Alia Bhatt’s debut in Karan Johar’s Student of the Year makes heads turn

Student of the Year’s director Karan Johar  has indeed given his leading newcomer trio a dream debut. Starring Siddharth Malhotra, Varun Dhawan and Alia Bhatt, all making their first big-screen appearances, the film is Karan Johar’s fifth directorial venture. And as is the case with any young-star being launched by a production house as big as Karan Johar’s Dharma Productions, Siddharth, Varun and Alia are absolutely thrilled! "We screen tested over 400 girls from across Mumbai and other cities. This is when Niranjan Iyengar told me that Mahesh Bhatt's daughter Alia was raring to go and she could just be the right fit for the film. I did her test and was convinced that she had this X factor that could work for the film," said Karan Johar.

The young actor has grabbed a load of attention with her debut in this film. Hailing from a filmy background, Alia is the daughter of director Mahesh Bhatt and the half sister of actor Pooja Bhatt. The confident and determined 19-year-old has put all skeptics to rest with her performance in the recently released film. Prior to the film’s release, Alia stated, "He (Karan Johar) has worked with the best in the industry while neither of us had ever faced the camera before. I have to ensure that he is not let down. There is a pressure of different kind. We all want to make the audience happy as once they accept you, all noises die down."

The young actor is all praise for her mentor-director Karan Johar. "I was very nervous working with Karan. I couldn't ever imagine that he would be so patient with us. He has worked with the best people and we used to give so many takes. He understood that we were newcomers and had to be guided," added Alia, praising Karan’s mentoring and his patience while filming Student of the Year.

In Karan Johar’s Student of the Year, Alia Bhatt plays the role of Shanaya Singhania, sharing screen space with Varun Dhawan who plays her boyfriend Rohan Nanda and Siddharth Malhotra donning the role of Abhimanyu Singh aka Abhi.