Four Generations in One Frame: Soni Razdan Unveils the ‘OG Alpha’ of Alia Bhatt’s Family

The moving portrait captures the family’s deep maternal line in a single frame, featuring Soni Razdan, her daughters Alia and Shaheen Bhatt, her young granddaughter Raha Kapoor, and the absolute matriarch of the family, her 97-year-old mother, Gertrude Hoelzer.

The Story of the Family's ‘OG Alpha’

Writing an emotional tribute timed to the eve of her daughter’s massive film release, Razdan used the opportunity to look past fictional cinematic worlds and officially declare her elderly mother as the family's original " OG Alpha woman ." Rather than focusing on Hollywood-style action sequences, Soni opened up to her followers about the profound struggles and immense historical hardships her mother faced and ultimately overcame during the Second World War nearly a century ago:

• Fleeing the Nazi Regime: Razdan revealed that her mother was a mere six years old when her family was forced to abruptly flee Nazi Germany. Although the family was of German descent and not Jewish, Gertrude's father was a man of intense moral conviction who openly and bravely opposed Adolf Hitler's fascist regime, putting a massive target on his family's back.
  
• The Kindertransport Escape: After spending several grueling, unstable years enduring poverty and relocation in Czechoslovakia, the family managed to make a daring escape to the United Kingdom. They survived by securing passage aboard a historic Jewish Kindertransport train, the organized rescue effort that saved thousands of vulnerable children from Nazi-controlled European territories.
  
• A New Life in India: After surviving the war and building a foundation in the UK, Gertrude eventually met and married Narendra Nath Razdan, a Kashmiri Pandit, ultimately relocating to start an entirely new life chapter in India.
  

An Inspiring Call to Action

Concluding her emotional post, Razdan reminded her audience that true strength isn't just found in big-budget spy franchises, but inside ordinary homes. "Alpha women exist in many different ways. They’re all around us," she wrote. "But ultimately, I think all our mothers and grandmothers are Alpha women." The heartfelt tribute dropped at the absolute perfect time, further magnifying the public buzz around the Yash Raj Films' Spy Universe installment. Directed by Shiv Rawail, Alpha marks a historic milestone as the franchise's very first female-led spy feature, starring Alia Bhatt and Sharvari as highly skilled elite agents going head-to-head against a ruthless villain played by Bobby Deol. Yet, as audiences flock to theaters, the heartwarming portrait serves as a gentle reminder that the grandest stories of survival and power often belong to the grandmothers sitting quietly right beside us.