Bollywood's It Girl

An It Girl has traditionally been more of an idea of the person than the person themselves. The It Girl is the Manic Pixie Dream Girl of aspirational figures, if that makes sense. If it doesn't, just think of someone you'd like to be more like, and make them cooler.

Historically - and this isn't too historic - It Girls have included women like Chloe Sevigny or Caroline Bessette-Kennedy. Famous for their style, and appearances in music videos for the former, or for being engaged to John F. Kennedy Jr. for the latter.

More recently, one could label someone like Taylor Swift as an It Girl. But that's where the definition starts evolving. Taylor Swift's adoring public doesn't just want to steal her style, or envy her life, they feel they know her life and she theirs. The style is just incidental.

The It Girl is no longer just capturing the mood of the moment, she is creating her own.

If in the years past we could only define having 'it' as some indescribable, unquantifiable quality, in 2024 we are slightly better positioned to actually quantify it. Bhatt's celebrity brand value is reportedly $ 101.1 million, according to a study by Kroll. She is sandwiched at number five on the list, comfortably between actor Akshay Kumar and cricketer MS Dhoni, the only woman in the top 10 celebs with high personal brand worth.

Whenever fashion, music, or even a concept migrates to a more desi neck of the woods though, parameters expand. Brown girls don't just have to break glass ceilings, after all. They have to be ready to break doors down before they can even reach the ceiling. The women in our sights are different too. Almost invariably actors on big and small screens, desi It Girls have to check quite a few boxes before they ping our 'It' radars.

For the longest time, Kareena Kapoor reigned as the woman in every way. Iconic roles with memorable catchphrases, those very specific Kapoor good looks, that unapologetic vibe: Bebo was #goals. Then she found a literal prince and married him, had some adorable babies, and kept doing great work. She had it all.

Interestingly, Bollywood's new It Girl, the one who has it all and doesn't show any signs of stopping is also a Kapoor, by marriage. Alia Bhatt showed up in our worlds about a decade back, and she has relentlessly pursued acting, branding, visibility and personal goals.

Bhatt made her debut as a lead actor in 2012's Student Of The Year, and has done a mix of commercially and critically acclaimed films since. She won tons of praise for her turn in Darlings and Gangubai Kathiawadi, went on to do the Telegu RRR in 2022, and made her Hollywood debut in 2023 with Heart Of Stone, which released just a couple of weeks after Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani.

If in the years past we could only define having 'it' as some indescribable, unquantifiable quality, in 2024 we are slightly better positioned to actually quantify it. Bhatt's celebrity brand value stood reportedly at $ 101.1 million in 2023, according to a study by Kroll. She is sandwiched at number five on the list, comfortably between actor Akshay Kumar and cricketer MS Dhoni, the only woman in the top 10 celebs with high personal brand worth.

To put it in slightly cynical terms, while the '60s or '70s It Girl may just have been a really cool girl about town who just happened to catch the eye and imagination of all the right people, the vibe is more curated now. Kareena Kapoor was able to achieve the status in a slightly more organic manner in a largely non-digital time, albeit peppered with the occasional endorsement for 'size zero' laptops whilst being a size 0 herself. Alia Bhatt has had her work cut out for her in terms of developing a public-facing persona that has mass likeability across demographics while being relatable.

The actor has done the serious film work, started and invested in the right businesses, become married and embraced motherhood in the public eye. Opinions on her really run the gamut, but if she is considered among the most bankable stars of her time, she must be doing something right.

Data - unless fumbled - doesn't really lie, and Bhatt's volume of high quality endorsements speak for themselves. Whether you like her work or not, or consider her image completely engineered or not, she clearly has grappled with that ineffable quality that is so coveted by opinionmakers and audiences, found ways to make it her own, and capitalized on it.