As the legal battle over the inheritance of actor Karisma Kapoor's late ex-husband Sanjay Kapur continues to get messier, his sister Mandhira Kapur Smith is sticking to her stand. She recently claimed that her and Sunjay’s father, Surinder Kapur, regarded Karisma and Sunjay’s children as much his grandchildren as his other grandchildren. Karisma has two kids - daughter Samaira and son Kiaan. "They (Samaira and Kiaan) have 100% rights over Sunjay's estate. My father told us three siblings very clearly that the six grandkids are the centre of his life. He even went on to say that whether our marriages last or not, that should not affect the six grandkids," said Mandhira. She also claimed that she's still very close to Karisma despite her and Sunjay's marriage ending in 2016. They tied the knot back in 2003. "Karisma has grown up in our house. We were the best of friends. We were not on talking terms on a short-term basis, but we've gone back to how we were. My mother and I still talk to her. At the end of the day, she's not only a childhood friend, but also family. She's always been family to us, and will always be," Mandhira added in the interview with Vickey Lalwani. Last month, Karisma Kapoor and Sunjay Kapur's kids moved the Delhi High Court seeking share in their late father's property. The plaint challenges Sunjay's will and claims neither Sunjay mentioned about the will nor their stepmother, Priya Kapur, or any other person, ever mentioned about its existence. It alleges the conduct of Priya and demonstrates, "without a doubt, that the alleged will has been fabricated" by her. During the same interview, Mandhira Kapur said, "It doesn't feel normal that Sunjay hasn't left anything for his kids. The first reaction came from my mother that it's not possible Sunjay wouldn't abandon his kids like that. Are you telling me this girl (Priya) comes out of nowhere and suddenly, our lifetime work is gone? What's not suspicious and not normal about this?" She added, "My mother has built that house sitting under the tree. Now, she doesn't even have a home. Everything has gone to Priya? Chamatkar ho gaya hai (it's a miracle). Everyone should get married like this. Our whole khaandaan (legacy) has come on the road, and she's taken over everything." Mandhira dubbed it a "joke" that all her family members have to sign NDAs (non-disclosure agreements) to see her mother's assets. "The claims are absurd! There's a difference between being khandani and not. We're from the khandan. We've created this stuff, we've not stolen it. When something happens in the khandan, it stays in the khandan." Mandhira Kapur Smith also recalled how she was the one who convinced her father to let Sunjay Kapur marry Priya Sachdev because he wasn't convinced of her at all. They tied the knot in 2017. "My father had never met or seen Priya. He was very clear about that. My mother and Priya lived together, and I'm sure they had a good mother-in-law-daughter-in-law equation. I don't know. Priya and I never got along. I've never discussed Priya with my mother," she said. Mandhira alleged that Priya has separated the entire family. "Priya should've kept this family together at this point, and not done what she has. At the end of the day, this is my mother's estate. This is not her husband's estate. It was passed to my mother by her husband. Like any Indian family, none of us objected to my brother running Sona Comstar (their family company) because he's the boy. My dad struggled and brought it out of financial mess. Yes, it wasn't maintained after his death (in 2015) like my dad maintained it," said Mandhira, adding, "Sunjay just followed my dad's mandate. For Priya to walk around and say 'Sunjay saved the day,' I'm sorry to say but my dad saved the day even from his grave." Also Read | ‘Karisma Kapoor grew up in our house, still in touch with former mother-in-law’, says Sunjay Kapur’s sister; shocked that her kids weren’t ‘getting anything’ Mandhira Kapur can't wrap her head around her mother not getting any share at all. "Now, his (Surinder) wife has nothing to do with the company? She's the co-founder. We've moved to Delhi for this company. Our family went for family therapy because we didn't want to move to Delhi. Sunjay Kapur's inheritance? Let's pause. It's my mother's inheritance."
