Their love for acting runs in the family. Dimple Kapadia has proved her acting prowess time and again — much like her late husband Rajesh Khanna, who was the original superstar of Hindi cinema. While Kapadia's daughters Twinkle and Rinke too had her brush with Bollywood, her son-in-law Akshay Kumar has sealed his place as one of the biggest stars of B-Town today. Kapadia's late sister Simple Kapadia dabbled in acting as well as designing. Now, the youngest kid of the Kapadia family - Karan Kapadia is set to take the lineage ahead. (All photos/Karan Kapadia's official Instagram account)

Karan Kapadia, 25, is set to foray into Bollywood with Blank, which also stars Sunny Deol and Ishita Dutta. The film has been backed by Echelon Production, Shrikant Bhasi, Nishant Pitti, Tony D'souza, Vishal Rana and &Pictures.

Akshay Kumar shares a close association with Tony D'Souza — the two worked together in Blue (2009) and Boss (2013). It was at one of his dos that the actor introduced the filmmaker to his brother-in-law, a chance meeting that set the ball rolling.

Having harboured acting ambitions since his childhood, Karan Kapadia says that both Akshay Kumar and his aunt Dimple Kapadia were surprised when he, only 14 then, told them about his aspirations.

"They didn't see it coming because I have always been an introvert. But, once I told them, they were extremely supportive. They both warned me that it won't be an easy journey ahead. At the time, I was this chubby kid who thought I only had to lose weight and bagging films thereafter won't be too tough," Karan Kapadia told mid-day with a sardonic smile.

Their words of wisdom rang in his ears as he started his Bollywood journey, a few years later. Having studied acting at the Jeff Goldberg Studio in Mumbai, Karan Kapadia landed screen tests for films.

"I had decided that I will act in films when I was 11. At 15, I started working towards it. I dropped out of a BMM (Bachelor of Mass Media) course. I had thought about going to New York and studying acting in a film school but things did not work out. I was asked to assist on 'Boss' (starring Akshay). Also, I went for auditions but they are tricky as you don't get the parts you want to do. I was assessing my options on what to do next. I had even thought of going to south for auditions," said Karan Kapadia, in a candid conversation with mid-day.

Karan Kapadia revealed that he had earlier been obese at 112 kg but following regular gymming, he is now a fit and healthy 88. "I've learned to ride a horse and the bike, I've been swimming and I trained in martial arts for six months in Bangkok," said Karan.

At a time when nepotism is a raging debate in the industry, Karan Kapadia agrees that as a star kid, he does enjoy certain advantages, but adds that his family "never had to make a phone call to any producer" for him.

"When you come from the kind of family that I do, you obviously have access to certain people that you wouldn't have otherwise. But, I do as much as I can on my own," added Karan.

Talking about Karan's debut film - Blank, the film, directed by Behzad Khambata, also stars Sunny Deol, who is a close friend of Dimple Kapadia. Karan's mother, late actor Simple Kapadia, was also a costume designer on some of Deol's films.

Sunny Deol plays the role of an ATS chief on a mission to neutralise a suicide bomber (played by Karan Kapadia). His brother-in-law actor Akshay, on the other hand, gave his support through a special song in the film. "When I signed the film in 2016, Sunny sir was not a part of it at that time. It was a small film then. Now it has become a big film due to Sunny sir and Akshay sir. It is incredible. I had never imagined it this way," Karan told PTI.

"From being a kid on his sets, when he was at the peak of his career, to now sharing a frame with him, it was all surreal. I was very nervous when I was doing the first scene with him. I can say that he elevates the film to another level, his presence just adds up," he said.

As Blank hit theatres, today here's wishing all the very best to Karan!