MPW 2023: From National Award to becoming Gucci’s brand ambassador, Alia Bhatt is truly the queen of good times

It has truly been Alia Bhatt’s year. From being announced as Gucci’s first global brand ambassador from India in May, immediately after her debut at the Met Gala in New York to selling off a majority stake in her business to Reliance Retail, to being awarded the National Award for Best Actress for her film Gangubai Kathiawadi, she has been in the news for all the right reasons. This has also led her to be a part of Business Today’s The Most Powerful Women in Business list for 2023.

In September, Reliance Retail Ventures Ltd (RRVL) acquired a 51 per cent stake in Ed-a-Mamma, a children’s- and maternity wear brand founded by Bhatt in 2020 that started out as an online brand before expanding its presence offline in department stores. The partnership will see the brand grow into new categories such as personal care and baby furniture, children’s story books and an animated series, RRVL said in a statement while announcing the investment. At the time, Bhatt had said that she and Isha Ambani had found common ground as two new mothers discussing what mothers want. Reliance, she felt, would bring strength to everything from supply chain to retail and marketing.

Bhatt’s list of brand endorsements has also gone up significantly. According to Kroll’s Celebrity Brand Valuation Study 2022, Bhatt’s endorsements are estimated at $102.9 million, ranking her fourth with only Ranveer Singh, Virat Kohli and Akshay Kumar ahead of her. It’s a considerable jump from 2021 when her endorsements were valued at $68.1 million. Her endorsement portfolio includes around 30 brands, many of them international.