Pakistani singer Faisal Kapadia recently revealed on a podcast that he is to Bollywood actress Dimple Kapadia. He said that Dimple’s father, Chunibhai Kapadia, was his cousin. In 1984, Chunibhai heard Faisal singing at a family wedding in Karachi. He encouraged Faisal and promised to help him enter Bollywood. Unfortunately, Chunibhai passed away soon after. Many years later, Faisal Kapadia, along with Bilal Maqsood from the band Strings, entered Bollywood on their own with the film Zinda.

The story raises the question of how many other artists have family ties across the India-Pakistan border. The Partition separated numerous families, leaving siblings, parents, and relatives on opposite sides. Despite this, some entertainment families still maintained their connections across borders.

During the same era, another Faisal from Pakistan attempted to establish himself in Bollywood. He stayed with his uncle, the legendary actor Rehman, who had a prolific career from the 1940s to the 1970s in films like Pyaasa, Chaudhvin Ka Chand, Waqt, and Dil Diya Dard Liya. Faisal’s father, Masood-ur-Rehman, was a prominent cinematographer in Pakistan. Despite Rehman’s fame, Faisal struggled to find work in India, where actors like Jeetendra, Kumar Gaurav, and Mithun Chakraborty dominated the scene. Faisal eventually returned to Lahore.

Bollywood star Aamir Khan also has close ties to Pakistan. His mother, Zeenat Hussain, came from the family of filmmaker Fazal Ahmed Kareem Fazli, who produced classic films such as Chiragh Jalta Raha and Aisa Bhi Hota Hai. The Fazli brothers were well-known in both Indian and Pakistani cinema. Aamir’s mother lived in Karachi with her extended family before marrying Tahir Hussain. Whenever Aamir visited Karachi, he stayed with his maternal relatives. Subtain Fazli’s granddaughter, Ayesha Fazli, is married to Pakistani singer Ali Zafar, linking the two entertainment industries further.

Juhi Chawla also has Pakistani family connections. The distributor J.C. Anand, who released Fazli films, was Juhi Chawla’s maternal uncle. Juhi’s mother and J.C. Anand’s wife were sisters. She has visited Pakistan multiple times.

Actress Jiah Khan, who starred in Ghajini, also had family ties to Pakistan. Many noticed her resemblance to Pakistani actress Kavita. Jiah’s father, Ali Rizvi Khan, was the brother of actresses Kavita and Sangeeta. Jiah was born in New York in 1988, and Sangeeta’s 1982 film Thori Si Bewafai was also filmed there. Jiah Khan passed away in 2013 in Mumbai.

Syed Kamal, a well-known Pakistani actor, was a cousin of Indian actor Naseeruddin Shah. Kamal had migrated from Meerut and often visited Shah’s family in India. Zakir Hussain, the world-renowned tabla maestro from India, and Pakistani actress Roohi Bano were step-siblings. Zakir’s father, Ustad Allah Rakha, married Zeenat Begum, who gave birth to Roohi Bano in Karachi. Actress Reena Roy from India was also to Roohi Bano through her mother. Reena visited Karachi in 1978 during a cricket series and met her relatives before marrying Pakistani cricketer Mohsin Hasan Khan.

Some common misconceptions about artists have been clarified. Poets Tasleem Fazli and Nida Fazli, often thought to be cousins, were actually brothers. Filmmaker Kamal Amrohi, famous for Pakeezah, was not the real brother of poet Raees Amrohvi but a cousin, as their fathers were brothers

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