Sona Mohapatra Defends Alia Bhatt's Hosting, Urges Bollywood to "Learn to Laugh"

In her primary attempt at hosting, Alia was seen sharing the stage with comedian Zakir Khan and actor-comedian Sunil Grover.

Commenting on Alia's performance as a host, users criticised her performance, terming it as "overacting", "high-pitched", and "nervous." It was further noted by some that a few of the jokes did not resonate with the audience.

On Wednesday, Sona shed light on how difficult it is to perform live on the stage like this.

She was heard saying in her Instagram post, "I'm weighing in on the Alia Bhatt Screen Awards monologue, which has been all over the place and being trolled. First things first, guys, it was live. Live means no retake, no edit, no filter, no rethink. And honestly, doing such authentic work in Bollywood is a big stunt. Most desi actors won't even pick up that mic. She gave it a shot and that itself is amazing".

"It is brave. Secondly, let's talk about the audience. Performance is not only on stage when it's live. The audience and the room in front of you also have to perform. It's their duty. And the Bollywood room, they are dead on arrival. I know I've performed in these rooms many times I can give you the example of the Mijwan fashion show to illustrate. Shabana Azmi ji does it to raise funds for the Mijwan weavers. And it is full of stars, designer outfits, flashbulbs. Even when they're around for a good cause, they're like dead. Their vibes there will be, 'My outfit is better than hers', 'Which important actor, director's eye can I catch?' And oh my God, it's a tough, tough audience," Sona went on to add.

Addressing Alia's comparison with Zakir, the singer shared, "He's an ustad of stand-up. Try getting him to act or dance like Alia, you'll get your answer. Or importantly, he was facing a Bollywood audience, not their direct competition. So they would have been even kinder to him."

Expressing her faith in the 'Jigra' actress Sona, concluded, saying, "Next time, I think Alia will do even better. Or Bollywood, learn to laugh a little. It won't kill you."

- IANS