Born on July 31, 1992, Kiara Advani is the daughter of businessman Jagdeep Advani. Her birth name is Alia Advani. However, it was Salman Khan who asked her to change her first name, because of Alia Bhatt. Khan felt there can't be two actresses with the same name in Bollywood and so he suggested the change. But 'Kiara' is the name that the actress chose and now even her parents have started to call her Kiara. (All photos: Kiara Advani's Instagram account)
Kiara Advani has a connection to the Hindi film industry. Her mother Genevieve Jaffrey is the daughter of Hameed Jaffrey, who was the brother of veteran actor Saeed Jaffrey. Hameed Jaffrey's second wife (i.e. Kiara's step-grandmother), Bharati Patel, was the eldest daughter of the veteran actor Ashok Kumar.
Kiara Advani always wanted to make a career in the film industry. Her aunt Shaheen Jaffrey was a model and a close friend of Salman Khan. Before making her Bollywood debut, Kiara Advani did acting courses at Anupam Kher's school of acting and Roshan Taneja's institute.
Opening up about her filmy background, Kiara said, "I have never met Saeed Jaffrey and I wasn't even aware that I was related to Ashok Kumar. When I joined the film industry was when I heard a lot about him. I do hope they have some kind of genetic influence on me because of the relation I have with them."
Talking about changing her name from Alia to Kiara, the actress said, "There was already another superstar Alia before I entered and she was well established but I wanted my own identity and wanted to avoid confusion on the name, so that is how Kiara came up."
Kiara Advani made her acting debut with Fugly in 2014 and was later seen in films such as M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story and Machine. She played Sakshi Dhoni in MS Dhoni: The Untold Story, but it was her part in filmmaker Karan Johar's story in the Lust Stories anthology, which brought her wider visibility.
Though it took around four years (from Fugly to Lust Stories) almost for Kiara Advani to attain that nationwide popularity, the actress believes in being patient and not letting the pressure of doing films constantly affect you. "It's all about getting the right opportunities and hard work in the film industry. You need to have patience as things take time. Also, you should have confidence in your talent as it will help you eventually," said Kiara Advani.
Karan Johar's short story in Lust Stories saw Kiara Advani playing a newly-wed who finds herself sexually dissatisfied by her husband, played by Vicky Kaushal. The actress grabbed eyeballs for the scene in the anthology that sees her reaching the climax with the help of a vibrator.
When asked if she had second thoughts about the scene in Lust Stories she told mid-day in an interview, "Does it look like I had any inhibitions? Once in the moment, I just went for it! I trusted Karan completely. I think we made an iconic scene in that. But, beneath the humour is a serious subject that needs to be addressed."
After Lust Stories, Kiara Advani made a special appearance in Kalank. She sizzled in the song 'First Class' and shook a leg with Varun Dhawan in the peppy track.
Kiara Advani also tried her hand in the south film industry. She made her Telugu debut in 2018 with Mahesh Babu's Bharat Ane Nenu, which went on to become a blockbuster at the Box Office. She later starred in Vinaya Vidheya Rama (2019) opposite Ram Charan.
Pictured: Kiara Advani and Isha Ambani's childhood picture. The duo is childhood friends.
Kiara Advani says as an actor she does not limit herself to a medium or language as she hopes to establish herself as a Pan-India artiste.
2019 was a great year for Kiara Advani as she attained success with Kabir Singh and Good Newwz. "This is what I was craving for as an actor since I made my debut in 2014. Finally, I am getting my due. But I still have a very long way to go. I am lucky the graph is in the upward direction. I have to make sure to maintain this, which is tough," said Kiara, in an interview with mid-day.
Kiara Advani's Netflix film Guilty to earned her a lot of praises for her role. Next in the pipeline are Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2 and Jug Jugg Jeeyo opposite Kartik Aaryan and Varun Dhawan respectively.
In picture: Kiara Advani with Isha Ambani, her childhood friend.
"My characters in 'Kabir Singh', 'Good Newwz' and 'Guilty' have all been very different from the other. Let's hope people like me in my other films as much as they loved me in those roles as well," she said.
We hope that too, Kiara! As the actress is all set to sizzle on-screen with the upcoming film Bhool Bhulaiyaa 2, co-starring Kartik Aaryan, we wish her good luck!
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