HAPP VALEN Y TINE’S DAY
Salma looks for inspiration P12 New Delhi, Saturday February 14, 2009, 12 Pages
DON’T MISS OUR SPECIAL SECOND HT CITY LOVE EDITION WITH: Anoushka’s column Bollywood couples apart on V-Day Love predictions for your sun sign
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The 10crore 10-crore
COUPLE THAT’S WHAT THE SAIFKAREENA PACKAGE COSTS Princy Jain
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he is hot, he is cool. With Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan charging over Rs 10 crores for appearing together in the brand endorsement space, they have turned out to be probably the most expensive Indian celebrity couple today. When Airtel paid them this whopping amount to capture their chemistry and promote its caller tunes, the ad was an instant hit. “Their combined value beats even that of Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya,” says Anirban Das Blah, CEO, Globosport India which handles Saif ’s endorsements. But what draws brands to pay such huge amounts to sign them up? “It’s the ‘hey’ factor around them,” says Vivek Kamath of Matrix, Kareena’s endorsement manager. “Be it their first public appearance together, or Saif ’s tattoo— they have ruled airtime and pages across media. Every fan
would exclaim, ‘Hey, Saif'’s got a tattoo’ or ‘Hey, they’ve done an ad together’. This is what makes them wanted.” Many feel that it helps that their relationship is real and not ‘rumoured’ or worse, a publicity stunt. “They were a hit ever since they were spotted together first, but the brands had not come forth at that time. Now that they have lasted a year-and-a-half, they are everywhere,” says Rohini, MD, Raindrop Media the firm that handles their public relations. Reports of their lovers’ tiffs have only served to keep them in the public eye. Film critic Anupama Chopra says, “They are the spiciest couple — young, stylish, successful and hip. Together, they are the most saleable entities.” Then there is the lineage — the Kapoor khandan and the Pataudi royalty. “The pedigree they share is unique,” says Kamath. princy.jain@hindustantimes.com
PREDICTIONS FOR THE ‘IT’ COUPLE astrologer Pt BhanuVedic pratapnarain Mishra reads the
future for Saif-Kareena. “Karina was born on 21.9.1980. She is a Capricorn with Sagittarius ascendant. Saif, born on 16.8.1970, is also a Capricorn but with Aries ascendant. In the coming months, they will announce their marriage plans due to favourable Jupiter’s transit between May to July 2009. But from Saif’s horoscope, it seems between March 10 and May 2, 2009, there will be some problems due to the malefic Mercury period. He should control his flirtatious nature.”
LOVE IN MAURITIUS Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan have done their first ever fashion shoot together for the inaugural issue of the Harper’s Bazaar-India. These photographs, featured exclusively in HT City before the magazine hits the stands, were shot in gorgeous Mauritius by Suresh Natarajan. In the lead pic, (far right) Kareena is wearing a beige dress by Cue and gold bangles by Aquamarine while Saif is wearing a Zegna suit.
PHOTOS: SURESH NATARAJAN/COURTESY: HARPER’S BAZAAR
Gudda has designs on Rahman Jaydeep Ghosh
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rieda Pinto has something to learn from AR Rahman. HT City told you about Frieda’s preference for international designers on the red carpet. Now the good news — AR Rahman will wear a desi designer to the Oscars, just as he did at the BAFTA awards ceremony. We have exclusive information that the music maestro, a hot contender to win an Oscar for Slumdog Millionnaire will wear a creation by Designer Rohit Bal aka Gudda at the Academy Awards on February 22. Bal has given a lean silhouette to Rahman by opting for a tapered bandhgala and slim pants in black (see sketch). To give it a red-carpet touch, Bal has made the collar and cuffs ornate with tonal beads. A proud Rohit Bal says, “I think Rahman is a complete genius and am sure he will win India many more accolades in the future.”
Oscar Design: Sketch of the outfit Rohit Bal has designed for AR Rahman
STOP PRESS
Shilpa for charity Shetty is in a philanthropic mood. Shilpa After adopting four villages in various
parts of India for a social project, she has now decided to contribute money to these villages each time a batsman from her Rajasthan IPL team hits a sixer in IPL Season 2. A source close to Shilpa confirmed, “Whenever a player of Rajasthan’s IPL (the team Raj Kundra and Shilpa Shetty have a 12 per cent stake in) hits a six, Shilpa will contribute Rs 6000 to one of these villages.”
Exodus from DFW A number of designers, including Gaurav Gupta and Varun Sardana, have decided to switch loyalties from Fashion Foundation of India’s Delhi Fashion Week to Fashion Design Council of India’s Wills Lifestyle India Fashion Week happening on the same dates in March.
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