Dubai: Reality show star Maheep Kapoor, who shot to fame with the glossy series Fabulous Lives of Bollywood Wives, is no stranger to criticism. While many revel in disparaging her show that documents the charmed lives of Bollywood insiders, Kapoor finds the intense scrutiny both intriguing and unsettling.
“The intention of the show was purely to entertain after a stressful day... Just chill — that was the sole idea. It’s simple, easy, guilty pleasure,” Kapoor told Gulf News during her visit to Dubai to celebrate her actor-husband Sanjay Kapoor’s 60th birthday.
She also believes that hate is a currency that never goes out of style. Even if all that spite and vitriol stems from loathing or pure boredom, she never discounts the effort that goes into hating. Haters don’t hate on the inconsequential, believes Maheep.
“Hate me, I am fine with it... They have trolled the greatest of greats in this Bollywood industry. So I am in good company... Bring it on, I don’t mind haters,” said Kapoor.
At the time of this interview, the second season of FLOBW had already released, but today she has already starred in the third season of her highly polarizing reality show.
But calling her a mere star trophy wife would be reductive and unfair. Apart from being the better half of actor-producer Sanjay Kapoor and mother to aspiring actress Shanaya Kapoor and Jahaan, she’s a successful jewelry designer. In the reality show featuring three other star wives, Maheep comes across as the audacious leader of the pack. She’s gloriously potty-mouthed and is a cocktail of caustic and catty. No viewer can ever accuse her of holding back.
“You cannot please everybody. There’s going to be a set of people — whether you are in this industry or not — who’s not going to get you or love you. I am OK with that,” said Kapoor. The show was offered to her when she was turning 48 and was in a phase she describes as “content.” But then movie and TV mogul Karan Johar, who has co-produced TFLOBW, offered her a reality show that demanded she play herself. What’s a day in the life of a wife whose husband is a public figure?
“Karan has spent so much time with us and he was constantly amused at us … This was his brainwave and it was borderline genius … At the time it was offered to me, I was in a phase where I was comfortable enough to jump into the deep end. I forgot the cameras were around. While we are humans and don’t want to be judged, we knew that this show would open a Pandora ’s Box of judgment.”
She wasn’t off the mark. Her confessions about her actor-husband straying in the marriage grabbed a lot of attention. Apparently, it was the love from her fans that emboldened her to open up about that painful chapter in her life.
“In the first season, we were a lot more reserved. But there was so much overwhelming love, that we came into our own in the second season … So many women have come to me saying that I am an inspiration and they admired me for taking the plunge at this phase in our lives.”
The series also features actress Neelam Kothari (wife of actor Samir Soni), Bhavana Pandey (wife of actor Chunky Pandey), and Seema Sajdeh (ex-wife of actor-producer Sohail Khan) — all in their late forties, an age often forgotten in the Bollywood entertainment landscape.
“I keep telling women that just because you are in your mid-40s, don’t stop pushing your boundaries. Do that course that you have always wanted to do or take that trip with your girlfriends. Life is too short. The pandemic had us all suddenly question our mortality,” said Kapoor.
The series also taught us that the pandemic was a particularly challenging time for Maheep and her family. She was diagnosed with acute diabetes and ended up in emergency care when her sugar levels shot up.
“It was a scary time and the pandemic was a wake-up call for all of us. All of us should learn from that experience. We may be middle-aged or more, but we are not in the grave yet.”
Until the reality show took off, these wives always lived under the shadow of their actor husbands. But headlining their own series on an OTT platform changed their lives dramatically. Now these women, whether they are loved or loathed, are being invited to launch stores and attend fashion shows. But there was a lot of learning and unlearning to do, claims Maheep.
“We have never faced the camera in such close quarters. I was shocked to see my backside on camera or my side profile … In season 1, I looked like a Geisha in certain scenes with all that excess makeup.” She also lost a lot of weight.
“My husband got me this cycle during the pandemic and I was so full of anxiety and angst, that I took out all my frustration on that cycle. I was unsure of what was going on and I used to cycle in the morning and evening just to get all that energy out of me … Also being diagnosed with diabetes meant I lost weight. But honestly, it was hard work.”
But being the queen of a reality show isn’t her only goal. Kapoor tells us that she hopes to launch her own YouTube channel for women like her.
“I want to tell all women that even if you are in your 40s, you can lose weight. There’s no such thing as not losing weight because you are in menopause or perimenopause, or that your metabolic rate is going down. I want to start a channel for all those women in their mid-40s who keep asking me about the makeup I wear or the diet I follow. I have a thesis on this and I want to share it.”
While the show was blasted for being vacuous and shrill, there were many reviews that lauded these women for touching upon taboo topics like menopause with endearing honesty.
“We all knew that menopause is around the corner, knocking on the door and I was more than ready to explain and be open about it. Ladies, menopause is not a dirty word. It’s a privilege to have grown to that phase in our lives where we are premenopausal. Learn to embrace and own it.”
She says these words with conviction and a zest for life. Ask her about why she chose to reveal her husband’s alleged transgressions, and she has the simplest of responses.
“I was honest. I wasn’t [expletive] about anything and I think women connected to me because I put it all down on the table. With that admission, it was clear that life is not a bed of roses. There’s going to be downs in your life that make you appreciate the ups. Everything isn’t fairy dust, white picket fenced home, or fairy dust … But for both Sanjay and me, family is very important. We realized through our struggles that we are better and stronger together.”
The show is also unapologetic about their gilded existence. Going to afternoon teas and enjoying impromptu spa holidays with their girlfriends, along with sorting out inconsequential spats with their besties, are a part of their jet-setting lives.
“I really can’t not acknowledge that we are privileged. It would be dumb of me not to do it. But all I am trying to say is that even if you live in a palace and you are a princess living that fairytale life, you could be going through your own angst and struggles. We may be privileged, but we are all human and we all cry, feel hurt, insecure … Being scrutinized and living in the public eye requires you to be thick-skinned. I am all that — privileged and thick-skinned, but also human.”
Her series also helped in shattering misconceptions and stereotypes around wives of Bollywood stars, believes Maheep.
“Everyone’s got this preconceived perception of Bollywood wives that they don’t work or aren’t independent. But we all work, we all make our own money, we are all great mothers and wives … While I love being called Sanjay Kapoor’s wife and am proud of it, there’s a lot more to me and all of us. The show underlined that wonderfully.”
