The Provincial Government in Pakistan’s Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa has decided to purchase the ancestral houses of veteran Bollywood actors Raj Kapoor and Dilip Kumar to conserve the buildings. The historic buildings are in dilapidated condition and face demolition threat. The Department of Archaeology in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province has decided to allocate sufficient funds for purchasing the two buildings. Dilip Kumar’s ancestral mansion was declared a national heritage by the Government of Pakistan in 2014 and Raj Kapoor’s mansion in 2018.
This famous Kapoor Haveli is located in the Kissa Khwani Bazaar, a residential area in Peshawar. It has been home to many books of the Kapoor family. This mansion, built before partition, was built by Prithviraj Kapoor’s father and Rishi Kapoor’s great-grandfather Dewan Basheshwanath Kapoor between 1918-1922. The building started in 1918 and was completed in 1921. The mansion consists of 40 rooms and the exteriors of the Haveli are carved with beautiful motifs. There are plush windows on it.
Dilip Kumar’s ancestral mansion is also near Kapoor Haveli. It is about 100 years old. The owners of both the Havelis tried to demolish them several times to build a commercial plaza, but the government did not approve it. However, according to Ali Kader, who owns Kapoor Haveli, he does not want to demolish it.
Rishi Kapoor, before his death, has requested the Pakistan Government to convert the Kapoor Haveli into a museum that could not be materialised until now.