Karan Johar thanks Imtiaz Ali for moulding Alia Bhatt 'into the actor she finally became'

Karan Johar with Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt

Alia Bhatt made her Bollywood debut 10 years ago with the film Student of the Year, directed by Karan Johar. Although the film became a big success, Alia and the two other newcomers, Sidharth Malhotra and Varun Dhawan, left much room for improvement in their performances. However, Alia impressed everyone and showed immense potential as an actress with her very second film, Highway, directed by Imtiaz Ali.

In an appreciation note posted today, Karan Johar thanked Imtiaz Ali for moulding Alia into the artist she is today. Johar also praised Alia's appearance and performance as Rani in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, saying he can take no credit for that either.

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Karan posted, "Before the years wraps I felt like sharing this with all of you… I hadn't directed Alia since 2012 and the day she walked onto set In her @manishmalhotra05 plus @mickeycontractor plus #flavian look I knew we had the Rani I had always envisaged …. What followed was an actor I wasn't prepared for…. And I can take zero credit … will always be grateful to Imtiaz ali for taking her on a highway of life and moulding her into the actor she finally became …. SOTY is technically her launch but her true launch as an artist will always be highway…"

He continued, "Alia is such a pride and pleasure on a film set…. She had a ticking kind of constantly questioning Rani and trying her best to make her strong and yet identifiable and likeable … again for that I take no credit that is her evolution as an artist! Was blessed to have her as Rani Chatterjee and I do hope her character keeps resonating …. Love you @aliaabhatt."

Karan also thanked Ranveer Singh, who has won hearts with his role of Rocky Randhawa in Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani. He wrote, "Ranveer Singh! The irreplaceable force of nature…. The actor prepares and never comes in your way … he never ever let me know the extent he was prepping to play Rocky Randhawa… he planned his prep with my team, spent months in Delhi, hung out in west Delhi, met the West Delhi gram boys, worked on his dialect like an obsessed artist ! Kept improvising dialogues till it reached perfection for him … I saw this as a bystander, a filmmaker in awe and was blown away by his process ( which initially can be daunting but when you see the dailies you're sold and he's won your heart)"

He added, "I feel like the perception of RS is so different from his labour and passion as a true artist! You see designer clothes on magazine covers I see a hungry actor only seeking love and validation from his audiences! ROCKY RANDHWA and RANVEER were irreplaceable! (styled impeccably by @ekalakhani )No one could have done what he did! Absolutely No one and I feel grateful for him and Alia ! The three of us also built a friendship for the ages as a trio! This is not just an appreciation post as a filmmaker but a post of gratitude to the universe that bought these blessed artists to play my leads! Karan Johar this side … signing off! @aliaabhatt @ranveersingh #rockyaurranikiipremkahaani"

Ranveer Singh reacted to the post in typical Rocky Randhawa style, commenting, "Sooooo cyuuuuuuuud yaaaar." Designer Manish Malhotra and many other friends of Johar dropped hearts in the comments.