Eleven years later, Alia is the youngest empress of Hindi cinema, rivaling her success-ratio with Hema Malini, the most successful heroine of all time.
She began her career as a leading lady in her mentor Karan Johar’s Student of the Year – before that she played young Preity Zinta in Tanuja Chandra’s Sangharsh because they both had similar dimples. Karan casts Alia as Poo in the spinoff. It didn’t give us any clue of the powerhouse performer to come. See the best pictures of Alia here.
Highway (2014): Why was Alia Bhatt so easily diagnosed with Stockholm Syndrome and why did she fall in love with her kidnapper? Or why did she suddenly become a victim of child abuse in the end? Maybe Imtiaz Ali can answer. But the role allowed Alia to swiftly move away from the ‘Poo’ image, delivering a hurtful yet powerful performance that left us wondering where this angst came from.
Going Home (2014): The most important film Alia has done so far, this one about a long-legged girl who is stuck in her broken-down car in the middle of the road, giving lifts to a bunch of boys Is. Aaliya’s character remains completely oblivious to the nefarious intentions of her co-travellers. Not knowing this is what gives his performance an edge. This timely short film was directed by Vikas Bahl, who was later accused in the #MeToo campaign.
Udta Punjab (2016): Alia played persecuted Bihari migrant Pinky, a reluctant drug addict who pumps her nerves with questionable drugs to numb herself against constant sexual harassment. Shahid Kapoor and Alia Bhatt are born again as they play two traumatized characters traveling from opposite sides of the moral scale. And yet their painful life at one point turns into a strangely unexpected and life-changing encounter. Alia brings brilliance to the role, bringing an electrifying authenticity to the screen with her understanding of the intricacies that define the drug politics of Punjab. One wonders where on earth she met a character like Pinky… maybe at a traffic signal while returning home from a party at Karan Johar’s house? Jokes apart, Satyajit Ray had never seen a village while making Pather Panchali. If you know, you know.
Raazi (2018): The origin story of a female spy’s immeasurable personal sacrifice for the country was presented with a frustrating moral ambiguity. The Pakistani household that Sehmat infiltrated as a daughter-in-law was full of well-mannered soft-spoken people who were not fit to be spies. Alia transcends all contradictions to deliver a completely coherent performance in an engaging film.
Gully Boy (2019): As Safina, the possessive, flamboyant girlfriend of Ranveer Singh’s Murad, Alia has little time to play. Whenever she comes on screen something or the other happens. Squeezed tightly into the handkerchief-sized rooms of the slum, Murad just wants to fly. His face lights up every time he meets the love of his life. With her head covered and a wide smile, Aaliya plays Safina with an endearing charm that lights up not just Murad’s heart, but hers as well. We even wonder what life would be like without his benevolent presence.
Gangubai Kathiawadi (2021): What would this film be without Alia Bhatt? He’s in nearly every frame of this masterpiece, dominated by lewd boys stalking the strikingly designed length and breadth of a 1950s redlight area. Hats off to Aaliya for being who she is. Delivering the undisputed best performance by a female actor in a Sanjay Bhansali film, Alia peels off Gangubai’s skin to touch her soul. We do not know how similar Gangubai really was to Alia. But, it can be guessed that if the real Gangubai gets her onscreen avatar, she would want to be like her. Alia’s Gangubai is cruel and beautiful, heartbreaking and devastating. An exceptional, never-before-seen performance by Alia Bhatt guides us not too gently into the other important qualities of this film.
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