Karisma Kapoor & Kader Khan Movies Together List — 15 Films

The shape of the work

The 1990s account for 93% of everything they made together. The 1990s belonged to Raja Babu; the 2000s to Dulhan Hum Le Jayenge. Karisma Kapoor acted in every film; Kader Khan acted in all of them. Strictly Hindi cinema — they never crossed industries together.

Partnership facts

• Kader Khan was the one who suggested Karisma Kapoor for Raja Babu (1994). He had seen her in a small role and told director David Dhawan she had the comic timing to match his own. Dhawan was skeptical — Karisma was only 19 and mostly known for serious roles — but Khan insisted. That film became her first big hit.
• In Saajan Chale Sasural (1996), Kader Khan played Karisma's father. He deliberately slowed down his dialogue delivery in every scene with her — he told the director he wanted her to have the punchlines. She later said he 'gave her the space to be funny' instead of overpowering her with his own comic timing.
• On the sets of Sapoot (1996), Kader Khan would sit with Karisma between shots and teach her Urdu couplets. She didn't speak the language, but he wanted her to understand the rhythm of the lines she was delivering. She later said those sessions helped her nail the emotional scenes in Jaanwar (1999).
• Karisma Kapoor said about Kader Khan in a 2017 interview: 'He never treated me like a child actor. He would argue with me about a scene, and then laugh and say, 'You're right, let's do it your way.' I learned more from him than from any acting school.'
• The success of Raja Babu (1994) directly led to David Dhawan casting Karisma in three more films with him — and it also convinced Govinda to do multiple films with her. Without Kader Khan pushing for her in that first film, the Govinda-Karisma pair might never have become the defining comic duo of the 1990s.