“Jet lag is way more serious when you’re in your 30s,” Alia Bhatt sighs, over a Zoom call on the eve of her first appearance at the BAFTAs. The Bollywood superstar has flown in from Mumbai to present the award for Best Film Not in the English Language, but any telltale signs of long-haul travel were absent when she stepped onto the red carpet at Royal Festival Hall on Sunday night: a vision in custom Gucci that owed a debt to an icon of cinema, Marilyn Monroe.
The prospect of touching down in London in the midst of an even-more-relentlessly-damp-than-usual February is partly why Bhatt landed on a specific reference for her look: a photo of Marilyn in a shimmering silver gown, a fluffy white stole draped over her arms in true Old Hollywood style. “I was like, ‘Hey, it’s gonna be really cold and the dress is backless…’” the star says with a smile on the eve of the ceremony. Demna’s atelier dutifully conjured a shearling wrap for Bhatt to wear over her bespoke halter-neck dress, fashioned from tulle and embroidered entirely in silver sequins layered with delicate microbeads, for a “cinematic glow”.
“I’m very excited about the look,” the actor enthuses. “Because I’m a presenter I wanted to bring the glam, but also keep it really elegant, nothing overwhelming. It sits really lightly on the body.” As Gucci’s first Indian global ambassador, Bhatt – whose personal red-carpet inspirations include “Brigitte Bardot for her hair, Monica Bellucci for her vibe, Rekha for her beauty” – is also enjoying the opportunity to have some input into the creative process. She references the closing ceremony of last summer’s Cannes Film Festival, where she walked the red carpet in the first bespoke lehenga in the history of the house. “When you work on an idea together it just feels like way more than a garment, you know?”
It’s her first BAFTAs appearance, but having been a Bollywood superstar for well over a decade – following her breakout performance in 2012’s Student of the Year – Bhatt is something of a red-carpet veteran at this point. The actor has established a tradition to help her find calm in the inevitable chaos: “Afterwards I take the whole team for dinner – I like to sit with everybody and laugh and have a good time. And have a good meal! Whenever I’m happy and content, that’s always when I look my best – and that comes with the people you’re surrounded by, as opposed to feeling too pressurised about how you’re going to look.”
Also keeping Bhatt happy and content while she’s in town: early morning walks in the park to see the ducks with her daughter, reservations at MiMi Mei Fair for her favourite Chinese food, and the tres leches cake from L’Eto. And there’s one more thing she’s hoping to squeeze in before she flies home: catching a glimpse of 16-year-old Owen Cooper, one of British acting’s brightest new stars, at Sunday’s ceremony. “I’m just obsessed with Adolescence,” she says. “He’s so special. He’s someone I would just walk up to and be like, ‘Hey! I’m really looking forward to all of the work that you’ll do.’”
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