CONFETTI GIRL

Babita was the big hearthrob 'with it' girl of the sixties.  Randhir Kapoor was the heir apparent to the Kapoor Khandaan.  They worked together in Kal Aaj Aur Kal.  RD Burman was belting out Elvis Presley kind of dance music, and the movie stars were doing the twist to his tunes. 'Sacha pyaar to chup nahi sakta, dil ki umang yeh kehti haii', went a song from the movie. The two fell for each other and had a fairy tale marriage.  

Karishma Kapoor was born in media glare.  The daughter of two big stars. She had inherited the Kapoor fair skin and light eyes and made a pretty picture.  The fairy tale marriage soon fell apart.  Karishma nurtured filmi ambitions which was rare for a girl from the great Kapoor Khandaan. Even Neetu Singh, who had a good career going, had to drop it when she married Rishi Kapoor. But hey, it was the nineties, and things were changing.  Karishma had the full support of her mom Babita.

The filmi career of Karishma can be divided into 3 clear categories.

The babydoll phase
The sexy sexy phase
The serious phase

THE BABYDOLL

Early Karishma was styled by Babita who still had the sixties hangover when dressing her daughter.  

Granted, the Indian viewers are partial to the fair girls, but Karishma looked like a white blob with blue eyes and curly brown hair and can can frocks that girls would not touch past the age of  6.  She debuted amongst much fanfare in Prem Qaidi. Her co-star was Harish and the movie was eminently forgettable.  I am quite sure Karishma cringes everytime she comes across a movie from this era.

GOOD BANNERS

Karishma was working for good directors, the likes of Lawrence D' Souza, she co-starred alongside Govinda, Akshay Kumar and Ajay Devgan, who were the young stars on the rise.  But her chocolate box looks, alongwith expressionless acting, not to mention a whiney voice, was not doing much for her.  

She was getting good roles courtesy her lineage, not talent.  The masala movies of the 90s concentrated on the hero and the heroine usually provided decoration.  Jigar, Police Officer, Nischay, Didar, Sangram.. so on an so forth. The movies more or less flopped and Karishma was in grave danger of having her career written off.  It was time for her to re-invent herself.

THE SEXY SEXY PHASE or

GOVINDA'S PET IS THAT YOU?

We can mark the begining of Karishma mark-II from the chartbusting song- "Sexy sexy sexy mujhe log bolen" from Khuddar.  Karishma co-starred along with Govinda the magician.  Govinda was a magician because he could do things for a movie by his mere presence.  Ambitious heroines have often ridden piggyback on him on way to the top slot. But Karishma had to break out from her usual cute kid mold and show the viewers what she had.  She put on a shiney mini and sang a nightclub number 'sexy sexy'.  The song outraged the conservative crowd but delighted the guys.  

Karishma still needed a stylist for a makeover, but at least the stuffy babydoll period was gone.

She rode a popularity wave alongwith Govinda. Raja Babu had 'Ui amma ui amma' and more importantly 'Sarkailo Khatiya jada lage'

THE KHATIYA GIRL

The loaded song brought both fame and infamy to Karishma.  Really?  A scion of the Kapoor Khandaan singing cheap songs and resorting to such means to get popular?  But Karishma was on the make and cared less.  The producers were queueing up, cash registers were ringing, she was still a young girl and saying 'Why Not'.

Dularaa had the item number 'Ek hai anaar yaahan' which was not as in your face as 'sexy sexy'  but was suggestive enough.

Karishma even starred in the now iconic Andaaz Apna Apna alongwith Salmaan Khan and Amir Khan. She was in Suhaag, Jawaab, Aatish, Gopi Kishen and Andaz.  Now, thanks to the item songs she was getting popular.  A sexy song by the heroine was quite required now, and even Madhuri had to go 'Dhak Dhak' and sweetiepie Juhi had to go 'Jab tak rahega samose me aaloo'

The viewers of tasteful cinema recoiled in horror, but the producers were laughing their way to the  bank and in no mood to change.

QUEEN OF INDIA

From the slime of item numbers and quickfix hits Karishma moved on to sign Dharmesh Darshan's Raja Hindustani.  The movie was a redone Jab Jab Phool Khile.  Rich heiress holidays in hillstation, falls for the local guide.  In JJPK it was the boatwala Shahi Kapoor, in Raja Hindustani, Amir Khan was a driver.  An impossible tale of abiding love between the rich and the very poor. Rich relative are high on money but low on ethics, poor man is, conversly, low on money but high on ethics. So the heroine sticks with ethics and love and spurns money.

The movie broke all box office records and became a blockbuster hit. The songs ruled the charts, 'Pucho zara pucho'.  However, the movie also had the 'kiss' between Amir and Karishma. It became the focal point of the movie.

Hereafter, Karishma entered the big league.  She was the top heroine alongside Kajol and Madhuri.

THE MAKEOVER

It was the mid-nineties now and the heroines were getting bitten by the designer bug.  The fashion scene was big, and the usual Maganlal Dresswala was no longer the staple of the moviemakers.  A thing called 'The Look' of the movie was coming into vogue.  Fashion designers found taking up bollywood designing very lucrative and something that brought them instant fame, given the reach of the bollywood movies.

Manish Malhotra had a tough time convincing producers that his work could be integral to filmmaking.  He was called a darzi and heroine ka chamcha.  But he stuck to his guns, and thankfully for the more aesthetically minded viewers, he succeeded.  He had styled Rangeela and given Urmila a breathtaking look.

The other heroines lined up, and Karishma among them. It is whispered that Karishma even got some plastic surgery done to  even out her features. Suddenly she had this gorgeous bone structure, a svelte figure that looked great in a classy mini.

Hero No 1 showcased the new Karishma perfectly.  She was looking better and magically, acting better.  All the years of trying in front of the camera were paying off.  She looked classy.  

Something no one ever expected of Karishma.

CRAZY HEART - SWEETHEART

From being the naughty but innocent sexy girl, Karishma morphed into a sweetheart.  A classy girl next door that all guys wanted to go out with.  The gauche had vanished, with a new makeover and wardrobe she marched confidently into big league.  Dil to Pagal Hai was a stylish Yash Chopra offering with a thin storyline, more like a few romantic episodes from the life of three people.  

Karishma played the girl who loves Shahrukh, but hides behind friendship. She has a hard time coming to terms with his love for Madhuri.  For once, she put in a great performance, looked gorgeous and was a complete winover.  The movie was a mega hit.  The Karishma stamp on a movie was a surefire success.
 
THE SERIOUS PHASE

Hereafter, Karishma put the khatiya and the shiny mini behind her and played the good girl.  The sweet funny girl in Haseena Maan Jayegi and Chal mere Bhai. The serious girl out looking for her brother in Fiza. She was winning accolades for her acting.

Zubeidaa brought her the ultimate acclaim, succeeding in an arthouse movie.  She played a sometime film actress who had a tempestous life.  This Shyam Benegal movie showcased the talent of Karishma like no other.  No one could point a finger at her talent.

Movies were made with Karishma at the centre, women oriented flicks.  Rishtey, Baaz, all focussed on the female lead.  But alas the movies were not succeeding much.

No matter, Karishma was now married to a Delhi businessman and in semi retirement.  

GOSSSSSIP

Karishma dated Ness Wadia and Ajay Devgan before getting involved with Abhishek Bachchan.  They even got engaged in a glittering ceremony before their breakup.  It created a permanent rift between the two families.

Karishma later married Sanjay Kapur, a Delhi businessman, in a glittering ceremony.  She is the mother of Samaira, a baby girl born in 2005.  She had a few differences with her husband at one time, but they patched up later.

FILMOGRAPHY

•   Tashan (2008) (filming)
•   Zamaanat (2007) .... Kajol
•   Saathi.lkc">Mere Jeevan Saathi (2006) .... Natasha
•   Baaz: A Bird in Danger (2003) .... Neha Chopra
•   "Karishma: A Miracle of Destiny" (2003) (mini) TV Series
•   Rishtey (2002) .... Komal Singh
•   Shakthi: The Power (2002) .... Nandini
•   Haan Maine Bhi Pyaar Kiya (2002) .... Pooja Kashyap
•   Ek Rishtaa: The Bond of Love (2001) .... Nisha Thappar
•   Aashiq (2001) .... Pooja
•   Zubeidaa (2001) .... Zubeidaa
•   Shikari (2000) .... Rajeshwari Rawal
•   Fiza (2000) .... Fiza
•   Mohabbat-Karega.lkc">Hum To Mohabbat Karega (2000) .... Geeta Kapoor
•   Chal Mere Bhai (2000) .... Sapna Mehra
•   Dulhan Hum Le Jayenge (2000) (as Karishma Kapoor) .... Sapna
•   Jaanwar (1999) .... Sapna
•   Haseena Maan Jaayegi (1999) .... Ritu Verma
•   Biwi No. 1 (1999) .... Pooja Mehra
•   Silsila-Hai-Pyar-Ka.lkc">Silsila Hai Pyar Ka (1999) .... Vanshikha Mathur
•   Hum Saath-Saath Hain: We Stand United (1999) .... Sapna
•   Dil To Pagal Hai (1997) .... Nisha
•   Lahoo Ke Do Rang (1997) .... Hina
•   Hero No. 1 (1997) .... Meena Nath
•   Judwaa (1997) .... Mala
•   Mrityudaata (1997) .... Renuka Jain
•   Ajay (1996) .... Manorama 'Rama'
•   Raja Hindustani (1996) .... Aarti Sehgal
•   Sapoot (1996) .... Pooja
•   Bal Bramhachari (1996) .... Asha Rana
•   Jeet (1996) (as Karishma Kapoor) .... Kajal S. Sharma
•   Krishna (1996) .... Rashmi
•   Megha (1996) (as Karishma Kapoor) .... Megha
•   Papi Gudia (1996) .... Karisma
•   Rakshak (1996) .... Suman Sinha
•   Saajan-Chale-Sasural.lkc">Saajan Chale Sasural (1996) .... Pooja
•   Coolie No. 1 (1995) .... Malti
•   Maidan-E-Jung (1995) .... Tulsi
•   Jawab (1995)
•   Suhaag (1994) (as Karishma Kapoor) .... Pooja
•   Yeh Dillagi (1994) (uncredited) .... Girl on the road
•   Andaz Apna Apna (1994) (as Karisma Kapooor) .... Karisma
•   Prem Shakti (1994) .... Gouri/Karisma
•   Dulaara (1994) .... Priya Chauhan
•   Raja Babu (1994) (as Karishma Kapoor) .... Madhubala
•   Aatish: Feel the Fire (1994) (as Karishma Kapoor) .... Pooja
•   Andaz (1994) (as Karishma Kapoor) .... Jaya
•   Gopi Kishan (1994) .... Barkha
•   Khuddar (1994) .... Pooja
•   Dhanwaan (1993) (as Karishma Kapoor) .... Anjali Chopra "Anju"
•   Shaktiman (1993) .... Priya
•   Anari (1993) .... Rajnandini
•   Muqabla (1993) .... Karisma
•   Jaagruti (1993) .... Shalu
•   Sangram (1993) .... Madhu S. Singh
•   Deedar (1992) .... Sapna A. Saxena
•   Nishchaiy (1992) .... Payal (Singh's daughter)
•   Police Officer (1992) .... Bijali
•   Jigar (1992) .... Suman
•   Sapne Sajan Ke (1992) .... Jyoti
•   Prem Qaidi (1991) .... Neelima