A few years ago, Karisma was admired more for her "Sexy Sexy" dances rather than her high voltage histrionics. However, with strong and moving performances in movies such as "Raja Hindustani" and "Dil To Pagal Hai", Karisma has finally proven all her detractors wrong.
It was her role as Aarthi in the super-hit of 1996 Raja Hindustani that bagged Karisma her first Filmfare Award for Best Actress in 1997 and vaulted her into the big league. The following year, she managed to successfully follow up with numerous awards including the much coveted National Award for her role as Nisha in the much loved Dil To Pagal Hai.