Shakespeare once said that "What is there in a name". But when it comes to Bollywood, probably it is the name that drives your faith.
Having a quirky name is one of the first criteria in Bollywood. Hence, you have stars like Dilip Kumar, Akshay Kumar, etc. changing their names for their Bollywood endeavors. And the latest to join the list is newcomer Alia aka Kiara Advani.
Kiara makes her debut with 'Fugly' in which Salman Khan has done a special song with film's co-producer Akshay Kumar.
Her real name is Alia Advani and when Salman heard her name he suggested a name change.
As the industry already has one actor called Alia Bhatt, Salman wanted the newcomer to have a distinctive identity.
Not many know, this newbie was renamed by Salman Khan.
Salman who knew Kiara's mother recommended a name change and suggested the name Kiara which was instantly liked.
"Actually, Salman sir and Ashwini (Yardi; co-producer) came up with the Kiara Advani name together. I also liked it instantly. More than anything else, I feel it has been done for the audience's convenience, so that they can differentiate between the two actors. So, from now on, I will officially be known as Kiara, and not Alia. I am happy with Salman sir's suggestion," she adds.
Ask if Alia Bhatt knows about this, she confesses that they discussed it in brief.
"I met her (Alia Bhatt) some time back and we had a good laugh about it," Kiara added.