Alia Bhatt (born 15 March 1993) is an Indian actress who appears in Bollywood films. The daughter of filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and actress Soni Razdan, she made her acting debut with Karan Johar's romantic comedy Student of the Year (2012), a box office success. She subsequently garnered praise for her performances in Imtiaz Ali's road movie Highway (2014) and the highly successful romantic comedy 2 States (2014).
Early life
Bhatt was born on 15 March 1993,[1][2] to Indian film director Mahesh Bhatt and actress Soni Razdan. Her father is of primarilyGujarati descent[3][4] while her mother is of Kashmiri and German ancestry.[5][6][7] Bhatt has one sister, Shaheen (born 1988)[8] and two half-siblings, Pooja Bhatt and Rahul Bhatt. Actor Emraan Hashmi and director Mohit Suri are her cousins while producer Mukesh Bhatt is her uncle.[9]
Career
Alia Bhatt with Sidharth Malhotra(left) and Varun Dhawan (right) promoting Student of the Year in 2012
Bhatt's first acting role was as a child artist in Sangharsh (1999), starring Akshay Kumar and Preity Zinta where she played the younger version of Zinta's character.[10] She had her first leading role in 2012 with Karan Johar's Student of the Year, alongside Sidharth Malhotraand Varun Dhawan.[11] She portrayed the role of Shanaya, a sophisticated teenage girl who is in a relationship with Dhawan's character but is attracted to the character played by Malhotra. Taran Adarsh of Bollywood Hungama wrote of her performance, "Alia's role is reminiscent of Kareena Kapoor in Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham. Stylish, classy, born with a silver spoon, she's someone who loves to flaunt not just her clothes and bags, but also her riches. Extremely photogenic, Alia makes a super-confident debut."[12] Film critic Anupama Chopra of Hindustan Times also mentioned the similarities with Kapoor's character, but noted that her performance was "without the killer attitude."[13] Student of the Year was a financial success, grossing 700 million (US$12 million) domestically.[14]
In 2014, Bhatt had three film releases. She played the protagonist of Imtiaz Ali's road film Highway opposite Randeep Hooda. Her portrayal of a lonely teenage girl who develops stockholm syndrome after being abducted was acclaimed by the critics.[15] Rachit Gupta of Filmfarementioned that "[a]t 20, it’s surprising how Alia has got so many deft nuances right. It’s as if the actor has grown with the character. She is truly one of the most promising new actors in Hindi films."[16] Sonia Chopra of Sify.com added that Bhatt is "[c]ompletely immersed" in her role, and that "Alia’s uninhibited and raw performance will have you emotionally invested in her character all through."[17] However, the film underperformed at the box office.[18]
Bhatt next featured in Johar and Sajid Nadiadwala's joint production 2 States with Arjun Kapoor. An adaptation of Chetan Bhagat's novel of the same name, it narrates the story of two IIM Ahmedabad students who encounter trouble in convincing their parents to approve of their relationship. For her role as Ananya Swaminatham, a headstrong Tamil girl, she learnt the language.[19] Critics were appreciative of her performance with Rediff.com publishing that Bhatt "really grows into the character and makes you believe that she's a career-oriented IIM-A grad."[20] Shubhra Gupta of The Indian Express added that Bhatt was a "surprise" and was "easy and fresh and natural."[21] The film emerged as a major commercial success,[22] earning over 1 billion (US$17 million) in domestic ticket sales.[23] Bhatt's final appearance that year was as Kavya Pratap Singh, a Punjabi girl who engages in a romantic affair with a stranger a few days prior to her wedding, in the romantic comedy Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania. Co-starring Varun Dhawan and Siddharth Shukla, the film was described as a tribute to Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge (1995) by Johar, who served as producer.[24] Writing for India Today, Rohit Khilnani thought that Bhatt had pitched in "one of her best performances so far", though Nandini Ramnath of Mint found her performance to be lacking in subtlety, writing that she was "more comfortable acting out her feelings through dialogue and actions".[25][26] Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania also proved to be a box office hit.[27]
As of July 2014, Bhatt has signed on for Vikas Bahl's Shaandar, a destination wedding film opposite Shahid Kapoor.[28]
Other work
Bhatt at the PCJ Delhi Couture Week, 2012
Post her debut, Bhatt performed at several award functions like Filmfare, Screen, and Stardust apart from at an international event in Hong Kong with Varun Dhawan and Siddharth Malhotra.[29] She also performed at a special event alongside Dhawan, Malhotra, Aditya Roy Kapur, Shraddha Kapoor and Huma Qureshi to raise funds for the flood-affected victims of Uttarakhand.[30] She went on to shoot a special PETA ad for cats and other homeless animals.[31]
Bhatt performed playback singing along with Zeb for the song "Sooha Saaha" in Highway (2014). A. R. Rahman, the composer of the film, invited her to his music school to undergo training.[32] Also in 2014, she sang the unplugged version of the track "Samjhawan" for the composers Sharib-Toshi in Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania.[33]
In the media
Bhatt is the ambassador of popular brands such as Coca-Cola, Garnier and Maybelline.[34][35] Raedita Tandon, editor of Filmfare, wrote about Bhatt, "After meeting Alia Bhatt, I came away with an unexpected feeling. Interviewing her was more like having a conversation with a gal pal. She's what one wishes every celebrity was – carefree and relaxed. There's no mincing of words with her and certainly no diplomacy. Maybe it's because she's all of 20 years. Or maybe she gets it from her father, Mahesh Bhatt. Either way, she's a delight. Though there has been a surge of young actors over the past years, only a few have managed to make a mark. Alia is definitely one of them. That too, with just her debut film, Student of the Year. But she's under no delusions. She knows she has a long way to go and is willing to work her 'ass off'"[36]
Filmography
YearFilmRoleNotes1999
Sangharsh
Young Preet Oberoi
Cameo appearance
2012
Student of the Year
Shanaya Singhania
2014
Highway
Veera Tripathi
Also playback singer for song "Sooha Saha"
2014
2 States
Ananya Swaminathan
2014
Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania
Kavya Pratap Singh
Also playback singer for song "Samjhawan Unplugged"
Awards and nominations
YearFilmAwardCategoryResult2013
Student of the Year
Screen Awards
Most Promising Newcomer – Female
Nominated[37]
Zee Cine Awards
Best Female Debut
Nominated[38]
Filmfare Awards
Best Female Debut
Nominated[39]
Stardust Awards
Superstar of Tomorrow – Female
Nominated[40]
