BAFTA 2026: Alia Bhatt greets crowd with 'Namaskar' as she presents award, video goes viral; WATCH

Alia Bhatt left audiences delighted at the BAFTA Film Awards 2026 after she greeted the crowd with a warm “Namaskar” and spoke in Hindi while presenting the award for Best Film Not in the English Language. The actor’s heartfelt gesture celebrating linguistic diversity quickly went viral, earning widespread praise from fans and industry peers alike.

Alia Bhatt’s Hindi moment at BAFTA 2026

While presenting the award, Alia chose to begin her speech in Hindi, underscoring the global power of cinema beyond language barriers. Her greeting, “Namaskar”, immediately drew applause, setting the tone for a moment that many described as deeply moving and culturally significant.

She said, “Namaskar! Agla award ek aisi film ke liye hai, jo angrezi mein nahi hai. Don’t reach for the subtitles just yet. I was only saying in Hindi that the next award is for a film not in the English language. Because while film speaks in countless voices, what we always celebrate is the language of cinema. And that one we all speak fluently.” Here is the video:

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Alia bhatt presenting the award to film not in english language at Bafta's - the winners are sentimental value pic.twitter.com/XBq6bLsCMI

— 🔮 (@lordofkong) February 22, 2026

Clips of her speech rapidly circulated on social media, with fans lauding the actor for proudly representing Indian cinema on one of the world’s biggest film stages. Social media platforms were flooded with praise for Alia’s gesture. Many users said her Hindi greeting made them feel “seen” on an international platform, while others hailed it as a proud moment for Indian cinema. Several fan pages described the moment as “graceful,” “authentic,” and “beautifully heartfelt.”

What Alia said on the red carpet

Speaking to international media on the BAFTA 2026 red carpet, Alia Bhatt opened up about her love for acting, motherhood, and the universal language of cinema.

“I feel most myself in front of the camera. I love my job so deeply. But I have to say that my true source of inspiration and magic right now is my daughter. She’s three now and watching her dancing to my songs sometimes, I’m like ‘that is life’.”

ALIA BHATT’S BAFTA RED CARPET INTERVIEW pic.twitter.com/DFvMRakDyk

— hourly Alia (@AliaHourly) February 22, 2026

Reflecting on cinema’s emotional power, she added, “One of the things I love about cinema is that you don’t have to have one language to truly enjoy cinema. You don’t have to understand the language because what truly drives it is just emotion and that feeling that sort of pulses out at you through the big screen… tonight is all about the love of the movies.”

Her comments resonated strongly online, especially among fans who appreciated her candid reflections on motherhood and storytelling.

Alia wore a dazzling silver Gucci gown for the event.