Filmmaker Karan Johar penned a heartwarming year-ender note for his Rocky Aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani stars Alia Bhatt and Ranveer Singh on Tuesday, lauding the duo for the way they have evolved as actors over the years.

Posting a picture with Alia and Ranveer on Instagram, Karan wrote a long note, tracing Alia’s evolution from her debut film Student of the Year and appreciating Ranveer for playing Rocky so well.

“I hadn’t directed Alia since 2012 and the day she walked onto set In her @manishmalhotra05 plus @mickeycontractor plus #flavian look I knew we had the Rani I had always envisaged,” the 51-year-old filmmaker wrote.

Karan thanked Highway director Imtiaz Ali for moulding Alia into the actress she is today. “And I can take zero credit … will always be grateful to Imtiaz Ali for taking her on a highway of life and moulding her into the actor she finally became,” he wrote, adding how he believes that Imtiaz’s 2014 film Highway was Alia’s actual launch as an actress even though she debuted with Student of the Year.

Referring to her as a “pride and pleasure on a film set”, Karan mentioned that the way Alia constantly questioned her on-screen character, Rani, brought about her “evolution” as an artiste. “She had a ticking mind constantly questioning Rani and trying her best to make her strong and yet identifiable and likeable…again for that I take no credit that is her evolution as an artist.”

He concluded his appreciation post by adding, “Was blessed to have her as Rani Chatterjee and I do hope her character keeps resonating …. Love you @aliaabhatt.”

Next, Karan went on to laud Ranveer, calling him the “irreplaceable force of nature” who prepped extensively for playing Rocky Randhawa in the film. “He never ever let me know the extent he was prepping to play Rocky Randhawa… he planned his prep with my team, spent months in Delhi, hung out in west Delhi, met the West Delhi gram boys, worked on his dialect like an obsessed artist,” Karan wrote, adding how the actor kept improvising with his dialogues till they reached perfection.

Ending his appreciation for Ranveer, Karan wrote about how he believes that the way people perceive the actor is in contrast with his “labour and passion as a true artist”. “You see designer clothes on magazine covers. I see a hungry actor only seeking love and validation from his audiences! ROCKY RANDHWA and RANVEER were irreplaceable,” Karan wrote.

Soon after Karan shared the post, Alia commented with red heart emojis in the comment section, while Ranveer wrote, “Sooooo cyuuuuuuuud yaaaar 🥹♥️♥️.”

Rocky aur Rani Kii Prem Kahaani, which released on July 28, revolves around the love story between flamboyant Punjabi guy Rocky and a Bengali journalist, Rani. The film also features Tota Roy Chowdhury, Churni Ganguly and Jaya Bachchan.