In Pics: Shahrukh Khan Walks The Ramp at Lakme Fashion Week

SRK: Thank you very much!

What a day! First there was Akshay Kumar and then Shah Rukh Khan who never, ever fails to entertain you. His spontaneity and charm is unmatched and ever-so-endearing. For the first time, the audience at the 2009 LFW was laughing their hearts out, shouting, screaming, clapping and yelling, “Love you, SRK” to which the superstar replied, “Thank you, darling!”

And what a star studded audience it was. From Vikram Chatwal, Preity Zinta, Hrithik Roshan and wife Susanne, Kareena Kapoor(not with Saif), Tusshar, Genelia, Sridevi with Boney and daughter, Arjun Rampal with his stunning wife Mehr, Anu Dewan, Gauri Khan (of course), Rita Dhody with Nari (we think they are more than just friends) to Anaita Shroff Adajania (who was seen chatting with Sabina and Anil Chopra) and Parmeshwar Godrej.

Shah Rukh, in a black coat and chocolate brown dhoti pants with a designer gold sling was the showstopper. He walked the ramp and then unlike any showstopper before him, started talking, because he doesn’t do anything without a mic!

“This was gooood!” he exclaimed, “For formality sake, I want to thank the Lakme Fashion Week for having me here because I am neither tall nor good looking. You are very kind people. I would also like to thank all the models who were very kind to me backstage. Thank you everyone as you made me feel that I could do this and my Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) team. Since our growing years, we have been taught to believe in the notion that models can’t act but my handsome, beautiful and very talented friend Arjun Rampal has proved them wrong. Then there is Deepika Padukone, Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Priyanka Chopra, John Abraham who has muscles everywhere, Dino Morea and even Zeenat Aman has been a model. All you models are wonderful and talented. Thank you”

“I would also like to thank my beautiful friends Kajol, Kareena, Preity Zinta, Boney and Sri and my wife Gauri. She said she would talk to me the next morning no matter how I do now. I would like to thank Preity because she has joined KKR now,” he laughed

“Choreographer Lubna Adams has done a great job and she tried to make me look good. She told me to give her my 'good looking face' and I showed her and said, 'This is it. So she said 'Well, you will have to change it by sucking in your face, pouting and looking very angry.' So I showed her like this and she said 'You look like a fish that is starved of sex.' I didn’t mind the fish part but well, I am a Khan and I have some reputation! Then Karan tried to show me and he asked me to look as if I didn’t give a beep!” he said and everyone burst into laughter.

Lastly he introduced and welcomed designer Manish Malhotra on stage. He said, “He designs for the wonderful and beautiful boys and girls on screen but he is the first designer in the history of mankind and in the world to design a sling. If you guys (LFW) give away Filmfare awards, then he should get it for making a sling. Thank you very much, guys.”

I cannot forget mentioning the collection which comprised sporty wear in black and gold. For the first time probably, a Manish Malhotra show didn’t have bright colours. Korbo Jeeto Re was the main song. Topless male models looking super hot with six pack abs opened the show and the girls were floored. They haven’t looked so appealing before. The super energetic and inimitable Alesia Raut was the first one to strut her stuff. Her energy, seen by the way her shiny long pony tail swayed from side to side is so appealing and unmatched!

The metallic black and gold KKR collection comprised dhoti pants, racer backs, ghaghras, mini dresses, short skirts, hot pants, sarees jeans, t-shirts, coats, cropped jackets and jumpsuits. Everything was paired with metallic gold sneakers. The accessories comprised glares in gold and pop colours, waist pouches, calf shields, boots, gold bags and caps.

All uber sporty, trendy, sexy and glam! Because of SRK and the sheer energy of the show made it unforgettable. A super success and by far the most entertaining show we have seen this fashion week!

KKR to go with single captain: Shah Rukh

Sourav Ganguly reached Mumbai on Tuesday to discuss captaincy issues with the Kolkata Knight Riders team owner Shah Rukh Khan who has also invited coach John Buchanan.

A lot of speculations were made as to who would be the new captain of the Indian Premier League team KKR in the second season, especially after John Buchanan came up with his theory of ‘rotating captains’.

Meanwhile, Shah Rukh Khan said on Monday that his team will go ahead in the second season of the Indian Premier League with a single captain only and Sourav Ganguly is still the main man of the team.

While walking the ramp in the Lakme Fashion Week, SRK said that Twenty20 is a new format of the game and there is always a room for innovation. However, KKR will sport only one captain in all the matches of the IPL 2 in South Africa, contrary to what coach John Buchanan had proposed a couple of days ago.

Buchanan came up with a theory of having ‘multiple captains’ in the team; one for fielding, one for batting, one for bowling and one for the toss as well. The concept created an outrage in the team’s home city, Kolkata, as it the idea seemed more of a conspiracy to dethrone Sourav Ganguly from the captaincy of the team.

Shah Rukh, however, nullified all arguments after he said that the ‘rotating captains’ theory will not be followed in South Africa and it will be only in case of some emergency that a stand-by captain kept.

He also said that it is he who’ll be taking all the decision regarding the team and he has given no free-hand to anybody regarding any issues in the team.

“Like the film Chak De India, there can be just one ‘gunda’ (boss) in the team and that is me,” said SRK.

He also added that, “There has never been anything anti-dada. We love him and all the decision will be made with his consent.”

Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan ready to butt heads again!

Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan are ready to butt heads again, fortunately with their films at the box office this time.

Salman and Shah Rukh, who have not been on talking terms since a dust up at Katrina Kaif's birthday on July 16, feature in two long delayed films being released on July 3: Salman in Boney Kapoor's Wanted Dead And Alive and Shah Rukh in Vivek Vaswani's Dulha Mil Gaya.

The two aging Khans are amidst the most revered actors of Bollywood and their box office clash has made the industry edgy, but the producers of the two films are unfazed.

"I am not afraid of my film clashing with that of Shah Rukh's. I am confident it will do well," says Boney.

"My film hits the theatres on July 3 and I don't think there will be any problem if Salman's film releases on the same day. I am not apprehensive at all. They both have their loyal fan followings," says Vivek.

The media hype apart, Shah Rukh does a cameo in Dulha Mil Gaya, which headlines Sushmita Sen and Fardeen Khan, so it isn't all that much of a clash!

There were reports that Shah Rukh was unhappy because Vivek stretched his cameo beyond a single song that Shah Rukh committed to, in order to derive maximum mileage from the star's popularity.

Asin to romance Shahrukh Khan!

This Southern belle is definitely having a ball. After working with Aamir Khan in Ghajini Salman Khan in yet-to-be-released London Dreams , Asin is set to work with Shahrukh Khan .

Grapevine is abuzz that Asin is being considered for a role opposite SRK in a Yashraj film. However, the original choice for the role was Katrina Kaif , but Shahrukh, who wants to keep safe distance from Salman and co., wasn’t too interested in working with Katrina.

So Katrina is reportedly out and Asin is in.

Saying yes to the project wasn’t easy for Asin. She had already allotted the dates to a Priyadarshan flick with none other than Akshay Kumar . And since Yashraj Films demanded dates around the same time, Asin was in a fix. She had to choose between doing a film with Akki or Yashraj.

But luck favoured Asin. Akshay asked Priyadarshan to postpone his film because of unavailability of dates. So as Priyan’s film was shifted to 2010, Asin had free dates for the Yashraj film.

So now, as things stand, Asin is most likely doing the YR Film with SRK. But interestingly, there’s a buzz that she might be replaced by Katrina in Priyan’s film with Akki.

Well, the two ladies are all square now.

When Shah Rukh became Abhinav

Shah Rukh Khan became Abhi... just for wife Gauri.

We recently learnt that when Gauri was to introduce Shah Rukh to her parents, she wasn’t so sure how they would react if they found out that he belonged to another community. So she conveniently changed Shah Rukh’s name and introduced him as Abhinav to her parents! Looking back, Gauri describes this as “silly and childish.” And as for SRK, he was ironically shooting for My Name is Khan while Gauri narrated this sweet little anecdote.

Shah Rukh beats Aamir in Poland

Shah Rukh Khan once again stole the hearts of the Polish fans with his performance in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi at the Second Bollywood Film Festival in Poland where Aamir Khan's Taare Zameen Par and Deepa Mehta's Water were also screened.

Shah Rukh, who is almost a household name in Poland, didn't leave much scope for others to replace him in the hearts of his fans at the weeklong festival entitled Experience the Taste of India.

"Shah Rukh is well-established in our psyche and we feel close to him with his performances. For us, it doesn't matter who are the other great stars in India these days - whether it is Amitabh (Bachchan) or his son Abhishek, Aamir Khan or Hrithik Roshan," said Anusia Sancewicz, a well-known media personality.

"Shah Rukh is really superb in most of his movies that have been shown in Poland in the past four years starting from Kabhi Khushi Kabhie Gham which took Poland by surprise. In a sense, this film opened the floodgates for Bollywood films," added Anusia.

All the tickets of Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi were sold much in advance though the film was screened on the last day. In Warsaw, two multiplexes screened the film to meet the heavy rush - despite that many had to face disappointment as they couldn't get a seat in any of the two halls.

"Aamir Khan's Taare Zameen Par is an excellent movie and it has been appreciated by educated people, but the craze for Shah Rukh remains unabated," observed Riki Rana, a successful businessman and son-in-law of legendary Bollwyood singer Talat Mahmood.

"The role of a commoner portrayed by Shah Rukh in Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi created more ripples in the minds of the Polish audience as Raj Kapoor had done with his roles in Aawara and Shri 420 in 1950s and 1960s in the erstwhile Soviet Union," added Riki Rana.

JJ Singh, president of the Polish Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that to promote Aamir a separate festival of his films needs to be organised.

"To promote Aamir Khan we should organise an exclusive festival of his big films such as Ghajini, Rang De Basanti and Fanaa. The climax of Fanaa was filmed on the Tatra mountains of Poland, yet the film has not generated much curiosity in this country, which is surprising," said Singh who was also the main patron of the festival along with the Epelpol Entertainment.

Deepa Mehta's Water, Abhishek Bachchan and John Abraham starrer Dostana and Yash Raj Films' Tashan were also screened along with Outsourced and Hello.

"Since Poland produces very artistic movies with great directors like Andrzej Wajda, Krzysztof Zanussi and Roman Polanski, that is why Mehta's Water was highly appreciated by the artistic Polish fans," said Gabellia Krzyzowska, an eminent Indophile.

"There is scope for films of Shabana Azmi, Nasiruddin Shah and Om Puri," she added.

Shah Rukh’s pal hits out at tabloid journalism

Shah Rukh Khan’s biographer and close friend Mushtaq Sheikh, who has co-written films like “Om Shanti Om” and “Billu”, says he hates being used by those who have personal grievances against the superstar.

Furious at a media report that he and Shah Rukh had fallen apart, Mushtaq said the superstar was “very much family”.

“I hate it when my friends are attacked. I mean how can you demean names like Farah Khan, Priyadarshan and Shah Rukh Khan all in one article without an iota of truth and get away,” Mushtaq told IANS.

“This is tabloid journalism at its worst. I hate being used by somebody who has misused his pen to vent personal grievances against Shah Rukh.”

Mushtaq, whose friendship with the superstar dates back more than a decade, recently released a book on Shah Rukh titled “Still Reading Khan”.

“Malice? Desperation? You tell me what inspires muck-rakers and I will till you where this came from,” said Mushtaq when questioned if Shah Rukh and he had indeed fallen out.

Doesn’t he feel that in today’s desperate times when movies are not releasing and news is hard to find, this is just one way for a section of media to grab attention and increase viewership?

“See, movies are releasing, and there is enough news out there, but it does depend on what kind of media you are and what you think are ‘good stories’. Matter of fact, Shah Rukh is family and will continue to be one. People can imagine, say and write anything they want.”

Shahrukh Khan turns superstitious

Like many numerology conscious stars, Shahrukh Khan perhaps too is turning superstitious.

Reports have it that he is thinking of dropping Kolkata from his IPL Team name, ‘Kolkata Knight Riders’, as the team is using only ‘Knight Riders’ in its new logo.

The superstar is believed to be acting on the suggestion of the numerology expert Sanjay B Jumaani, who is a regular advisor to many Bollywood stars regarding astrology and numerology matters. He had suggested this last year also, when Shahrukh, along with Juhi Chawla and her husband Jai Mehta, bought Kolkata team and named it ‘Kolkata Knight Riders’.

Speculations can’t be ruled out as Knight Riders’ coach John Buchanan has just revealed the possibility of replacing Sourav Ganguly as captain by New Zealand player McCullum, who is very much in form nowadays. And Jumaani is also of the view that Sourav is not so lucky for SRK. Being born on 8/7/1972, Sourav’s numerology number is 8, which symbolizes Saturn, and the number 8 doesn’t go well with Shahrukh.

For Shahrukh who has turned 44 and is under the influence of number 8, as 4+4 sums up to ‘8’, this year isn’t so good. His shoulder surgery, poor run of Billu Barber and now IPL getting shifted to South Africa –may be all these reasons have caught up with Shahrukh.

Jumaani has even suggested that Knight Riders should change their black jersey colour, as the black hue is the colour of Saturn. Now what further changes SRK will do in his team will be known with time.

Sonam is a hardcore SRK fan!

So much so that she is ready to dump her priorities for choosing scripts to share screen space with Shah Rukh. The actress has revealed that she will sign up for a film without considering anything if she gets to act opposite King Khan.

Are you listening monsieur Shah Rukh?

The ‘Dilli-6’ girl who is quite picky when it comes to nodding a yes for the right script has her rules in the right place. She is just not interested in running around trees romancing the hero nor is she interested in shedding bucketful of tears and saying ‘nahi…..’ The Bollywood babes of today are quite sure about what they want, else with so many glamorous faces to pick from it is quite tough to make a mark in the industry.

Sonam who first surfaced as the lead lady in the Sanjay Leela Bhansali film ‘Saawariya’ earned a spot in the hearts of film buffs even though the film bombed at the box office. Her second film ‘Dilli-6’, with the junior Bachchan was quite a success. Sonam is presently working in her papa’s production, where she gets to portray a very different character from the ones that she has done so far.

There are also talks doing the rounds that she might soon be seen in a film opposite Imran Khan.