Popular Indian director and filmmaker Imtiaz Ali lately revealed that Bollywood star Alia Bhatt was not the first choice for one of his hit movies ‘Highway’ (which played great in Alia’s career), instead it was another top star Aishwarya Rai in his mind for the film as he was looking forward for a mature actress.

Imtiaz recently appeared on Mid-Day's Sit With Hitlist series and recalled when he was casting for Highway. The filmmaker shared that he wanted to cast a more mature woman in the film. He mentioned Aishwarya Rai and said she could have been a great choice without makeup. However, he never approached her. Imtiaz was quoted as saying:  "I always wanted to cast a slightly elder, like a woman of at least 30. I didn't want to cast a more mature woman who's had experiences of the type that she was going to talk about in the film. Aishwarya Rai without any makeup would be a great choice."

In the same conversation, Imtiaz shared that he went to the screening of Luv Shuv Tey Chicken Khurana in 2012 while preparing for Highway. At the screening, he met Alia Bhatt, who was relatively young then. Although her debut film, Student Of The Year, was released a month before, he hadn't seen it. So, he didn't know about Alia's acting potential. Imtiaz further added that when he met Alia, he realised she had an emotional depth that he was looking for in the lead actress for Highway. As a result, he decided to give her a chance. In his words: "I didn't want a young person in the film, but after meeting her, I realised that what I was looking for was the emotional depth, which this little girl has."

In a previous conversation with Mukesh Chhabra on Mashable India, Imtiaz shared that even his film unit was not convinced whether Alia could play the part. However, he gave Alia the script for a film and some time to read it. Later, he asked her to narrate the story in her way to the team. Ultimately, everyone was convinced she was the right person for the role. He said:  "Alia was a very unexpected actor for Highway and the unit was not convinced about how she would do this role. So, to convince them I made her tell the story in her way. By the end, everyone was like nobody else could do this role but Alia."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_GIRe8Gs3M4

It is important to note that Imtiaz Ali's Highway is about a young bride-to-be who gets kidnapped. She is initially scared but later finds a new meaning to life after being held captive. Alia played the role of that 'bride-to-be' in an impressive manner. It was her second film and was a breakthrough performance in her career. It was a critical and commercial success, and Alia's performance impressed everyone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8HDTS80dlr4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHLnZMjJ8bY

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAxCcecVaig