Alia Bhatt says the ‘old me' is gone after birth of daughter Raha Kapoor: ‘I am like who is this new person, who am I?'

Indian Express

26-05-2025

Alia Bhatt, who marked her acting debut in 2012, made her Cannes debut after almost 12 years in the film industry. The actress was all over the news for her three exceptional look at the Cannes International Film Festival, especially when she wore a custom Gucci gown, which was designed more or less like an Indian lehenga. While the actress was in French Riviera, doing her brand ambassador duties for Gucci and L'Oreal Paris, her heart was in India where her daughter Raha Kapoor is. In a recent interview, Alia Bhatt shared how motherhood has changed her as a person. She said, 'It was like there was this person which was just gone, and then I was like, 'Who am I? Who is this new person?''
In a conversation with Brut India, Alia Bhatt shared she was not sure how motherhood changed her approach towards the kind of films or roles she takes up, but it definitely helped her create a lot more empathy within herself. She said, 'I think your heart is just wide open. There is a sensitivity which you can't put your finger on. I just think I am not the same person. So by the byproduct of me not being the same human being that I was pre being a mom. I think naturally a lot will change without me being like, 'Okay, now I am a mother'. I just naturally think differently. These are the first things that I noticed. It was like there was this person which was just gone, and then I was like, 'Who am I? Who is this new person?''
Another change the actress noticed in herself was the art of having silent conversations with new moms. 'I can have silent conversation with new moms and they will get exactly what I am saying.'' The actress, who flew down to Cannes all by herself, leaving her daughter back home said, she never feels she is alone. 'The thought and presence of her is always with me. You don't think about yourself very often. That's the biggest thing that has changed. You become outward to that one person and then to everyone else. Everyone's pain, tears, affects you as though it is your child's pain and tears. You look at the world with your child's perspective. You are just wide open.'
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In the same conversation, the actress also opened up about the globalisation of Indian cinema. She shared, 'I think Indian cinema is so large that we are a continent in ourselves. The language, dialect, culture changes every 3 kilometres. The global recognition will come when it has to come. That's not going to change what we are doing and that's not going to change what we are bringing to table in terms of culture: cinema, art, and music.'
She added that she does feel proud when Indians get global recognition, but she believes it was something long due. 'I do feel extremely proud when Payal Kapadia won at Cannes. I feel proud when the team of Homebound walked the red carpet. But, I don't feel like it is the beginning. I feel like it is about time that there is a certain awareness. I feel like it is a dam waiting to burst because we have so much to offer.'
On the work front, Alia Bhatt was last seen in Jigra. The actress will be next seen in Alpha, the first female lead film in YRF spy universe. Alia is also part of Sanjay Leela Bhansali's Love & War, in which she will be seen sharing the screen with her husband Ranbir Kapoor and her Raazi co-star Vicky Kaushal.