Filmmaker Karan Johar has off late been dotting on Alia Bhatt, just as reports of feud between him and Kareena Kapoor are rife.
Johar launched Alia on his glamorous "Student of the Year," presenting the actress as the next big thing in the industry.
And now the filmmaker is seen standing tall as he tweeted: "I felt like a proud Parent when I saw #Highway...Alia Bhatt is exceptional!!!" lauding the starlet's performance in her second release.
While the film maker's affection towards Alia Bhatt may sound normal, it can be contemplated whether the young actress has already substituted Kareena as the director's favourite heroine.
For starters, there are reports of discord between Johar and Kareena with respect to the "Shuddhi" fiasco. The director had recently stated that the cast of the film will be announced soon, signaling that Bebo might no longer be associated with the project, which until recently she was quite excited about.
On the other hand, Alia is all geared up for her third release "2 States," which incidentally has Johar as one of the producers. It is well known that the filmmaker had strongly recommended the actress for the role of the south Indian girl in the film. And indeed the first look of the film justifies the choice.
In "Koffee with Karan," the director had invited Kareena along with cousin Ranbir. The episode hovered dominantly over Ranbir and Katrina's romance and the "Heroine' actress seemed to be present only to affirm the relationship.
Meanwhile, the young starlet appeared with her "SOTY" costars Sidharth Malhotra and Varun Malhotra in one episode and was invited yet again to share the couch with contemporary Parineeti Chopra. The demand for the young actress surely seems to be rising in leaps and bounds and Johar has proved the same.
While Johar has famously referred to Kareena as 'the sibling he never had' it can also be pointed that the director has often highlighted Alia as the budding Kareena after the "Highway' actress referred to the latter as her idol.
It can also be noted that the Begum of Pataudi is not in her best shape career wise. She has delivered several flops in a row, the latest dud being Johar produced "Gori Tere Pyaar Mein." As opposed to the actress, Alia's career looks bright and bankable.
And the film maker is evidently backing up Alia's rapid growth. After all, the actress has been recorded saying openly that she trusts the filmmaker blindly and values his suggestions with respect to the choice of films.
With such developments, it can only be justified that Alia has surpassed Kareena as Karan Johar's new favourite.
