Karisma Kapoor: A member of Indian Cinema’s first film family, the Kapoor family, Karisma Kapoor is an Indian actress who works in Bollywood movies. Born on June 25, 1974, in a Punjabi Hindu family, Karisma is reared in Mumbai. She started her Bollywood career in acting by debuting in the 1991 film Prem Qaidi. She has won many awards in her career so far; the most notable include the National Film Award and four Filmfare Awards.
Kapoor made her mark as an actor in Bollywood with many hits, including Anari, Raja Babu, Coolie No. 1, Saajan Chale Sasural, Jeet, Judwaa, and Biwi No. 1. Karisma has appeared in over 50 films, with the bulk being commercial hits. Her performance in the romantic drama Raja Hindustani in 1996 earned her the Best Actress award for that year. In 1997, her performance in the film “Dil Toh Pagal Hai” was such a blockbuster that she received numerous prizes for her musical romanticism, including the National Film Award for Best Supporting Actress and the Filmfare Awards, all of which helped her gain popularity and admiration in the film business.
David Dhawan’s genre of films such as love stories and comedies are well-liked and appreciated in Bollywood, and starring Karishma Kapoor in them helped her reach the pinnacle of stardom, as she acted in his films such as “Judwaa” in 1997, and her outstanding performance in “Biwi No.1” in 1999, among others. Kapoor received Best Actress and Best Actress (Critics) at Filmfare in the early 2000s for her eponymous roles in the movies Fiza (2000) and Zubeidaa (2001). She received recognition for her acting in the 2002 film Shakti: The Power. In 2004, she took a break from acting and had only appeared in a few films since then, marking her comeback with the suspense drama Dangerous Ishqq in 2012 and the 2020 online series Mentalhood (2020).
In terms of her marriage, she was fortunate enough to have Sunjay Kapur, a billionaire tycoon, as her spouse, and the two of them have two children together. She has served as a judge on several reality shows and starred in the TV drama “Karishma: The Miracles of Destiny” from the year 2003-2004.
Early life and Education background
On June 25, 1974, Kapoor was brought into the world in Mumbai, India, into the filmy family of actors and her parents, Randhir and Babita Kapoor. Kareena Kapoor Khan, her younger sister, is also a film actress. Her uncles and aunts include a number of well-known Bollywood stars.
She has actors Ranbir Kapoor, Aadar, and Armaan Jain and businessman Nikhil Nanda as her first cousins. Ranbir Kapoor is her younger uncle Rishi Kapoor’s son, while Armaan and Aadar Jain are the sons of Reema Nanda, her father’s sister. Her paternal aunt, Ritu Nanda’s son, Nikhil Nanda, who is married to Shweta Bachchan, is the son-in-law of actor Amitabh Bachchan. Kapoor is lovingly known as “Lolo” at her parent’s house. Her maternal and paternal ancestors, in particular, came from the Peshawar and Karachi regions of Pakistan and moved to Bombay for Bollywood in India before the partition to pursue their golden filmy careers. Their generations have governed the industry ever since. Kapoor’s mother and father come from separate dynasties and have different origins. Kapoor inherited her Hindu Punjabi uniqueness from her father, as well as a mix of British and Sindhi Hindu ancestry from her maternal side.
Kapoor got her inspiration for acting from the work of actresses Sridevi and Madhuri Dixit; Kapoor has wanted to be an actor since he was a child. Kapoor was frequently brought to film shoots by her parents and attended award ceremonies as a child. What was disappointing and shocking was kapoor’s father’s refusal to consider her daughter or any woman to work in the film industry because he had a different traditional belief that these roles and working of women in the film industry would interfere with women’s so-called original roles of caring for and obligations at home. Despite their family’s long history and illustrious background in the film industry, her father was resentful of allowing his daughters to participate in it.
This caused a rift between her parents, who divorced in 1988. Karisma’s mother, Babita, reared her and her younger sister, Kareena, while doing multiple jobs to support them till Karisma made her acting debut in films.
But after several years of separation, her parents were reconnected with each other in 2007. In terms of her education, she is claimed to have attended Cathedral and John Connon schools for elementary school and Sophia College for higher education. Kapoor later revealed that she dropped out of college to pursue acting as a means of support.
Film Career
At the early age of 17, the gorgeous Kapoor began showcasing her acting abilities in her breakthrough film, ‘Prem-Qaidi,‘ in which she co-starred with Harish Kumar. Upon its initial release, the film was moderately successful, receiving mixed reactions from reviewers, as did Kapoor’s performance. However, her subsequent five films, including Police Officer, Jaagruti, and Sapne Sajan Ke, flopped at the box office the coming year. The unstoppable Kapoor subsequently starred in the action-thriller Jigar in 1992 and the romantic melodrama Anari in 1993, both of which were movie box – office successes and among the year’s top films. But her works in films like Jaagruti and Nishchaiy were her first two ventures with Salman Khan, and Deedar was her first work with Akshay Kumar.
Muqabla (the first of Kapoor’s several collaborations with Govinda), Shaktiman, Dhanwaan, and Sangram, were Kapoor’s following four films in 1993. All of these films received negative reviews, excluding Muqabla, and later in 1994, Kapoor worked in nine films, out of which four were, unfortunately, major flops like Dulaara and Aatish. Raja Babu, a comedy film directed by David Dhawan and starring Govinda, was her first blockbuster that year. Kapoor then appeared in Khuddar as the visually impaired wife of the character played by Govinda. Kapoor then appeared in Rajkumar Santoshi’s critically acclaimed comedy film Andaz Apna Apna. Despite the film’s poor box office performance, it has amassed a sizable cult over the years after the film’s release.
In the action-drama Suhaag, Kapoor represented a college student who finds love with Ajay Devgn’s character. At the same time, in the humorous film Gopi Kishan, she played the daughter of a police commissioner who was fascinated with a criminal played by Suniel Shetty. Both these movies were commercial successes for that year. Then following some disappointments at the box office with Maidan-E-Jung and Jawab, Kapoor featured as Malti, an affluent girl who marries an indigent coolie (played by Govinda) in David Dhawan’s smash comedy Coolie No. 1 in 1995.
Post-1995 was the period when Kapoor rose to stardom in her acting career. In 1996, Kapoor starred in ten commercial films, five of them were box office disappointments. But her next film Saajan Chale Sasural was a romantic comedy starring Govinda and Tabu and the movie was a financial success.
Her ascent to fame coincided with her appearance in S.Deepak’s biggest blockbuster film, ‘Krishna,’ in which she co-starred with dashing Sunil Shetty. In the love drama Jeet by Raj Kanwar, she appeared alongside Sunny Deol, Salman Khan, and Tabu. Jeet was a commercial hit at the box office that earned the second-highest revenue in the year. The film, as well as Kapoor’s performance, earned favorable reviews from critics. In the same year, Kapoor appeared in Dharmesh Darshan’s Raja Hindustani, starring Aamir Khan. Its success propelled Kapoor to prominence as a leading performer in the Bollywood industry, and it represented a watershed moment in her career. Raja Hindustani was 1996’s largest economic accomplishment and most flourishing movie, grossing ?765 million worldwide. The action thriller film ‘Ajay,’ directed by Suneel Darshan, in which she starred with Gaddar superstar Sunny Deol, was Kapoor’s last but certainly not least feature in 1996. The picture was a financial triumph in addition to critical accolades.
In 1997, Kapoor won praises for her performances in Dhawan’s Judwaa and Hero No.1, in which she starred alongside Salman and Rambha in Judwaa and opposite Govinda in Hero No.1. Judwaa was a somewhat successful critical and commercial venture, while Hero No. 1 was a critical and economic success that earned Kapoor plaudits for her performance. Following that, she starred in Mehul Kumar’s Lahu Ke Do Rang and Mrityudata. Both turned out to be flops. Yash Chopra’s Dil To Pagal Hai was Kapoor’s fifth and last release of 1997, which also starred celebrities like Shah Rukh Khan and Akshay Kumar explored the love lives of performers in a musical dance ensemble. After numerous leading actresses of the period turned down the role, Chopra picked Kapoor, being charmed by her craft in Raja Hindustani.
Her modest comeback in 1999 paid off handsomely, as she appeared in several of the year’s most popular films. Kapoor starred in four box office smashes. She next worked with Dhawan and Salman Khan (together with Sushmita Sen) in the romantic comedy Biwi No.1, where she played the character of Pooja, a homemaker whose husband has an extramarital affair with a model. Kapoor received critical acclaim for her portrayal in the film, a box office smash. Her next work with David Dhawan in Haseena Maan Jaayegi performed reasonably well at the box office, proving her success with comedy pictures. Kapoor collaborated with Rajshri Productions for the first time on the family drama film Hum Saath-Saath Hain grossing ?817 million worldwide. Her last project for the year, Jaanwar, starring Akshay Kumar, was proved another blockbuster, making her the year’s most celebrated actress.
Dhawan’s love comedy Dulhan Hum Le Jayenge, in which Kapoor starred alongside Salman Khan, was her first release in 2000. Her next two projects of the year, the romantic comedies Chal Mere Bhai starring Salman Khan and Sanjay Dutt and Hum To Mohabbat Karega with Bobby Deol, were both disappointments for Kapoor.
In the same year, Kapoor earned her second Filmfare Best Actress Award for playing the main role in Khalid Mohammed’s critically acclaimed crime thriller Fiza, in which she played a girl in quest of her brother. Her work was praised by critics, who praised her for having a wide sentimental range and depth in her acting. The film was a moderate success financially.
In 2001, she received more critical praise for her performance in the realistic drama Zubeidaa, in which she played a real-life actor. Shyam Benegal directed this film, which was based on the true story of Zubeida Begum, a tragic actress who married a Sikh, Hanwant Singh. She then acted opposite Bobby Deol in Indra Kumar’s Aashiq, which earned mixed reviews from critics but was a minor box office success. Kapoor’s next film was Suneel Darshan’s Ek Rishtaa: The Bond of Love. The film, which starred Amitabh Bachchan and Akshay Kumar, was one of the year’s biggest hits.
In 2002, Kapoor starred alongside Akshay Kumar and her ex-lover Abhishek Bachchan in the film ‘Haan Maine Pyaar Kiya’. Indra Kumar’s love drama ‘Rishtey ‘, which she co-starred in with Anil Kapoor and Shilpa Shetty, was her penultimate release of the year. She played Komal, a privileged woman who finds love and marries an impoverished man against her father’s desires. Despite the high level of expectation, all three of Kapoor’s films that year flopped.
Her only film in 2003 was Baaz: A Bird in Danger which did not fare well. Following that year, she also appeared in the TV series in the Karishma – The Miracles of Destiny, in which she featured both a grandmother and a granddaughter. However, after the conclusion of its 260 episodes, the series was dropped, and Kapoor expressed his wish to take a vacation from acting for a few years, only to return in 2006.
In 2006, Kapoor starred in Mere Jeevan Saathi, which had been filmed and wrapped in 2003 but took three years in the making. In 2008, Kapoor debuted on television as a judge on the dance competition Nach Baliye, with Arjun Rampal and Farah Khan and in 2009 as a judge on the comedy show Hans Baliye. Kapoor also experimented with voice acting, portraying Chhaya in the 2012 action-drama Bodyguard, which is one of the highest-earning Bollywood movies of all time.
With a leading part in Vikram Bhatt’s spooky thriller Dangerous Ishhq, Kapoor made her come back as an actress. The film, which also stars Rajneesh Duggal, spans four centuries and depicts four different love stories set in different eras. Kapoor took on the roles of four different individuals, one from each century. In spite of the fact that the film was a critical and commercial flop, Kapoor’s performance was praised.
Kapoor made a cameo appearance in 2003 in the anthology film Bombay Talkies’ title song, alongside several other stars, to commemorate the Hindi cinema industry’s 100th anniversary. Kapoor has completed production on ALTBalaji’s online series Mentalhood as of March 2020.
Personal and Married Life
Kapoor was widely speculated to have been in a romance with her Jigar co-star Ajay Devgn from 1992 to 1995, which dissolved in 1995. Later in 2002, She was hitched to Abhishek Bachchan, but the romance ended tragically as it was short-lived. Their year-long romance came to an end as a result of this, and no explanation for the breakup was given.
Her search for a real love partner came to an end on September 29, 2003, in Mumbai, when she wedded Sunjay Kapur, the CEO of Sixt India, in a large Sikh wedding ceremony at her home, Krishna Raj Bungalow. Both the separated husband and wife have a daughter, Samaira, born in 2005, and a son, Kiaan, born in 2010. However, the honeymoon relationship of the couple soon came to an end when they filed for a divorce in 2014 with mutual consent, which was finalized in 2016 when both of them took a different path to start their new life afresh. The reason for their divorce, as claimed by Kapoor, was the abusive behavior of Sanjay in their relationship while also being in multiple extramarital affairs with other women. In fact, Karisma confessed that her ex-husband was in a physical relationship with her first wife even after their marriage.
Present Status
Karishma Kapoor is currently living in Mumbai with her two children, where they have created a modest and loving family. Many people may be curious about how the actress is making money now that she has divorced her husband and taken a full-time break from acting. The interest arises because the bulk of individuals are only familiar with 8-5 PM occupations and are unaware of these celebrities’ business strategies. According to Amar Ujaala, Kapoor earns a lot of money in real life. Her initial source of income, according to this report, was the alimony she received from her previous spouse Sanjay Kapur, which was roughly 14 crore following their divorce. Sanjay Kapur is also alleged to be obligated to pay Karishma 10 lakh each month. As a result, she invests these funds in her children’s education. The compassionate and warm-hearted actress is also involved with a number of charitable organisations, including the Salman Khan-sponsored Being Human Foundation. She also works as a brand ambassador for a number of companies, which helps her make money, and she also walks the runway for a number of designers. She’s also dabbled in business, owning a stake in the ‘Babyoye’ company, which sells children’s items.
With all of her multiple sources of income ranging from business to still flaunting her looks everywhere via ramp walking, it is estimated that she earns around 70 crores per year, and how strong she is that she sends a message to every woman that in this patriarchal world, women can be their own heroes or even do not want a hero. It is the era of women, as evidenced by examples like hers. According to rumours, she is dating another business tycoon named Sandeep Toshniwal, who has also divorced his former wife. We may never know when they will tie the wedding, but as her followers, we can only hope that it will happen soon.