Sona Mohapatra defends Alia amid hosting criticism

Singer Sona Mohapatra has come out in support of Alia Bhatt after the actress faced criticism online for her debut as a host at an awards show. Alia took on hosting duties for the first time at the ceremony held on April 5, where she shared the stage with comedian Zakir Khan and actor-comedian Sunil Grover.

Following the event, several social media users criticised Alia’s performance, with some calling it “overacting.” Others felt she sounded “high-pitched” and “nervous,” while a section of viewers said some of her jokes failed to connect with the audience. Amid the trolling, Sona posted a video on Wednesday defending Alia and opening up about the challenges of performing live on stage. “I’m weighing in on the Alia 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,” she said.