect before delivering the punchline. Rishi admitted Khan taught him comic timing.
• During the making of 'Bol Radha Bol' (1992), Rishi Kapoor was going through a rough patch professionally. Kader Khan, who played his father in the film, would sit with him in his vanity van between shots and tell him stories about the old days — just to keep his mood light. Rishi later called him 'the most comforting co-star I ever had.'
• Their last film together, 'Yaraana' (1995), was a box-office disaster. But it directly led to Rishi Kapoor deciding to take a break from lead roles and experiment with character parts — a shift that eventually gave us his iconic comeback in 'Luck By Chance' (2009). Kader Khan had already been telling him for years: 'You’re too good to just be a hero.'
• Rishi Kapoor once said in an interview: 'Kader sahab could make even a bad line sound like poetry. I would just stand there and let his words do the acting.' He said this while promoting 'Pehla Pehla Pyar' (1994), a film that critics panned but Rishi defended because of Khan’s dialogue.