Imtiaz Ali reveals Mahesh Bhatt convinced Alia Bhatt to sign Highway; admits he hadn’t seen SOTY: ‘She was a bit scared’

Imtiaz Ali also shared how casting choices sometimes evolve unexpectedly. While writing Highway, he had envisioned a more mature actor for the lead role but ultimately chose a relatively new 18-year-old Alia Bhatt. “There is no arithmetic in our work; it’s an instinctive process. I thought I would cast a 30-year-old, mature actor for Highway—someone who had seen the world and would rebel. But when I met Alia, I thought, ‘This is the girl.’ Alia was just 18 at that time, but she had the emotional depth the character needed. She hadn’t done much work then, and I hadn’t even seen her film Student of the Year, but the way she spoke—it was very charming. She had a quality about her that was fantastic for this part.”

Interestingly, it wasn’t just Imtiaz who played a role in Alia’s casting—it also took Mahesh Bhatt’s persuasion for her to sign Highway. “I used to go to her house, and Bhatt sahab was trying to convince her to do it. She was a bit scared because every scene had her in it. She doubted whether she would be able to do it since it wasn’t an easy film to take on,” Imtiaz revealed.

Both Jab We Met and Highway turned out to be game-changers for Kareena Kapoor and Alia Bhatt’s careers, respectively. While Alia gained critical acclaim early in her journey, Jab We Met fast-tracked Kareena’s career.