A surprising number of star kids have taken a detour — into politics, publishing, fashion, or activism — sometimes deliberately, to step out from under a more famous shadow. Here are six Bollywood families where the siblings ended up in completely different lines of work.
Abhishek Bachchan’s sister, Shweta Bachchan Nanda stayed off-screen entirely, co-founded the fashion label MxS with designer Monisha Jaising, and later became a published author, writing the novel Paradise Towers.
Arjun, Janhvi, and Khushi Kapoor have all built acting careers, keeping the Kapoor name firmly on movie posters. Their sister Anshula Kapoor founded Fankind, a fundraising platform that connects celebrities with fans to support charitable causes, and has become an outspoken voice on body positivity and mental health.
Sanjay Dutt’s sister Priya Dutt picked politics instead, following their father Sunil Dutt — himself an actor-turned-politician — into public office. She was elected to the Lok Sabha from Mumbai constituencies in 2005 and 2009, representing the Indian National Congress, before stepping back from active politics after 2014.
Riteish Deshmukh built a long career as an actor and filmmaker in both Hindi and Marathi cinema. His brother Amit Deshmukh has served multiple terms as an MLA from Latur City, and Dhiraj Deshmukh was elected MLA from Latur Rural before narrowly losing his seat in 2024.
Alia Bhatt’s elder sister Shaheen Bhatt worked behind the camera as a screenwriter before finding a bigger calling as an author. Her 2018 memoir, I’ve Never Been (Un)Happier, chronicled her lifelong experience with depression and turned her into one of India's more prominent voices on mental health.
Salman Khan, Arbaaz Khan, and Sohail Khan’s sister Alvira Khan Agnihotri built her career off-screen instead, working as a film producer and costume/fashion designer. She's produced hits like Bodyguard and stayed largely out of the tabloid glare her brothers can't avoid.