A look at star kids who have chosen to make it on their own steam

Bollywood is no stranger to nepotism. Favouring one's kids and offering them a launchpad is perhaps a traditional practice in the industry now.

The good news then is the fact that not all star kids are seeking the help of their immediate family. Many of them are now keen to find their own place under the sun and they have no qualms about stepping outside the home turf.

HitList takes a look at some names who are shirking the relative security of the home banner, much like Ranbir Kapoor and Sonam Kapoor did when they were launched by Sanjay Leela Bhansali in his film Saawariya.

Alia Bhatt
Mahesh Bhatt's daughter could have been easily launched under the Bhatt banner, Vishesh Films. But the spunky youngster chose to make her debut in Karan Johar's film, Student of The Year. Her next film with Imtiaz Ali Highway is now ready for release. She is currently shooting for the Sajid Nadiadwala and Karan Johar film, 2 States, in which she stars opposite Arjun Kapoor.

Tiger Shroff

Jackie Shroff's son will make his debut in a film titled Heropanti that is being produced by Sajid Nadiadwala and directed by Sabbir Khan. There were initial reports that Tiger would be launched by Subhash Ghai in the remake of Hero but that didn't happen. He was then signed by Nadiadwala. Also starring model-turned-actress Kriti Sanon, the film is slated for a May release this year.

Sooraj Panscholi

Aditya Panscholi's son will be launched by Salman Khan in the remake of the 1983 musical blockbuster, Hero. Sooraj has been preparing himself for the role for nearly a year now. To be directed by Nikhil Advani, the film is yet to go on the floors. Besides, Advani is likely to make some changes in the film's script in a bid to adapt it to the present day scenario.

Athiya Shetty

Suniel Shetty's daughter is also being launched by Salman Khan in the remake of Hero. It seems that Athiya showed an inclination to act right from an early age and even went on to do a course at a filmmaking school in New York. Like Sooraj, she too has been participating in workshops and undergoing rigorous training for her debut film.

Akshara Haasan

R Balki will launch her in his next film that stars Amitabh Bachchan and Dhanush. Balki spotted her outside Pixion studio when she was working on an ad film. Impressed by her work, he is said to have walked up to her and offered her a role. The film is yet to go on the floor.

Varun Dhawan

Director David Dhawan's son started out as an assistant director with Karan Johar on his film, My Name is Khan. He was then launched by Johar in his film, Student of the Year. He is now being directed by his father in Main Tera Hero that also stars Illeana D'Cruz and Nargis Fakhri.

Aditya Roy Kapur

Siddharth Roy Kapur's youngest brother was launched by Vishesh Films in Aashiqui 2. It is probably among the few films starring rank newcomers to have crossed the Rs 100 crore mark at the box office. Aditya is currently shooting for Daawat-e-Ishq, to be directed by Habib Faisal. He has also replaced Sushant Singh Rajput in Fitoor that is being directed by Abhishek Kapoor and produced by Kapur's brother's company, Disney UTV.

Arjun Kapoor

Boney Kapoor's son was launched by Yashraj Films in Ishaqzaade. The actor made his mark with his first film and his next film will be the multi-starrer, Gunday. Recently, he signed Tevar, a film produced by uncle Sanjay Kapoor.

Junaid Khan

Aaamir Khan's 17-year-old son is assisting director Rajkumar Hirani on his film, P.K. Often seen on the sets of his father's films, Junaid seems to have grasped the knowledge of cinematic detailing which, in turn, impressed Hirani.

Armaan Jain

As Raj Kapoor's grandson (his parents are Reema Kapoor and Manoj Jain), Armaan is being launched by Saif Ali Khan's production company. The film will be directed by Imtiaz Ali's brother, Arif Ali and will also star south Indian actress, Diksha Seth. Interestingly, Armaan was first noticed by Salman Khan at Ridhima Kapoor's wedding, where Khan is believed to have told people that he saw moviestar potential in Armaan.

Krishna Shroff
Jackie Shroff's daughter wants to take up direction instead of acting. In pursuit of her dreams, she has been meeting filmmakers such as Imtiaz Ali and Aamir Khan.

Harshvardhan Kapoor

Harshvardhan has been assisting Anurag Kashyap on the sets of his film, Bombay Velvet, but Anil Kapoor's 21-year-old son will make his acting debut with Raykesh Omprakash Mehra's film, Mirza Sahiba. It seems that the acting aspirant had even auditioned for Life of Pi.