“The ‘Kapoor’ in My Name Was Never a Choice”: Kashika Kapoor on the Grace of Owning One’s Identity

In an industry that loves to label before it listens, Kashika Kapoor does something rarer—she lets her work speak first. Yet as her presence across films, fashion, and culture continues to grow, one question has followed her with persistent curiosity: her surname. “The Kapoor in my name was never a choice,” she says simply. “It’s my birth name, inherited from my mother. There was nothing curated about it.” It’s a clarification offered without drama, and very much in character. While speculation has attempted to attach her identity to legacy narratives, Kashika’s journey has been shaped by discipline, patience, and self-belief—not inheritance. “Yes, the surname Kapoor carries history in Indian cinema,” she acknowledges. “But my path has been entirely my own. I am self-made, and deeply proud of that.”

What resonates most is the way she reframes the conversation—not as a denial, but as an affirmation. For Kashika, her name is less about perception and more about personal meaning. “It carries my mother’s strength,” she says. “Her values, her resilience, her blessings. That’s what I walk forward with.” As conversations—particularly within Punjabi media—continue to circle her surname, Kashika remains poised. “There’s been a lot of fascination around it,” she says with a soft smile. “But the truth is uncomplicated. There was no reinvention—just speculation filling the silence.”

Today, as Kashika expands her work across languages and industries, she remains focused on evolution rather than explanation. Her choices are deliberate, her growth steady, her presence increasingly assured. “I want to be known for my performances and the stories I choose,” she says. “Names may spark interest, but it’s the work that creates longevity.” In an era where visibility is often louder than substance, Kashika Kapoor stands apart. Elegant, grounded, and unmistakably self-authored, she reminds us that identity—when worn with confidence—never needs to announce itself. It simply endures.