The inrush current isn't a "surge" or a defect in the switch. The last thing you want to do is put a capacitor ACROSS the switch. Either the cap would burn up or the breaker would trip.

You're worrying about nothing. Inandescent filaments die on turn on because that is their failure mode.

The switch is not the problem. Incandescents are simply resistors. Resistors when cold have lower Ohm value. Thus the starting inrush is high and as the filament heats within milliseconds, the resistance increases and the current drops. Thus incandescents do sometimes fail when first turned on.
How about telling me what a "large form factor light switch" is?

Back when I was into film collecting, the projector lamps were expensive and had a life of about 25 hours. So I installed a thermistor in series with the lamp. Made the lamp last longer but it was slow to come up to near full brightness. Then I added a second switch to bypass the thermistor at that point.
Doing that with your house switches would violate the codes. Not UL listed equipment.

Though putting a dimmer in will often accomplish the same thing. However, LED bulbs are a completely different beast.