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Love '98

Shilpa Shetty. Click for bigger pic!

Love is in the air. Sounds almost like a disease doesn't it, considering how often our stars catch it...

Almost the freshest news is that Akshay Kumar and Shilpa Shetty have got engaged.

The duo were seen mooning over each other at the southern Filmfare awards function recently.

Shilpa's mother too was present, but then do mothers matter anymore in Bollywood?

For Akshay, this is the umpteenth love story off screen. There was Pooja Batra and Raveena Tandon from the industry and Nipunika outside it (the latter's dad put his foot down when he realised his daughter may have attached herself to what was purportedly a married man). And Akki's taekwondo didn't help any.

Not one to be worried, Akki returned to the arms of the industry and S Shetty. While momma looked approvingly on.

Loo fever

Tabu Click for bigger pic!

Tabu, we have heard, is known for her equanimity, commitment, seriousness and all the remaining polysyllabic adulatory terms there are in the thesaurus. But sometimes all it takes to have her flying off the handle is a handle -- the kind you find attached to the cistern in a loo.

It was a peaceable shoot at V Shantaram's Raj Kamal studios in central Bombay for Govind Nihalani's Takshak. And suddenly among the murmur of professional tones arose a loud, strident voice of complaint. It was Tabu.

She berated the spot boys, reproached the hangers on and condemned the management. How could a flush not work, she demanded in a rage, getting all flushed in the bargain.

Kiran Shantaram, the legend's son, came hurrying over to find out what was going on. And once he knew the problem, he called the local plumber who fixed it in minutes. Tabu was so happy that she hugged Kiran right there...

Uncle Jackie

Jackie Shroff. Click for bigger pic!

Whatever else you say about Jackie Shroff, you've gotta admit that 15 years in the business hasn't turned his nose up even a notch.

The other day, he was mobbed by this bunch of kids all clamouring for his autograph. Jackie obliged them all, taking pains to write down their names and those names of their multitudinous brothers and sisters -- in every autograph he signed. And no, there were no dishy moms in the vicinity.

But we noticed something else -- the man was also taking down e-mail addresses of those kids who had Net connections.

Apparently, the man chats up kids on the Web. You wouldn't have thought it, would you?

Oodles of promise

Amitabh Nanda.Click for bigger pic!

It isn't often that you have a scribe make it big as a hero. But Amitabh Nanda, features editor at Elle magazine and once a copywriter at a New York ad agency, should have a great future if he does half as well as he already has.

Amitabh is apparently most impressive in his debut film, Love You Hamesha. Along with him are Akshaye Khanna, Sonali Bendre and debutante Riya Sen, Moon Moon's daughter.

And if Riya too lives up to her promise, this film -- produced by Ashok Amritraj and directed by Kailash Surendranath -- is gonna be one to see. That is, if some other problems facing the film are resolved soon.

Mamta recovers from Tinnuitis

Mamta Kulkarni. Click for bigger pic!

If you have those Red and White bravery awards to hand out, do keep aside one for the cells in Mamta Kulkarni's head. They have such difficulty lugging information across that it takes months for the girl to get the idea.

Or so it seems considering, among other things, how long she took to part ways with fight master Tinnu Verma.

Tinnu's wife allegedly had a long personal talk with Mamta to finally get her off her man's case. The Bollywood bimbette eventually caught on and decided to drop Verma like a hot solanum tuberosum. Sorry for showing off -- potato.

But before Mamta got away she had to endure some indecent calls, having her secretary kidnapped and released. She finally had to seek cop cover.

Of course, we've also heard of her getting married to Tinnu.

Sitting pretty

Mithun Chakraborty. Click for bigger pic!

This is one man who missed being number one in the industry, but has no regrets. For all those who aspired to that title, now consider Mithun Chakraborty with envy.

Mithun shoots for about 10, 12 films a year, more than most other actors, and is making pots of moolah in the smaller centres. If he gets less dosh per film than most of Bollywood's stars, he earns far more than them overall. And, if you can believe those ads, every paisa of it has been taxed white.

His Hotel Monarch at Ooty is doing so well -- that's where filmi crowds hang around for professional and personal reasons -- that Mithun is setting up another hotel.

He has made so much profit that he has packed air conditioners and coolers into his dogs's kennels.

Any problems?

Yup, one. Mithun, like every Bengali worth his salt, was backing Zidane for the golden boot award in the World Cup. But the French striker himself got the boot for two matches, queering his own pitch.

-- V S Srinivasan