Who knew that Alia Bhatt, who had once confessed to having a crush on Ranbir Kapoor, on Karan Johar's show Koffee With Karan, would end up in a relationship with him. Alia had said that she always had a crush on Ranbir Kapoor ever since his Saawariya (2007) days (All Photos/mid-day archives, Alia Bhatt's Instagram account, AFP)

Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor are head over heels in love with each other. There have been instances more than once where they have professed their love for each other. Be it at award shows, events or weddings, they are always seen together. Their smiles say it all

It all became official when Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt made a dazzling entry at Sonam Kapoor's wedding reception in 2018 and later Ranbir's acceptance of their relationship to one of the fashion magazines

Enough had been written and said about their relationship. Their hand-in-hand entry at Sonam Kapoor's wedding reception added fuel to the fire and tongues went wagging back then

Apparently, Ranbir Kapoor had asked out Alia Bhatt on New Year's Eve (2017) while they were on a recce for Brahmastra in Bulgaria

Upon returning from the recce, Ranbir Kapoor informed his soccer friends about this relationship. In fact, it was Alia's birthday (2018) while they were in Bulgaria, Ranbir's mother, Neetu Kapoor had flown to celebrate and wish Alia Bhatt

Prior to the dating rumours, both of them had just confessed to having a huge crush on each other. Reacting to reports of dating Ranbir, Alia Bhatt had said, "I'm actually very glad that the first time he and I are coming together is for a film like this. There was a time when I used to think - 'When will I get to work with him? What will happen? And then this happened. Also, it has been a while since Brahmastra was conceptualised - it was five years ago right after 'Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani'. That was also the time Ayan and I bonded"

Alia Bhatt further added, "It was a very big moment for me when he offered me this part. I have always felt that when Ranbir and I come together, it has to be magical and literally, it can't get more magical than this. I'm saying all this with great hope and not being pompous about it. We're working very hard towards that"

If Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt's joint appearance at Sonam Kapoor's wedding reception was not enough, Manish Malhotra's revelation at a talk show about the duo being the next couple to hook up cemented the fact that there was love brewing between the two

Manish Malhotra made this statement at one of the shows 'BFFs with Vogue', where he appeared with his BFF - Sonakshi Sinha. When host Neha Dhupia asked Manish, 'Hook-up of 2018 will be?', after which, Sonakshi reluctantly looked at Manish and without any hesitance or too much thinking, he named Alia and Ranbir

In an interview with GQ, Ranbir Kapoor spoke about Alia Bhatt and said, "It's really new right now, and I don't want to over speak. It needs time to breathe and it needs space. As an actor, as a person, Alia is – what's the right word? – flowing right now. When I see her work, when I see her act, even in life, what she gives is something that I'm aspiring to for myself. It's new for us, so let it cook a bit"

He also added that he enjoys the phase when he is "newly in love". "It always comes with a lot of excitement. It's a new person, it comes with new beats. Old tricks become new tricks again – you know, being charming and romantic, all of that. I think I'm more balanced today. I value relationships more. I can appreciate hurt and what it does to a person much more than I could a couple of years back," admitted Ranbir

An actor's personal life always remains under scrutiny and while Alia Bhatt refrained for quite some time from speaking about it, it changed after Ranbir's interview. When asked about her comment on the same, she asserted, "Ranbir makes me feel different. Yes, it's true that I was always a little wary of baring my private life out there, but with him, there's a deep sense of comfort. He's an amazing soul and there's so much that I get to learn from him every day, not just as an artiste but also as a human being. I would just say that I'm in a happy space both professionally and personally"

Well, gradually, Alia Bhatt and Ranbir Kapoor's parents too became vocal about their relationship. When Mahesh Bhatt was asked about the current scenario about his daughter's life, the director didn't shy away from the fact and had an apt reply for all. He said: "Well, of course, they're in love. You don't need to be a genius to get that! I love Ranbir… he's a great guy. What they do to their relationship is something they'll have to figure out. Whether it's heading towards that port called 'marriage' — which is an institution that needs to be questioned in the second decade of the 21st century — is something for them to figure out. I'm no one to hazard a guess when that would happen or which way the relationship is going. It's life and life needs to be lived on its own terms. Let's wait and see what tomorrow brings for us!"

Alia Bhatt's social media interactions with her beau's mum Neetu Kapoor and sister Riddhima Sahni too revealed a lot about the easy rapport she shares with the Kapoor clan

Alia Bhatt had even joined the Kapoors in their annual vacation at New York and the pictures from their party became the talk of the town. Neetu Kapoor had shared a few snaps from their New York diaries on Instagram and captioned it as, "All the heartbeats in these [sic]"

Rumours of their wedding started doing the rounds, with reports suggesting that Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt will get hitched in December a few years ago Ever since then, the biggest wedding in Bollywood was on the cards. Though the couple did not make an official announcement, it was Ranbir's sister Riddhima who confessed it in front of the paparazzi when all their fans were waiting with bated breath at the actor's Bandra residence, just ahead the wedding

Ranbir Kapoor and Alia Bhatt tied the knot on April 14, 2022, and let the world witness an intimate wedding ceremony

There were murmurs that the couple will opt for an overseas wedding venue like their contemporaries Deepika Padukone-Ranveer Singh and Anushka Sharma-Virat Kohli. But, Ranbir and Alia exchanged the vows at the actor's Bandra home, and the actress shared an emotional post which read, "Today, surrounded by our family and friends, at home … in our favourite spot - the balcony we’ve spent the last 5 years of our relationship - we got married. With so much already behind us, we can’t wait to build more memories together … memories that are full of love, laughter, comfortable silences, movie nights, silly fights, wine delights and Chinese bites.
Thank you for all the love and light during this very momentous time in our lives. It has made this moment all the more special. Love, Ranbir and Alia [sic]"

Now, Alia Bhatt, on Monday, announced the news of her pregnancy with a special post on her Instagram account. In the picture, the 'Dear Zindagi' actor can be seen in a hospital with Ranbir Kapoor, wearing a cap. She can be seen smiling and looking at the monitor, during her ultrasound, which is covered with a heart emoticon. Sharing this post, the 'Kapoor and Sons' actor captioned, "Our baby ..... Coming soon" followed by a heart and sparks emoji