Alia Bhatt facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Alia Bhatt
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Bhatt at the 2022 Berlinale
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| Born | 15 March 1993 Bombay, India
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| Citizenship | United Kingdom |
| Occupation | Actress |
| Years active | 2012–present |
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Works
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Full list |
| Spouse(s) | |
| Children | 1 |
| Parents |
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| Relatives |
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| Awards | Full list |
Alia Bhatt (born 15 March 1993) is a British actress with Indian roots. She mostly stars in Hindi films. Alia is known for playing strong women in challenging situations. She has won many awards, including a National Film Award and six Filmfare Awards. She is one of the highest-paid actresses in India. Time magazine honored her with the Time100 Impact Award in 2022. In 2024, they named her one of the 100 most influential people in the world.
Alia was born into the Bhatt family. Her father is filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, and her mother is actress Soni Razdan. She first acted as a child in the 1999 film Sangharsh. Her first main role was in Karan Johar's teen film Student of the Year (2012). She won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress for her role in the road drama Highway (2014). After that, she became famous with leading roles in many romantic films from Johar's studio, Dharma Productions.
Bhatt won Filmfare Awards for Best Actress for her roles in the crime drama Udta Punjab (2016), the spy thriller Raazi (2018), the musical drama Gully Boy (2019), and the main role in the biopic Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022). This last film also earned her the National Film Award for Best Actress. She started producing films with the black comedy Darlings (2022). Her biggest commercial successes were the fantasy film Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva (2022) and the romantic comedy Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (2023). For Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, she won her fifth Best Actress award at Filmfare, tying a record.
Besides acting, Alia supports many charities. She is also an investor and promotes many brands. In 2017, she started an ecological project called CoExist. In 2019, she founded a production company, Eternal Sunshine Productions. In 2022, she launched a sustainable clothing brand called Ed-a-Mamma. Alia has also sung eight songs for her films, including "Samjhawan Unplugged" in 2014. She is married to actor Ranbir Kapoor, and they have a daughter.
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Her Early Life and Family
Alia Bhatt was born on 15 March 1993 in Bombay (now Mumbai), India. She is the daughter of Indian filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and British actress Soni Razdan. Her father's family is from Gujarat, and her mother's family has Kashmiri-Pandit and German-British roots. Alia has British citizenship. Her grandfather was producer-director Nanabhai Bhatt. She has an older sister, Shaheen, and two half-siblings, Pooja and Rahul Bhatt. Actors Emraan Hashmi and director Mohit Suri are her cousins. Producer Mukesh Bhatt is her uncle. Alia went to Jamnabai Narsee School. She left school in her twelfth grade to become an actress.
Alia has said that she had a normal and humble childhood. She did not get special treatment just because she was Mahesh Bhatt's daughter. Her mother raised her and her sister mostly alone, as her father was not very involved in their lives when they were young. Alia said she did not miss him much as a child because he was not really there. They became closer when she started acting.
Alia wanted to act from a young age. She first realized her interest while practicing for the school choir in kindergarten. She soon started dance lessons. Her first acting role was at age five in her father's film Sanghargh (1999). She played the younger version of Preity Zinta's character for a short time. Alia later said she did not remember much about it. At age nine, she tried out for a role in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's film Black (2005), but she did not get the part. Three years later, Bhansali planned to cast Alia and Ranbir Kapoor in a film called Balika Vadhu, but it was never made.
Her Acting Journey
Early Roles and Big Break (2012–2015)
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Alia Bhatt got her first main role in 2012 in Karan Johar's teen film Student of the Year. She starred alongside new actors Sidharth Malhotra and Varun Dhawan. She tried out with 500 other girls. Johar cast her on one condition: she had to lose 16 kg, which she did in three months. She played a fancy teenage girl in a love triangle. Some critics compared her character to Kareena Kapoor's role in another Johar film. The film made a lot of money, becoming a commercial success.
Alia was not happy with the reviews for Student of the Year. She wanted to play a more challenging role. She found it in Imtiaz Ali's film Highway (2014). In this film, she played a rich young woman who is kidnapped. She learns to speak better Hindi for the role. The emotional and physical demands of the part were tough for her. Critics praised her performance, noting her sadness and intelligence. The film did not make much money, but Alia won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress. She also got a nomination for Best Actress. In the same year, she starred in Going Home, a short film about women's safety.
Alia continued to work with Johar's company, Dharma Productions. She starred in the romantic films 2 States and Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania (both 2014). 2 States was based on a Chetan Bhagat novel. It was about two students who struggle to get their parents to approve their relationship. For her role as a strong Tamil girl, she learned to speak some Tamil. Critics liked her performance, calling her "easy and fresh and natural". In Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania, she played a girl who has a romance before her wedding. Both films were very successful, each earning over 1 billion rupees worldwide. Her films in 2014 helped her career grow a lot.
In 2015, Alia worked with director Vikas Bahl again in the romantic comedy Shaandaar. She starred with Shahid Kapoor. They played people who cannot sleep and fall in love during a wedding. Critics did not like the film much, and it did not do well at the box office.
Becoming a Star (2016–2021)
Alia started 2016 with a role in Shakun Batra's drama Kapoor & Sons. She starred with Sidharth Malhotra and Fawad Khan. The film was a success with both critics and audiences. Next, she played a poor migrant from Bihar in Udta Punjab (2016). This crime drama was about social issues. This serious role was different from her previous light-hearted parts. To prepare, she watched documentaries and learned a Bihari dialect. Her performance was highly praised by critics. She then played a young woman who talks to a therapist (played by Shah Rukh Khan) in Gauri Shinde's film Dear Zindagi (2016). Critics liked her portrayal of modern youth struggles. For Udta Punjab, she won the Screen Award and the Filmfare Award for Best Actress. She also got another Best Actress nomination for Dear Zindagi.
Her next film, the romantic comedy Badrinath Ki Dulhania (2017), was also successful. She worked again with director Shashank Khaitan and Varun Dhawan. The film is about an independent young woman (Alia) who does not want to follow old traditions. Critics noted the film's message about gender equality. She received another Filmfare nomination for Best Actress. In Meghna Gulzar's spy thriller Raazi (2018), Alia played Sehmat Khan, a Kashmiri spy. She marries a Pakistani army officer (played by Vicky Kaushal). The film is set during the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971. Alia found the filming emotionally tiring. Critics said she showed the skill of an experienced actress. Raazi became one of the highest-grossing Hindi films led by a female star. This success made Box Office India call Alia the most successful modern actress in Hindi cinema. She won another Best Actress award at Filmfare.
Alia launched her own production company, Eternal Sunshine Productions, in early 2019. Her first film that year was Gully Boy, with Ranveer Singh. This musical was inspired by the lives of street rappers Divine and Naezy. She took acting classes to learn Bambaiya Hindi for the role. The film was shown at the 69th Berlin International Film Festival. Critics praised Alia's sharp performance. With earnings of over 2.37 billion rupees worldwide, Gully Boy became Alia's highest-grossing film at that time. Gully Boy won a record 13 Filmfare Awards, and Alia received her third Best Actress award.
The large cast drama Kalank (2019) was Alia's biggest budget film so far. It was set in the 1940s before the partition of India. She and Varun Dhawan played lovers. She watched old films to learn how women from that time behaved. She also watched a Pakistani TV series to improve her Urdu speaking. The film did not do well at the box office. Alia then starred in Sadak 2 (2020), a sequel to her father's 1991 film Sadak. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in India, this film was released online on Disney+ Hotstar instead of in cinemas. The film received negative reviews.
Recent Successes (2022–Present)
Alia had more success in 2022. She played the main role in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's film Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022). This film was about a powerful woman. It was shown at the 72nd Berlin International Film Festival. To prepare, she studied the work of actress Meena Kumari. She also watched films like Mandi (1983) and Memoirs of a Geisha (2005). Critics praised her performance, saying she put all doubts to rest with a lively portrayal. It became her third film to earn over 2 billion rupees worldwide. The Guardian included her performance in their list of the best big-screen performances ever. She won her fourth Best Actress award at Filmfare and the National Film Award for Best Actress.
In the same year, Alia had a small role in the Telugu film RRR. She learned her lines in Telugu, but another artist spoke them for her. It became the third highest-grossing Indian film of all time. Next, she starred in the Netflix black comedy film Darlings. This was her first film as a producer under her company Eternal Sunshine Productions. Critics found her perfect in the role of an ordinary Mumbai girl. The film became the most-watched Indian film globally on Netflix in its first weekend. She won the Filmfare OTT Award for Best Actress for a web film. In her last film of 2022, Alia starred with Ranbir Kapoor in Ayan Mukerji's fantasy film Brahmāstra: Part One – Shiva. This film took five years to make. It was one of the most expensive Indian films. Critics felt Alia was not used enough in the film. It earned 4.31 billion rupees, making it the highest-grossing Hindi film of 2022.
Alia worked with Karan Johar again for his film Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (2023). She co-starred with Ranveer Singh. Filming was delayed because she was pregnant. Critics praised her look in the film. It earned over 3.5 billion rupees worldwide. It became the seventh highest-grossing Hindi film of 2023. She won her fifth Best Actress award at Filmfare, tying the record for most wins with Nutan and Kajol. Alia also started acting in American films in 2023 with Heart of Stone. This Netflix spy film co-starred Gal Gadot and Jamie Dornan. She played a villainous computer hacker and did her first action scenes while pregnant. Critics did not like the film, but it had many viewers on Netflix.
In 2024, Alia became an executive producer for the crime drama series Poacher, which was released on Amazon Prime Video. She also starred in Jigra, an action thriller produced by Dharma Productions and her company. She played a troubled woman trying to save her brother from an East Asian prison. Alia said she was drawn to the protective character because she had recently become a mother. Critics had mixed reviews for the film, and it did not do well at the box office.
Alia will next join the YRF Spy Universe in a female-led film called Alpha. She will also work with Bhansali again in the romantic drama Love & War, co-starring Ranbir Kapoor and Vicky Kaushal.
Other Activities
Singing and Stage Shows
Alia Bhatt has sung for her films. She sang "Sooha Saaha" in Highway (2014). The film's composer, A. R. Rahman, invited her to his music school for training. In the same year, she sang an acoustic version of "Samjhawan" for Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania. For the film Udta Punjab (2016), she sang a different version of "Ikk Kudi" with her co-star Diljit Dosanjh. She worked with Dosanjh again in 2024 for the song "Chal Kudiye" from the Jigra soundtrack.
Alia has performed on stage at the Filmfare, Screen, and Stardust ceremonies. She also performed in a stage show in Hong Kong with Varun Dhawan and Sidharth Malhotra. She took part in a charity event in 2013 to raise money for victims of floods in North India. She also performed in various cities in America for the "Dream Team 2016" tour.
Helping Others
Alia supports many good causes and charities. In 2013, she joined a campaign for PETA to help homeless animals. In 2021, PETA India named her their Person of the Year. This was for her work supporting animal-friendly fashion and helping dogs and cats. In 2015, she joined a charity event for children with cancer. In 2017, she performed in a fashion show to support this cause. Also in 2017, she started an environmental project called CoExist. It aims to help street animals. The project collected old jeans to make dog collars. Alia also worked with Facebook for a campaign called Find Your Green to promote environmentalism.
In 2018, Alia joined Aamir Khan's Paani Foundation. She visited a village in Maharashtra and helped with water management work. She also started an initiative called Mi Wardrobe is Su Wardrobe (MiSu). Through this, she sold clothes from her own closet to provide electricity to a village in Karnataka. In 2021, Alia worked with the Indian branch of the NGO ActionAid. They provided essential items to communities affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2022, she became the first Indian actress to partner with the Mandarin Oriental Hotel Group. Through this partnership, she raised money for the Salaam Bombay Foundation, which helps young people in need. Under MiSu, Alia sold the saris she wore in her film Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (2023). The money raised went to women's healthcare. In 2024, she hosted a charity event in London for the Salaam Bombay Foundation.
Business Ventures
Alia designed her own clothing line for women in 2014 for the online fashion store Jabong.com. In 2018, she launched her own line of handbags. She has also invested in the beauty company Nykaa and in India's first biomaterial startup, Phool.co. In 2022, she launched her own sustainable clothing brand for mothers and children, called Ed-a-Mamma. For helping kids love animals and nature, Ed-a-Mamma won the PETA India's Vegan Fashion Award for Best Vegan Kidswear Brand in 2021. As of July 2023, the company was worth about 1.5 billion rupees. In September 2023, Reliance Retail bought a majority share (51%) in the company. In 2024, Alia wrote a children's picture book called Ed Finds a Home. It is the first book in a series called The Adventures of Ed-a-Mamma.
Her Personal Life
Alia Bhatt has often faced negative comments, especially online, about getting special treatment in the Hindi film industry because of her family. When asked how she deals with it, she said she felt bad, but it was a small price to pay for the work she loves. This criticism has also been directed at Karan Johar, who often praises her and casts her in his films. Some critics believe this favoritism takes away chances from other actresses. Johar has said he feels like a parent to Alia.
In 2014, Alia appeared on Johar's talk show Koffee with Karan. She incorrectly named Prithviraj Chauhan as the President of India. This led to many jokes online about her intelligence. Alia responded by acting in a funny YouTube video called Alia Bhatt - Genius of the Year. A journalist noted that by making fun of herself, Alia managed to win over her critics.
Early in her career, Alia did not like to talk about her personal life. She said she would never speak publicly about her relationships. Despite rumors, she did not talk about dating actor Sidharth Malhotra. However, in 2019, after they had broken up, she spoke kindly about their bond. In 2018, Ranbir Kapoor, her co-star in Brahmāstra, said that he and Alia were dating. They got married on 14 April 2022 in a traditional Hindu ceremony at their home in Mumbai. On 6 November 2022, she gave birth to their daughter, Raha.
As of 2022, Alia mainly lives in Mumbai. She also has a home in London. In 2023, she spoke out against two paparazzi who took pictures of her in her living room from a nearby building. In a book about Bollywood, an author noted that Alia is among a new group of Indian actresses who successfully balance their careers with marriage and motherhood. In 2024, Alia shared that she was diagnosed with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
Awards and Honors
Alia Bhatt won the National Film Award for Best Actress for Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022). She has won the Filmfare Award for Best Actress a record-tying five times. These wins were for her roles in Udta Punjab (2016), Raazi (2018), Gully Boy (2019), Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022), and Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani (2023). She also won the Filmfare Critics Award for Best Actress for Highway (2014). Additionally, she won the Filmfare OTT Award for Best Actress for a web film for Darlings (2022).
Images for kids
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Bhatt at the 2022 Berlinale
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Bhatt in 2013
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Bhatt at an event for Udta Punjab in 2016
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Bhatt promoting Gangubai Kathiawadi (2022)
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Bhatt and her husband Ranbir Kapoor, pictured in 2021
See also
In Spanish: Alia Bhatt para niños
