Karishma Kaa Karishma Cast Then and Now: India's Robot Girl Is All Grown Up

I've just finished writing about where the Small Wonder cast is now, after VisionQuest played a clip of the old American sitcom in its latest episode. And all the way through, one thought kept coming back to me. For most of us in India, Vicki was never really Vicki. She was Karishma.

Karishma Kaa Karishma was StarPlus's Indian remake of Small Wonder. It ran from 24 January 2003 to 16 April 2004, across 65 episodes, and if you were a child in the early 2000s, you knew the theme song and the robot voice by heart.

The story, desi style

Scientist Vikram Malhotra builds a very lifelike robot to see whether she'll become more human over time. His wife Sheetal, egged on by the neighbour, first suspects his late nights mean an affair. Then he reveals Karishma, and Sheetal accepts her as a daughter. Their son Rahul has his own problem: Sweety from next door, who has a crush on him. And the nosy neighbours, Shraddha and Paresh Parekh, spend every episode trying to work out who Karishma really is.

The beats are pure Small Wonder. But the masala, the joint-family chaos and the very Indian neighbours made it ours.

The beats were pure Small Wonder. The masala made it ours.

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The Karishma Kaa Karishma cast: then and now

Jhanak Shukla (Karishma)

Then: The robot girl herself. Jhanak, daughter of actor Supriya Shukla, was already a familiar face, and the same year she played little Jia in Kal Ho Naa Ho (2003). She also worked in Son Pari and Hatim.

Now: Jhanak walked away from the spotlight and chose a completely different path. She completed an MA in archaeology at Deccan College Post-Graduate and Research Institute in Pune. In December 2024 she married her long-time partner Swapnil Suryawanshi, and the wedding photos had the whole internet saying the same thing: Karishma is all grown up.

Mayank Tandon (Rahul)

Then: Rahul, Karishma's brother, permanently annoyed by Sweety.

Now: He swapped the front of the camera for the back of it. Under the credit Mayyank Taandon, IMDb lists him in the assistant director and second unit teams on Rohit Shetty films including Chennai Express, Dilwale and Sooryavanshi.

Shweta Basu Prasad (Sweety)

Then: Sweety Parekh, the girl next door with a crush on Rahul. By the time the show started, Shweta had already won the National Film Award for Best Child Artist for Makdee (2002). Iqbal came in 2005.

Now: Possibly the biggest success story from this cast. She led the TV series Chandra Nandni, played the young journalist at the heart of The Tashkent Files (2019), and has become a streaming regular with Criminal Justice: Adhura Sach, Jubilee and Tribhuvan Mishra: CA Topper. Her most recent role is Roshni Bharti in Maharani season 4 (2025). She also made her directorial debut with the short film Retake in 2023.

Shweta Basu Prasad in 2021. Photo: Socialwolfie / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Hansika Motwani (Tina, guest)

Then: Here's the cameo most people forget. Hansika turned up in episode 18 as Tina, Sweety's cousin, and also as a Chinese child robot. She was already a TV kid from Shaka Laka Boom Boom and one of the children in Koi... Mil Gaya.

Now: A full-blown South star. She debuted as a lead in Telugu with Desamuduru (2007), moved into Tamil with Mappillai (2011), and her 50th film, Maha, released in 2022. She married businessman Sohail Khaturiya in Jaipur in December 2022.

Hansika Motwani in 2023. Photo: Verghese TK / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

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The grown-ups

Sanjeev Seth (Vikram Malhotra)

Then: The scientist dad who built Karishma.

Now: Most TV audiences now know him as Vishambharnath Maheshwari in Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai and its spin-off. He's been busy recently too, with the film Maharaj (2024), De De Pyaar De 2 (2025), the StarPlus show Jhanak, and Yeh Fitoor Tera, which is on air now.

Sanjeev Seth in 2012. Photo: Bollywood Hungama / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

Tisca Chopra and Eva Grover (Sheetal Malhotra)

Then: The role of Sheetal was played by two actors over the run, Eva Grover and Tisca Chopra.

Now: Tisca went on to play the mother in Taare Zameen Par and has kept working across film and streaming, including Murder Mubarak (2024) and HIT: The Third Case (2025). She's also turned director, most recently with Saali Mohabbat (2025). Eva Grover has built a long career in supporting roles across Hindi films and TV serials.

Tisca Chopra in 2017. Photo: Bollywood Hungama / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

Eva Grover in 2017. Photo: Bollywood Hungama / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

Jamnadas Majethia (Paresh Parekh)

Then: Paresh, the nosy neighbour.

Now: This one's my favourite twist. Jamnadas is one of the most important comedy producers Indian TV has ever had. Through Hats Off Productions, he has produced Khichdi, Sarabhai vs Sarabhai, Baa Bahoo Aur Baby, Wagle Ki Duniya and Pushpa Impossible, and he's also Himanshu in Khichdi. His latest production, Chumbak, is from 2026.

Jamnadas Majethia in 2018. Photo: Bollywood Hungama / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

Bhavana Balsavar (Shraddha Parekh)

Then: Shraddha, the neighbour who planted the affair idea in Sheetal's head and never stopped snooping.

Now: Daughter of veteran actor Shubha Khote, Bhavana was already a sitcom favourite from Dekh Bhai Dekh and Zabaan Sambhalke. She's still working, most recently in Meri Saas Bhoot Hai (2023).

Bhavana Balsavar in 2012. Photo: Bollywood Hungama / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

Kurush Deboo (Lappu, the cowardly ghost)

Then: Yes, there was a ghost. Kurush played Lappu, the scaredy-cat spirit, a very Indian addition to the Small Wonder formula.

Now: You know him as Dr. Rustom Pavri in Munna Bhai M.B.B.S., and from Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa. His most recent film is Non Stop Dhamaal (2023).

Kurush Deboo in 2012. Photo: Bollywood Hungama / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0

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So, remake or rip-off?

Here's the fun fact that started all this. Karishma Kaa Karishma wasn't just "inspired by" Small Wonder. It's widely documented as a remake: same robot daughter, same inventor dad, same nosy neighbours with a kid who has a crush on the son. What it added was everything that made it Indian, from Lappu the ghost to the neighbourhood politics.

Twenty-plus years later, the American original is back in the conversation because of VisionQuest. I'd argue our version deserves a rewatch just as much, if only to spot a National Award winner, a future 50-film South star and the man behind Sarabhai vs Sarabhai, all in one robot sitcom.

Frequently asked questions

Is Karishma Kaa Karishma a remake of Small Wonder?

Yes. It's an Indian remake of the 1980s American sitcom Small Wonder, about a scientist who builds a robot girl and raises her as his daughter.

When did Karishma Kaa Karishma air?

On StarPlus, from 24 January 2003 to 16 April 2004, over 65 episodes.

Who played Karishma in Karishma Kaa Karishma?

Jhanak Shukla, the daughter of actor Supriya Shukla. She is also remembered as Jia in Kal Ho Naa Ho.

What is Jhanak Shukla doing now?

She stepped away from acting, completed an MA in archaeology at Deccan College in Pune, and married Swapnil Suryawanshi in December 2024.

Was Hansika Motwani in Karishma Kaa Karishma?

Yes, briefly. She appeared in episode 18 as Tina, Sweety's cousin, and also played a Chinese child robot.