Alia Bhatt was 'unfairly targeted' by Kangana Ranaut: Randeep Hooda

MUMBAI: Actor Randeep Hooda expressed his support with Alia Bhatt, recalling his support for her back in 2019 when she faced criticism from Kangana Ranaut

In an interview with YouTuber Siddharth Kannan, Hooda, known for his recent success in the movie Swatantrya Veer Savarkar, remarked that Bhatt had been unfairly targeted by Ranaut.

Reflecting on their collaboration on Imtiaz Ali’s Highway in 2014, Hooda spoke of a ‘spiritual’ connection with Bhatt and admired her willingness to explore diverse roles. He said, “I stood up for her genuinely because she was unfairly targeted.”

Regarding Ranaut’s criticism of Bhatt’s performance in Gully Boy, Hooda condemned the act of disparaging fellow actors over perceived inadequacies. “To target your fellow actors, colleagues, or fraternity over things you feel you did not get, though I think you did get a lot from this industry, is just indecent,” he remarked.

The controversy arose in 2019 when Ranaut, currently contesting elections for the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Himachal Pradesh, labeled Bhatt’s portrayal in Zoya Akhtar’s Gully Boy as “mediocre”. The Manikarnika said: I am embarrassed. What is there to beat in ‘Gully Boy’ performance, same snappy muh phat girl. Bollywood’s idea of a fiery girl, woman empowerment and good acting, spare me this embarrassment, please. Media has taken filmy kids love too far. Stop pampering mediocre work or else bar will never be raised”

Despite the exchange, Bhatt refrained from directly responding to Ranaut’s remarks, acknowledging her own restraint compared to Ranaut’s outspokenness. . “I don’t have the ability to speak as candidly as Kangana does. I really do respect her for that. And, maybe, in a way, she is right. Sometimes we do hold back. My dad also says that there are already so many opinions in the world that it can do with one less opinion. So, I have an opinion, but I’ll keep it to myself. But, kudos to her as she genuinely speaks really well.”

In the midst of the controversy, Hooda took to social media platform X (then Twitter) to publicly support Bhatt, praising her resilience against criticism. His tweet expressed admiration for Bhatt’s ability to maintain focus on her work despite detractors’ opinions.