By Sharanya Gopinathan
Our new gossip column, Finger Fries.
Unfollow you home
As we all know, the climax of the celebrity breakup is the Instagram Unfollow. Rihanna unfollowed JLo when it was rumoured she was sleeping with Drake (she was not), Bella Hadid unfollowed Selena Gomez as soon as Gomez’s relationship with Hadid’s ex, The Weeknd (yes) became public. Now, it seems the Alia-Sidharth-Jacqueline crisis has reached its nadir, because Jacqueline Fernandez just turned the tables and unfollowed Alia Bhatt on Instagram after it was rumoured Fernandez and Malhotra really hit it off on the sets of A Gentleman. We have heard further rumours that Jacqueline has now not only stolen Alia’s place in Sid’s heart, but also Alia’s parking spot. Say it isn’t so, sister. Now, that second bit is just wrong. Even Joni Mitchell would tell you so.
Out of sight, out of mind
This week, both mystic Radhe Maa and known eugenicist Saif Ali Khan began their own web-series adventures: Radhe Ma announced that she will soon be seen in a series called No Casting No Couch Only Ouch (the kind of title that makes us writhe in nomenclature jealousy), and on Wednesday, Saif Ali Khan embarked on the last lap of the home stretch by beginning shooting for Sacred Games (a web series based on Vikram Chandra’s superb book) in which he plays cop Sartaj Singh. For no good reason this reminded us of our favourite part of the “Actor’s Life” video Rasika Dugal recently did. That was the video where she mimicked all kinds of folks you find on movie sets. Our favourite bit? ‘Out-of-work’ Dugal sitting at Prithvi Cafe and telling her friend she wants to go into web series now coz “digital is actually where it’s at these days”. Now what could it be that’s similar?
Aunty-ji, aunty-ji get up and dance / shut up and bounce
Shilpa Shetty has revealed her deep-seated belief that shows are named after their hosts. She’s all set to debut as a producer on India’s first live game show, Aunty Boli Lagao Boli (what is HAPPENING guys). Eternally pert Shetty has said that Archana Puran Singh will be hosting the show, not Shetty herself, because “the show needed an aunty to justify the title and I don’t look like an aunty yet!” She added that they cast Archana because she “fit the bill”. Guess Shetty will be only hosting a show called, “Who is coming to My Funeral? No One.”
Poster boy
Bobby Deol is making a comeback in a movie that you could say serves as a cautionary tale against nepotism: Poster Boys is based on the true story of three labourers who found themselves on a Sanjay-Gandhi era government vasectomy poster without their knowledge or consent. In the interviews ahead of the movie’s release—today!— Deol (Bobby, I mean) told reporters that he’d love for his kids to enter Bollywood, and noted that it isn’t “just star sons, but even star daughters have started working in Bollywood.” Okay…so we have been wondering has Bobby been asleep roughly since Sanjay Gandhi died?
This again
Rohit Shetty and Ajay Devgn will be coming together for the tenth time with Golmaal Again. Apparently, all of Bollywood is praying for its success because all their movies have failed this year and the industry needs a big boost. If you still want to up the stakes, Kareena Kapoor won’t be in this sequel, and Rohit Shetty has hinted darkly that “when you see the film, you’ll realise why we have Parineeti and not a girl like Kareena this time”. I’m getting a bad feeling about this, I hope the goodwill all of Bollywood has stocked up this week thanks to Ganesh Chaturthi actually amounts to something. Because saying “a girl like Kareena” like that is bound to be bad ju-ju.
Wham bam thank you ma’am
Haryana wrestler Kavita Devi has become the first Indian woman to perform in the WWE ring! In possibly the most exciting match the WWE has ever seen in its entire history, Kavita Devi fought Dakota Kai in a bright orange salwar kameez, dupatta obviously tied around waist, and also gifted us with this amazing visual:
I must add that one Abhimanyu Mathur from the Times Group thought it would be a good idea to ask her, at this point, whether she’d be able to make her mark “given WWE’s emphasis on looks and glamour”. All those times you and I have dreamt of choke-slamming men who ask stupid questions, sending them smashing through the ground, here is a woman who could actually do it. In reality Kavita Devi gave some self-deprecating answer, but this was after all, only her debut match, and we are hoping to watch Devi take down young Mr Mathur real soon.