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The rumours came up after she has been doing continuous interviews in Mumbai and Kolkata and will be going to Delhi for promotional events of Ajab Prem… In fact, she will also walk the ramp with Ranbir at Delhi’s Fashion Week to promote the film.

She is supposedly promoting it more because she is the one and only heroine in Ajab Prem…while her role in DDD is tiny and she has to share screen space with other heroines like Neha Dhupia and Sameera Reddy. She has, however, rubbished these reports and stated that she did DDD for Akshay as he stood by her in her early days in the industry.

The grapevine is abuzz with the news that all is not well between Salman and Asin. It all started after the actor completely ignored his co-star at an event which was meant for promoting their film London Dreams. He didn't even acknowledge her presence and left without speaking a word to her.

It is said that Salman had a cold on the day when the joint interview took place. In spite of his ill health, he used to come to the venue where the promotional event was supposed to take place. Assuming that the joint interview would take place then and there, Asin sat beside him. But sadly, he ignored her completely.

Has the lead pair of London Dreams turned enemies? You never know!

Bollywood youth icon Ranbir Kapoor turns showstopper along with model-turned actress Katrina Kaif at the Rohit Bahl show of Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week here but says he was nervous while sashaying the ramp with her.

"I was pretty nervous to face the stage with a veteran model like Katrina. The idea of walking the ramp with her made me go blank every time I thought of it. It was she who led me beautifully to the stage making me feel comfortable with her," says Ranbir, who was here with Katrina to promote their film Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahani set for release on November 6.

Donned in Rohit Bahl's exotic collection Ranbir emerged in cream colour sherwani-style coat with pyjamas and Katrina had an embellished similar colour tunic to team up with him. With models such as Muzzamil Ibrahim, Carol Gracias, Jessy Randhawa, Nayanika Chaterjee and Lisa Hayden, Bahl's says his show at the grand finale of the fashion week was based on 'Exotic India' signifying the country's inherent luxury.

"My collection signifies the golden bird and the golden peacock which India was known before the British era. The collection is called 'Yasas', a name which the nation was once known by for its elegance and grandeur," Bahl says.

Bahl says Bollywood stars add an 'x-factor' to fashion shows besides the models on the ramp.
Appreciating Bahl's work, Katrina says, "Rohit has always been innovative, passionate and fearless about his designs and creations which make him the cherry of the cake. His designs have always left the audience applauding."

On Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahani, she says love is ajab rather than gajab. "Love is more Ajab than Gajab. To the outsiders, it may seem ordinary but for the two in love, it's gajab or rather strange.

After scoring 124 to ambush the Aussies in the second ODI of the Hero Honda Cup seven-match series here, Dhoni, when asked about his ‘special’ innings, said: “It is not that I have scored many centuries so I will keep all of them in my memory.

“It was a good innings but it was a team effort and not just about me. When I went in the run-rate was good and even if scored at five an over we would have had a good base,” Dhoni said.

Dhoni said that even he would have opted to field first if he had won the toss. “Dew was a factor and with spinners in my attack even I would have fielded first. I am happy with the way all the bowlers performed.

“Harbhajan bowled two bad overs but after that he did get his lines right and he is slowly getting there. Ishant is bowling with rhythm and his pace has gone up,” Dhoni said.
Fine innings

Meanwhile Ricky Ponting said that the Indian batsmen were too good and that Dhoni played a fine innings. “We reasoned about the dew factor and the fact that we were missing a bowler like Brett Lee so we decided to back our batsmen and opted to chase.

“Didn’t work out the way I expected though,” Ponting said and admitted that he missed a bowler like Glenn McGrath to bowl in the death. “Today was an opportunity for your younger players to step up and perform. I am sure they will learn along the way,” Ponting said.

Meannwhile, wicket-keeper Tim Paine will fly back home after suffering a broken finger here on Wednesday. “Paine has broken a finger and he will fly out immediately. Because of the different time zones we are unable to get in touch with our selectors back home though we do have David Boon here with us.

“I am sure we will get a replacement in time for the Delhi match (October 31),” said Ponting.

Prateek Sen, one of the directors on board of Mindscapes Maestros and also a co-promoter of the company, told ET on Tuesday: “Mindscapes is managing Dhoni’s business. Yudhajit Dutta, erstwhile manager of Dhoni, will no longer be part of the company and will no longer manage the cricketer’s business.”

An official announcement would be made soon and a public notice would also be issued in this regard, Mr Sen said. Mr Dutta, also a co-promoter and a minority stake holder with Mindscapes, however, said: “I continue to hold stake in Mindscapes and I continue to be with Dhoni.”

An sms query to Dhoni on the matter remained unanswered at the time of going to press. As first reported by ET last month, serious internal differences have cropped up between stake holders Pratik Sen and Ranadeb Paul on one side, and Dhoni’s manager, Yudhajit Dutta on the other. It is alleged that Mr Dutta had set up a new celebrity management firm – Purple People - without the knowledge of his partners.

Last year, Dhoni had parted ways with his management agency of three years, Gameplan Sports, and joined Mr Dutta, a former employee of Gameplan. Dhoni’s valuation the endorsement circuit is learnt to be around Rs 3.5-5 crore per endorsement deal a year.

It has launched Three Stripes cricket goods by getting the Adidas logo on the highest run-making bat in world cricket. And wealthy is the hand that wields the bat. Sporting a logo on it fetches crores.

When Sachin Tendulkar walked out to bat against New Zealand in the Compaq Cup Tri-series in Sri Lanka last month, there was something very conspicuously different: his bat.

After years of wearing the MRF logo, the maestro’s bat now has Adidas emblazoned on it. ET has learnt that Sachin’s multi-year bat endorsement deal (including that of apparel and footwear) has been inked for close to Rs 3.5-Rs 4 crore (US $1 million) per year.

The Incurza Range bat designed specially with inputs from the master blaster has a blade whose extended and raised middle and contoured edges put depth where it’s needed: superb driving power. Just what the accomplished Sachin, who plays with the straightest bat, asked for.

“Sachin Tendulkar has been a part of the Adidas family for over 11 years and our association has now extended into a lifetime relationship,“ says Adidas India MD Andreas Gellner.

“Sachin is a living legend and we could not have chosen a more accomplished athlete to endorse the Cricket hardware range,” he added. According to Harish Krishnamachari, vice-president, World Sports Group which manages Sachin’s endorsements, the new deal is a natural extension for Sachin who has had a long standing relationship with the sports major.

”It was about taking the association with the sports brand to the next level.” The economic slowdown forced Sachin’s earlier bat sponsor, tyre maker MRF, to look for cheaper options when their contract with him expired and Adidas pounced on the opportunity. “We had an extremely fruitful association with Sachin since we signed him during thirteen of his prime playing years,” a senior MRF official told ET on condition of anonymity.

“The situation is not so good that we keep on spending on cricket and so post his contract, Sachin was free to approach other corporates,” he added . The company has now signed Gautam Gambhir and Rohit Sharma as its brand ambassadors.

According to Bunty Sajdeh, CEO of Cornerstone Sport and Entertainment that manages a total of 15 Indian cricketers including Yuvraj Singh, Suresh Raina and Rohit Sharma, sponsors always look for fresh talent that they can bank on for long term returns.

It is in this light that MRF approached Rohit Sharma for a three-year deal of Rs 3 crore, a figure that Sajdeh refused to confirm. “About fifteen years ago, they could have bagged Sachin also for a much lesser price than today,” he added.

The race to sign on players’ bats began in 2005, when Nike bought the rights to become the official kit suppliers for the Indian cricket team and outbid rivals Reebok and Adidas by coughing up Rs 200 crore. That was when rival Reebok, part of the Adidas group, began signing the bat sponsorships of leading India players like Yuvraj Singh and MS Dhoni.

Bat sponsorship rates can widely wary from player to player and brand to brand. According to industry sources, while a batsman like Virat Kohli could command anywhere between Rs 25-50 lacs per year for bat sponsorships, middle rung players like Rohit Sharma and Suresh Raina ask up to Rs 75 lakh a year.

We were expecting Aishwarya and Abhishek to make an appearance at Hrithik’s big bash for his mom on Oct 25, but they were not to be seen.

Considering Hrithik is a co-star she’s currently working with in Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s film “Guzaarish”, she could have made a short visit as she stays just two lanes away from Hrithik’s house.

As far as “Guzaarish” is concerned, we hear Ash and Hrithik will be singing a song for the film that will be recorded by Bhansali himself.

This is the first time Hrithik will sing for a movie. Aishwarya had sung “Apun Bola Tu Meri Laila” along with Shah Rukh for “Josh”.

In “Guzaarish”, Hrithik plays a paraplegic. Aishwarya plays his nurse who is married, but falls in love with Hrithik’s character.

Apparently, the duo is learning Portuguese for the film too.

American actress Jennifer Aniston covers the fashion magazine Elle South Africa for the month of October 2009. She opens the true story of My Best Friend and now she is headed back to the small screen to front a late-night show with Oprah Winfrey.

Welcome the new crop of actresses with vital stats 31-23-31 and forget the outdated and out-of-shape 36-24-36. Kareena Kapoor, the trailblazer of size-zero fad in India, admits that occasionally she does feel like putting on some extra kilos but resists the temptation because being a fashion icon she has to remain lean and sexy.

Not just Kareena, other Bolly babes like Sonam Kapoor or Deepika Padukone possess killer, slender figures.

The fabulous Lara Dutta who was already in good shape also had to work hard to acquire a bod that looks sensuous in bikini. With this recent trend, fashion designers are happy too.

Designer Shahid Aamir was quoted as saying, “Today’s girls are a dream to dress. They’ve got bodies of international fashion standards and lend themselves naturally to the latest designs. What is more, none of them put on weight through the making of a film? So a designer doesn’t have to rush back and forth with alterations.”

This sounds great as Indian fashion scenario is fast catching up with international standards. Kareena says, “My size zero is what got the attention of an international clothes manufacturer. I will be launching a clothes line soon.” The lady knows that high-fashion clothes require her thin frame.

Now what? Think about other actresses, and you will find a whole lot of them in the same category whether it’s the athletic Bipasha Basu, lithe Priyanka Chopra or pencil-thin Kangana Ranaut. All are obsessed with being slim and thin.

So, while the size-zero obsession may have abated, the truly curvy babes in B-Town are few and far between.