Seventy years after it was established by actor Raj Kapoor in 1948, the well-known R K studio is now up for sale. The landmark studio, which was retained by the Kapoor family after the death of the legendary actor in 1988, was used for many films made under the R K banner.
Last year, a massive fire broke out on the sets of a dance reality show in the studio located in suburban Chembur.
"Yes we have taken the decision to sell RK Studio. It is already up for sale. After the fire that broke at the studio it was not viable to build the studio again... It was not economically viable to do it again," Randhir Kapoor has been quoted as saying in a report.
The Kapoor family maintained the studio. It was home to memorabilia and costumes from the R K films. After the fire last year, actor Rishi Kapoor had tweeted, "A Studio can be built again but the loss of the irreplaceable memorabilia and costumes of all RK Films, is tragic for all. Fire took it away". The actor had expressed the desire to rebuild the studio with "state-of-the-art technology". The idea, perhaps, was tough to turn around.
The actor, according to this report, said that it was a tough emotional decision to put the studio up for sale. He added, "We Kapoors are very emotional lot but then... The investment in rebuilding the studio would just not have yielded sufficient revenue to keep it going," he said further.
Last year, the actor shared a picture of the studio being readied for Dussehra inauguration of the studio on social media.