Indian actor Pankaj Kapur says his son Shahid, a relative newcomer to Bollywood, is a better known face.

The younger Kapur still has to tap into his potential as an actor since he has been cast largely in romantic movies, the proud father told a newspaper.

"I am an actor not a star,'' said Pankaj Kapur, a reputed theater actor who turned to television and the cinema in the 1980s. "But yes, Shahid is more famous than me.''

He said, Shahid had so far "only been given lover-boy roles. But he has more to him than just that.''

Unlike many Indian actors who sign up for more than five projects a year, Pankaj Kapur says strong scripts dictate his choice. He has acted in some 25 Hindi-language movies.

His son Shahid has already notched up 10 movies since his 2003 debut.

Actors needed new challenges to grow, Pankaj Kapur said.

"No actor is perfect. You cannot come out with outstanding performances every time,'' he said. "An actor has to be challenged every day.''

Kapur plays a grumpy old man in "The Blue Umbrella,'' based on a short story by one of India's best known writers Ruskin Bond about how a little girl's prized possession is coveted by an entire village.