Celebrity Kids (2002)

There is always a moment in childhood when the door opens and lets the future in.”
– Graham Greene

They were born with the proverbial silver spoon in their mouths, the sons and daughters of celebrity parents who have been in the limelight for years. As they grew, bathed in the afterglow of that glitter, the world around them watched with eager anticipation and high expectations to see if they would inherit and recreate the charisma, the style, the grace, the gifts of their scions.

Cocooned in a privileged world, those who did choose to retrace the footsteps, to carry forth the legacy, discovered that while the doors to stardom opened by magic, every stumble was exaggerated to a fall and cruel comparisons ruled the day. Some balked and chose to tread other roads, but many others rose above themselves to create their own place, carve their own niche, break new boundaries and explore new horizons.

The Strings That Bind

Their fathers are twin legends, and today sitar maestro Ravi Shankar’s 21-year-old daughter Anoushka, and Sarod maestro Ustad Amjad Ali Khan’s sons 25-year-old Aman and 23-year-old Ayan are in the public glare as they strive to live up to the formidable reputations of their fathers, both of whom have dominated the Indian classical music scene for the past half century.

Intense and emotional, Aman, who along with his brother became an icon for the younger generation by hosting the popular musical show Saregama, and performs to sold out concerts, carries the mantle of being the older son of Sarod legend Amjad Ali Khan, somewhat heavily on his shoulders. Aman recalls he was a very restless child and could not stay in one place for long, was not very inclined toward music, except for singing. “Till the age of 13-14, I really didn’t know where I was heading and what Sarod really meant in my life. But then suddenly overnight I realized that people were waiting and watching, and looking forward to seeing children of the great Amjad Ali Khan perform. I also realized that the expectations were sky high and it motivated me to work harder. Just because I was born in his family, I couldn’t take things for granted.”

Ayan, an accomplished painter, and a replica of his father, says that he, on the other hand, was always passionately interested in music and knew from an early age that he wanted to be a Sarod player. “The house always resonated with music. Either it was abba who was constantly playing or one of his disciples would be playing. I used to hero-worship abba throughout. I would draw sketches of him all the time and imitate him and place a cloth over my foot just as he placed the shawl on his, while practicing. In fact he made this album with HMV called Amjad Ali Khan’s Sarod Plays with Children to initiate us into music. It had a lot of kids singing and he would play songs like “Old MacDonald” and seeing those songs being reproduced on the Sarod really excited me. We also sang in that album.” Ayan adds that what started as a fun thing became serious practice in the teen years. “By the time we made our first trip to USA in 1991 I was totally immersed in playing Sarod.”

By 18, Aman’s career had taken off and apart from accompanying his father he had started giving solo performances. “Abba felt very strongly that we should perform on our own and showcase our caliber as individuals. When you are accompanying your father, the packed houses you play to are because of him and not you. Playing solo gives you an idea where you really stand.” Aman admits that being the son of a popular artist is a big boon in the beginning as people give you an opportunity to showcase your artistic ability just because you are a famous performer’s child. “So the initial struggle to make it is not there, but then after that you are on your own. The tough part is you really cannot afford to be below the standards your father has established. Being the older son, it became very tough for me because at the tender age of 15-16, I was being compared to other Sarod players in their late 40s and 50s.”

Ayan agrees that as kids, things were easier. “But as we grew older, I realized that we were not the only ones, that there were so many young talented Sarod players all over India, all over the world and because you are so and so’s son you can’t get by with that.” Aman says it’s easier to perform abroad because the standards are less stringent. “In India even if they don’t understand the complexities of music, people still know good music from bad instantly because they are brought up in that culture.”

Baby Sitar

A spitting image of Ravi Shankar, today Anoushka Shankar opens every concert for her father, due to Ravi Shankar’s frail health. Anoushka started learning vocal classical music from her mother at the age of 2. It was at her mother’s insistence that Ravi ji introduced her to sitar at the age of 9 on a “baby sitar” specially crafted for her.

“I have always been interested in music but it was the piano that I was drawn to. I never really felt an active desire to play the sitar and when I did, I did not like it initially. It was a very difficult instrument, your legs get tired and the strings would cut through my fingers, but my father made it so interesting for me. Each lesson would be filled with anecdotes, creating pictures in my mind, about each raga, especially when I was younger and slowly I began to like it a lot.”

Anoushka first performed before a huge crowd at the age of 13 on her father’s 75th birthday celebrations, but says it was not a professional debut. “We started doing more and more shows together and it did become a serious thing about a year later. That was when I was signed up to release my first CD.”

Anoushka agrees that had she not been Ravi Shankar’s daughter she would have had to struggle a lot more to be where she is, but she ignores people who are overly critical or expect too much. “I do enjoy reading reviews more from the musical aspect, but as far as the multitude of people who are completely wrapped up in that one single thing that I am Ravi Shankar’s daughter, I really don’t care. It is more important what my audience thinks and the positive flow of energy from them to me is an incredibly amazing experience. I knew earlier on that I would always be known as Ravi Shankar’s daughter no matter what, so I take it all in my stride. I have never come across serious discrimination, although once in a while I’ll meet people who’ll aim little jibes here and there ‘Oh my God, if I had heard you with my eyes closed, I would have never known you were a woman.” A man would never get a comment like that.”

While Ravi Shankar and Amjad Ali Khan were purists, who balked at the concept of fusion music or improvisation that is not within the traditional boundaries, their children are more adventurous willing to explore and to carve their own style and create a persona that is different from that of their parents.

Aman says that in the initial stages he too was of the traditional mindset. “I felt I had to give the works, alap-jod-jhala and then play the composition; it used to get really long and arduous, but then I saw the criticism that Aman plays too long, and I started understanding that you have to compromise to suit audience taste. It took a while. My grandfather and father never approached music the same way and neither do I. I have done fusion music with Sivamani and Taufiq Querishi, my father hasn’t.” Aman adds: “I am living on music and living for music. I will have a family to support tomorrow so I have to be a star performer to attract people in a way that they look forward to see me perform.” Aman is looking at modeling, film offers and cutting albums.

Ayan concurs: “It is so important to create your own niche, and yet be different. There are so many instances where the children sound just like their parent and then people prefer to hear the parent. My grandfather and my father sound totally different from each other, as do my brother and I. We play together because we are brothers, but we argue all the time, because musically it becomes difficult to connect with each other since our personalities are so different even though we have learnt from the same guru. In fact, whenever we play duets though it looks exciting and is a good marketing strategy, in truth, as musicians we are compromising all the time.” Ayan feels their hosting Saregama also created a younger market for Sarod. “A youngster will want to come and see an artist close to his age group to be able to identify with him. Our doing Saregama has attracted a lot of young people who now come to see classical music concerts on a regular basis.”

Aman insists he is very different from his father. “My father is more soft and subtle and melody oriented. I also focus on melody now, but I’m more excited by speed. Music must harmonize with the personality of the musician; only then can a man and his music be one. Ustad Amjad Ali Khan has taught m,e but I cannot be Ustad Amjad Ali Khan. I am born to my father but I am not his replica.”

Aman and Ayan say they love to perform with their father, but the tough part is that their performances are almost always improvised on stage. “The very basic crux of his teaching was to focus on the spontaneity of the moment,” says Ayan. “So many times we are on stage and we are about to play something when he suddenly changes his mind and will say, No, we’ll play this instead. It’s just the power and the meticulousness of his training that we are able to go with that easily. We never rehearse a concert, because one day you are playing at Carnegie Hall and the next in Rohtak. You have to make sure that whoever listens to you comes back even if it’s an audience that is removed from classical music.”

Aman adds, “Playing with abba is a constant lesson in music. I am learning all the time. Recently at a concert when we played ‘Purya Dhanashri’ I was very happy that I could pretty much follow everything he was playing, but then he started playing ‘Zila Kafia,’ a very mature raga that you master with age and I just smiled and stayed still. I didn’t even want to pretend that I knew a little bit.” Aman adds, “People like my father are not born every day. They come once or twice in a lifetime, create new innovations on their instrument and set the standards the world follows. If you listen to any Sarod player today, it does not matter where they are learning Sarod and from whom, somewhere down the line they are trying to do what Amjad Ali Khan has done. I know that until I reach the standards where I can play the way my father does I can never call myself a complete Sarod player. ”

Breaking Out

Anoushka dabbles in poetry. She recently released a pictorial biography of her father that she wrote and is acting in a film being currently shot in India. She admits that she practices only a fraction of what her father used to do. “The times have changed and I think it’s unhealthy to be obsessed with just one thing. I would go crazy. I crave too many things. I have worked hard and obviously I must have some talent to have come this far, but I feel that whenever I get an award, or I do something related to music, it invariably has a connection with my father. So I can’t really take 100 percent credit for it. It seems a lot more valuable for me when I get something, which I know is only just for me. Like the time I won the national Beta Conference representing the state of California, or when I won Homecoming Queen. That was an amazing experience, because it had nothing to do with my music. Everyone had voted for me because they liked who I was as a person and not because I was Ravi Shankar’s daughter. They

don’t care about that.”

Anoushka’s album “Live at Carnegie Hall” has been nominated for the Grammy Awards in the Best World Music Album section. Anoushka says, it is not so scary performing with her father these days, but it is always intimidating to be on the same stage as him, playing with him. “It terrifies me to even think of making a mistake and having him hear it. I’d hate that more than anything.” Like Aman and Ayan, Anoushka says a good 90 percent of what her father plays on stage is improvisation, so it is quite a Herculean task playing a duet with him. “I am constantly staring at him all the time, picking things up as he continues to improvise and that is why now playing solo is such a wonderful experience for me, because it gives me the opportunity to discover myself a lot more.”

From Soul to Sole to Cirque de Soliel

They are probably the most visible mother daughter Kathak duo in the United States and India, having performed all over the globe, but when tradition (mother Anjani) and innovation (daughter Amrapali) face off, what gives? “We have both learnt to create and innovate within the parameters of the tradition,” says Anjani Ambegaokar, who came to the United States in 1967 and since then has gathered accolades and acclaim in abundance both as a Kathak purist and also as a master choreographer and innovator. Apart from presenting several papers and conducting workshops, Anjani has taught Kathak at several universities, while performing along with her daughter worldwide. Anjani who owns a dance academy and a dance company says they perform mostly for the mainstream audience and it has been the goal of the duo to take the art to places where people have never seen it.

Amrapali started to learn Kathak at the tender age of three. “I was an only child, quiet and shy always with mom who took me wherever she went. I was dancing as a kid because mom wanted it.” It was at the age of 9 that Amrapali started training seriously and has not looked back since. After earning a degree from University of California at Los Angeles in World Arts and Cultures with Dance as her specialization she toured extensively with her mother, conducted workshops, performed as a soloist, and starred in a major production “Soul to Sole” in which a duet created by her mother for Amrapali and a tap dancer with flamenco music around it was selected as one of the ten best events of the year by the Los Angeles Times.

Amrapali has currently been touring with Cirque de Soleil in their newest production Dralion as a principal dancer incorporating Kathak, Flamenco and modern dance to create Oceanne – the element of water. She was invited to perform on the Jay Leno show last year. “My reaction to all that was that this is my break to perform before a mainstream western audience. I hope this only the first step.”

Amrapali says she believes in tradition and is heavily influenced by her mother, but has evolved differently. “I love to try new things. My mother is a pioneer who came here 40 years ago, and has maintained the tradition and high standards that we are proud of. It’s her goal and mine to carry the tradition and share it with others in the mainstream.” Amrapali however believes in exploring and experimenting, breaking boundaries and trying out new things. “I am of the opinion the art is not dictated by those who watch it, though I believe in the audience-artist interplay. I feel that those who create it dictate the art. We make adjustments to modify our art, though classical art cannot be modified in a way that pop art can. For me working in Circque de Soleil is a good example of breaking that barrier, taking traditional art forms and bringing them to the masses, but by packaging them in a way we feel works thought it remains true to the art.”

Amrapali says she has never felt it a burden to be called her mother’s daughter. “I never really felt it was a handicap to be the child of a celebrity though every once in a while I get a taste of it from an outsider. People have compared us, but it is ridiculous because the comparisons are so unrealistic. Each artist requires time to grow. I know there are so many people that are dying to have just half the knowledge that I have just being my mother’s daughter and I don’t want to waste the blessings given to me by God.”

At the same time Amrapali says she is not a clone of her mother. “My personal goal has never been to do exactly what she did. My motto has always been to break boundaries I always wanted to explore and break people’s ideals of what they think an art form is supposed to be, and it’s up to young artists like us to show what the future is to be, whether its Indian dancers doing Broadway or Anoushka and all of us collaborating or creating own piece of work.”

The Kingdom of Filmdom

If there is one profession where the celebrity children seem to be joining in droves it’s the bollywood biz. From Sunjay Dutt, to Sunny, Bobby and Esha Deol, to Hritik Roshan, Abhishek Bachchan, Karisma and Kareena Kapoor, Tusshar Kapoor, the list is endless. The competition is tough, the comparisons eternal and rough.

Vinod Khanna went from humble beginnings to superstardom. To this day he remains one of the handsomest men to grace the Indian screen and though films are now second to a career as Minister of State for Tourism and Culture, Vinod Khanna is still a star attraction wherever he goes. So is it easy to walk in a superstar father’s shoes?

The answer to that lies with his sons Rahul and Akshaye who are both actors. For Akshaye, the younger son, who took over where dad left, making his bollywood debut at the tender age of 19 in a home production Himalayputra, the road was tough. The movie sank at the box-office but the prodigal son, who has amazing acting prowess, rose like the phoenix from the ashes, and after a self imposed hiatus, has rocked the screen with amazing performances in Dil Chahta hai, Humraaz and Deewangee.

Older brother Rahul walked the same road but took a different route, from model to VJ before he accepted Deepa Mehta’s film 1947 Earth and established himself as a sensitive actor. With two of his films, Deepa Mehta’s Bollywood Hollywood and Hollywood Film The Emperor’s Club running successfully in theatres, the classy actor who looks a lot like his handsome father recalls that as a child he was not allowed to watch his dad’s movies. “Maybe my parents thought my dad’s films were not suitable for us. The only ones we saw as kids I think was Amar Akbar Anthony and Qurbani and to this day Amar Akbar Anthony remains on of my favorite films, it’s so totally entertaining. We were kept very removed from the film industry, it was just a job my dad did and then we didn’t visit him for many years, because after my parents split up we were living with my mother and were again away from the industry. I think my parents are surprised how we ended up in films. I guess it’s in the genes.”

Rahul doesn’t see performing under his father’s shadow to be a major handicap.”Of course, being his son has been a blessing. I admire his complete lack of ego. He’s one of the most humble and down-to-earth people I know. He treats everyone, be they blue-collar workers or heads of state, with the same respect. It’s also next to impossible to get him rattled. I’ve rarely seen him lose his cool. Being his son has given me opportunities I may not have had and I am very grateful for that. The comparisons will always be there though I can’t really say that I’ve†experienced them to the extent that it’s become a burden or a hindrance to me. I think people nowadays are more respecting of one’s individuality. I would never consciously let fear of comparison color my work or influence my choices of projects. The movie business is tough no matter who you are. It’s true that more opportunities come your way if you are of a certain lineage like mine. But with that comes higher expectations.” Rahul says his father watches all his movies. “He had come up to the Toronto Film Festival for the premiere of Earth. He also just saw Bollywood/Hollywood, which he thought was very entertaining.”

Twinkle Twinkle Little Dimple

To be the daughter of two stars, both of whom reached dizzying heights of super stardom is a daunting task in itself. To try to follow in the footsteps of Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia, and live up to the high expectations and not set the screen on fire is a double whammy.

Twinkle Khanna’s debut with Bobby Deol in Barsaat, after much publicity and hype, didn’t do much for her. Then she was in the news for her personal love triangle involving actress Shilpa Shetty, herself and actor Akshay Kumar, whom she finally lassoed in matrimony, but Twinkle Khanna, the older daughter of Rajesh Khanna and Dimple Kapadia has been slowly and steadily making her presence felt on the silver screen.

“Actually I wanted to be an accountant, which I was studying for, or a physical therapist. I was always an academician and in fact a lot of my teachers used to say to me, do anything but don’t become an actress. But I guess eventually your environment does influence you, and I grew up watching my parents and their friends acting all my life. When I was offered Barsaat, it was not with the intention of really staying in the film industry. For me it was, well I have been given this chance and I don’t want to look back at 40 and regret not having given it a shot. For the first three years of my career, I was too young and too naive to realize that this is a full time job, just like any other and requires a full time commitment.”

Twinkle says that being the daughter of her parents was advantageous only to the point that her first film was given to her on a platter. “After that I have had to struggle and fight on my own to create a niche for myself. My mother is perhaps the most beautiful woman in the country. It’s funny that people will never compare any other newcomer to her, but they will compare me to mom. She is very laid back, and has never been fiercely ambitious, or materialistic. The amazing things that have happened to her have only been because she is such an extraordinary woman, not because she really went out and worked hard to make it happen. My dad on the other hand is an amazingly skilled actor, and also fiercely ambitious. So it has been tough. At the same time, my parents’ fans have been so kind to me, and so warm in their appreciation, that it really makes it all worthwhile. I don’t let it bog me down though.”

Twinkle who runs a runs a successful candle making business with her mother and sister Rinke which she says is a great bonding experience for them recently had a bonny baby boy, and is taking a break from film making.

Aces Amritraj

Their fathers were two of the most well known faces on the international tennis circuit in the seventies and the eighties, and heroes back home in India. To this day people remember the amazing singles and doubles performances of Anand and Vijay Amritraj both in international tournaments and while representing India in the Davis Cup. Today Prakash, Vijay’s 19-year-old son and Stephen, Anand’s 18-year-old son are acing their way into the tennis circuit that is a lot tougher than the ones their fathers played in their days.

Prakash, who was born in California, says that since he grew up around tennis he just started playing the game, but it was a surreal moment in 1993 at Wimbledon that changed his life. ” I was 9-and-a-half and I found myself in the men’s locker room sitting between Boris Becker and Pete Sampras and said ‘wow, this is where I want to be and tennis is really what I want to pursue.’ I came back that summer and won my first tournament.” Prakash has not looked back and last year won the singles title at the USTA Super National hard court championships, which earned him a wild card for the US Opens. Father Vijay Amritraj thinks that Prakash has excellent work ethics and is far more focused than he was at the same age. People who have seen him play say Prakash is an exact replica of his father, though unlike Vijay Prakash has slammed a racket or two and gotten the raised eyebrow from dad. “Yes though on the court we play the same kind of attacking game and love to play before big crowds, I have been frustrated and thrown a racket, but then I kind of give him a look like sorry I won’t do it again.” Being Vijay’s son has only been advantageous for him, says Prakash. ” Especially in terms of tennis, it’s a great advantage. He has already been where I want to go so I have always felt he is the best equipped to guide me. And all the comparisons have been positive.”

Prakash envies his father for playing in the 1970s “I have always felt that tennis was much more exciting in the 1970s. I think it has something to do with the game and the players. Each player in the 70s and 80s had such a distinct personality that everyone could relate to at least one of them. “Maybe they are marketing it differently today, but it seems as if it was more accessible or more interesting for people. Nowadays you hardly have people coming in to watch except the last two days of the tournament, which is a shame because there is so much good talent out there and Stephen and I feel if we are good enough to make it then hopefully we can make tennis interesting enough for people to come out and watch it more.”

Prakash has decided to take time off from school and join the pro circuit and he has Vijay’s approval to do so. For both Vijay and Prakash, the special moment came when Prakash played at the US Open last year, making his debut there, at the exact same age his father had. He lost to Paradorn Srichaphan, the hottest player to come out of Thailand, in the first round. Prakash says it wasn’t nerves, but the fact that he was up against an opponent who had been playing excellent tennis and was the more experienced. “I think every extra year you play on the circuit gives you an advantage. You know how to pick the right shots and to perfect your timing. Every tough match that I win, helps me gain maturity and gives me the confidence and faith that it’s just a matter of time and with some more experience, it will all fall into place.”

In some ways Prakash thinks that growing up and playing tennis in this country has been a lot tougher than what his dad had to contend with. ” You should see how deep the field is. Half the guys you play show up in the top hundred a few days later. Yet I rather improve by playing tougher matches, even if it means losing in the first or second round, than win titles in easier tournaments in the early stages of my career.” His dream is to play the Davis Cup, but for India.

Stephen’s mother tied a tennis ball to his crib as an infant, to play with. Talk of early initiation! Stephen however was never really into tennis and played different sports and was generally more laid back. It was father Anand who saw his potential and started cajoling and coaxing him into playing. “I definitely did not have a moment like Prakash did to get into tennis, but then every time you hear a story about Davis Cup from dad or my uncle you can envision yourself playing for your country and that itself is an inspiration.”

Stephen says he really enjoy the perks of being coached by his father and likes playing doubles with him and adds that unlike Prakash he is not a replica of his father. Anand says that Stephen’s game has more power and less touch but that’s the way the modern game is headed. Stephen who is at Duke University says he has no plans of dropping out of college to pursue tennis on the pro circuit, but will use Prakash’s experiences as a yardstick, since Prakash is older. Anand is pretty certain that he would prefer that his son finishes college.

Anand says he has seen tremendous improvement in Stephen’s game since he joined Duke. The discipline and focus that Anand has tried drilling into him seems to be better reinforced at the university where it is coming from his coach and not just dad!

Rewriting the Script

His father is Dr. Deepak Chopra, physician, spiritualist, best selling author, so when Gotham Chopra came out with his first book Child of Dawn, at 21 years of age, there were snickers that either his dad ghost wrote it for him, or that he was just cashing in on his father’s name. Yet few who read the book, could miss the lyrical quality of his language and the beauty of prose. Six year later Gotham is a successful journalist, TV anchor and very much his own man.

Gotham says he had a pretty normal upbringing, but saw how his father was becoming more and more frustrated in his profession as a physician and more and more curious about different types of traditions in medicine and started researching it and writing about it. “But it was really 1993 when he came on the Oprah Winfrey show that turned him into a celebrity overnight,” When he was in High School the good thing was that the teenagers and college students didn’t really care who Deepak Chopra was. “It’s only in the last five years since I have graduated from college that my dad’s work has really gained more mainstream acceptance in academic and intellectual circles, which has been very gratifying for him. My father is an academician and an intellectual and it has been wonderful for him to see something that was construed to be a new age fringe movement gain such acceptance.”

Gotham says that at the beginning of his career when he graduated from college it was a real blessing to be Deepak Chopra’s son, because it opened so many doors and provided access to a great number of resources that most young writers would not have. “But now as time has passed, one of the struggles has been to shed that asset. It created a lot of visibility, but as I found my way to what I am interested in, it can be something of a hurdle, because its hard to crack that tag of ‘spirituality.'”

Gotham also agrees that after the initial hoopla of being a celebrity child dies down you have to prove yourself to others, and for him both books that he wrote, Child of Dawn and Familiar Strangers, with a gap of almost 6 years between them, have been his measuring stick. “The first book was certainly something where the door was opened in large part because of my father’s work. It was based on a book by my father, it was published by the same publisher as my father and that was how it was marketed, but the second book has been about my experiences as a journalist and some of these crazy places that I went to the name Deepak Chopra doesn’t really go very far. “I took great pride in crafting that book and am proud to have had those experiences. And I hope that it has helped carve out a little bit of space for me in terns of who I am and where I am going. ” Gotham laughs, admitting that there are now times that people go up to his father and say, “Oh you are Gotham’s dad.”

“Channel One where I work has a teenage audiences of 9 million and it’s a completely different universe, and he certainly has fun with that comment.” Gotham says his father taught him never to do anything unless he was really passionate about it and to pursue only that which give him a sense of fulfillment. “Only then you will give back to the world that created you. And I think what we, my mom, my sister and I have taught him is never to take life too seriously, get attached to anything or waste time stressing over things that you can’t control,” Gotham says.

Gotham who goes to India frequently and is currently writing a memoir on his grandfather who passed away two years ago, says he has made no conscious effort to be different from his father, and the only reason he became a writer was to express his opinions about the things that touched him deeply as he went about his work reporting from far away places. “It was very frustrating to be objective on what was going on since I am not a trained journalist. I want to speak of all that I feel, because I was raised to believe that there is one thing to just look at the world, another thing to interact with it.”