Shekhar Kapur

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Shekhar Kapur, born 6 December 1945 in British India (in an area which became part of Pakistan) is a renowned filmmaker from India. His basic schooling was done at the Modern School, New Delhi. His works include Elizabeth (1998), a semi-historical account of the early reign of Queen Elizabeth I; it was nominated for 8 Oscars. In 2000, he was awarded the Padma Shri.

Shekhar Kapur

Films directed by Shekhar Kapur:

Elizabeth
Bandit Queen
Masoom
Mr. India
The Four Feathers
Water (future release)
Elizabeth: The Golden Age (future release)
The Last Full Measure (future release)
Long Walk to Freedom (future release)
Buddha (on hold)
Foundation (rumored)
Time Machine (Incomplete)

Some scenes of the movie Joshilaay (1989) which starred Sunny Deol, Anil Kapoor, Sridevi and Meenakshi Sheshadari were directed by Kapur.

He was accused of being Anti-British by British tabloids, by the way he portrayed the British Army and the Empire in the movie The Four Feathers. This was also heightened by the fact that during an interview for the DVD release of the Four Feathers he spoke favorably of the fanatical religious leader depicted in the film (the Mahdi).

Kapur also executive produced the Hollywood film The Guru.

Kapur was also executive producer of the Bollywood-themed Andrew Lloyd Webber musical Bombay Dreams, which has been running in the West End, London since 2002, and on Broadway in New York City since 2004.

Future projects include Long Walk to Freedom, Water, The Last Full Measure, and Golden Age, a sequel to Elizabeth. Also 20th Century Fox has signed him to direct two installations of Isaac Asimov's Foundation Trilogy. They are slated to be called Foundation and Second Foundation; further details are unknown. In September, Kapur announced tentative plans to make a major motion picture account of the life of the Buddha, entitled Buddha.

Kapur is a chartered accountant. He is married to singer and actress Suchitra Krishnamurthy.

In June 2005, Kapur and his friend, guru Deepak Chopra launched a discussion blog [1] with a select group of their friends and family. The purpose of the blog is to promote original discussion by voices from South Asia, and especially India. Kapur posts regularly on the blog, often writing short personal poems. Shortly after, Kapur also started his own personal blog on his official website.

In January 2006, it was reported that Kapur and Chopra would be collaborating with Richard Branson on a Bangalore-based animated film company[2].

He has initiated divorce proceedings against his wife. The hearing was scheduled for the 9th of october 2006 and the divorce is likely to come through within a year's time.