Actor Alia Bhatt has expressed support for students protesting at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar over the alleged NEET-UG 2026 paper leak, saying their courage offers hope while urging the country to listen to the voices shaping its future, reports India Today.
In an emotional Instagram post shared on Thursday, Bhatt backed the students’ demand for education reforms and accountability, describing their determination as both inspiring and humbling.
“The last few days have broken my heart and then mended it, again and again, with hope. Behind every student standing their ground is a dream, a family’s hope, a journey of countless sacrifices.
They represent not just themselves but everyone who has supported them, while creating a better path for those who will come after them,” she wrote.
The actor said the movement raises an important question for the country.
“Their courage humbles me. Their resolve is a mirror held up to all of us, asking whether we are truly listening to the very people who will inherit and shape this country’s tomorrow,” Bhatt added.
She concludes her note with, “For the students. By the students. The future is theirs. Jai Hind.”
Bhatt joins a growing number of film personalities who have voiced support for the student-led movement.
Salman Khan recently called the alleged NEET paper leak “a very serious issue,” saying he was saddened that a peaceful protest had turned violent and urging authorities to keep politics away from the movement.
Actors Naseeruddin Shah, Ratna Pathak Shah, Aditi Rao Hydari, Huma Qureshi, Shabana Azmi, Prakash Raj, Chinmayi Sripada, R Madhavan, Rajkummar Rao and Anupam Kher have also expressed solidarity with the students or called for dialogue and reforms.
The CJP-led agitation began after the alleged leak of the NEET-UG 2026 question paper and has since evolved into a nationwide movement demanding greater transparency in the examination system, stricter safeguards against paper leaks, broader education reforms and the resignation of Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
The protests culminated in the Chalo Sansad march on 20 July, when thousands of students gathered at Jantar Mantar before clashes broke out after police stopped the procession towards Parliament.
