At just 26, Alia Bhatt is decisively one of the most chased and highest paid actress in Bollywood. And for all the right reasons!

This star kid made her debut as a child actor with the 1999 thriller, Sangarsh but played her first leading role in her mentor, Karan Johar’s Student of the Year (2012). It would’ve been fairly easy to write her off as yet another product of nepotism, a wannabe actor who belonged in the industry only because she was the daughter of Mukesh Bhatt – especially when she made a general knowledge error on the Koffee couch.

But this photogenic firecracker was not ready to give up. She was trolled relentlessly for her GK error and she turned the situation around by collaborating with All India Bakchod. Bhatt made a stand-up comedy skit about going to a “brain gym”. In doing so, she showcased her ability to laugh at herself and in the process, expanded her fan base. Genius, right?

From dolling up for the red carpet to being caked in mud for a movie, Alia Bhatt has proved her versatility time and again. She has an appetite for risk and doing new things.

Since her debut, Alia hasn’t shied away from experimenting and playing different characters. She’s played a character with Stockholm syndrome and a hockey-loving laborer who gets addicted to drugs in Udta Punjab. Dear Zindagi saw her as a filmmaker with commitment issues and in Raazi she essayed the role of a spy.

This is also a testament to her versatility. She’s also not scared of not playing the lead actress. Although she was a part of the main cast in Kapoor and Sons, she didn’t have much screen time.

In the short time she’s been here, Alia has proved that she is not just a pretty face. She adopts a character and makes it her own – whether it’s Vaidehi from Badrinath ki Dulhaniya or Safeena from Gully Boy. What’s more, she’s a remarkable singer as well which she’s proved with reprised versions of Samjhawan, Ikk Kudi and Love You Zindagi.
Suffice it to say, the Raazi girl is in a separate league of her own!