The rivalry between YRF's newbies

Adi's band of boys

The new heroes launched by Yash Raj Films are super-competitive when it comes to fighting for the boss' attention

Subhash K Jha

Aditya Chopra's male protgs may pretend to be friends but they are all competing to grab their mentor and guide's attention. A source describes the boys' club at Yashraj as hilariously competitive, "Earlier there used to be a fierce sense of rivalry among the Yashraj heroines. That ended after Rani Mukherjee came on the scene. Now we have the wannabe Shah Rukh Khans trying to become Adi's blue-eyed boy. You will find all their conversations laced with Adi Sir said this, Adi Sir said that..' They try to impress how close they are to the centre of power."
It all started when Adi Chopra discovered Ranveer Singh for Band Baaja Baaraat. Suddenly doors opened at Yashraj for heroes other than SRK. And the confident newcomers trooped in one by one. Adds the source, "After Ranveer there was Sushant Singh Rajput, Arjun Kapoor and Ayushmann Khurrana. They all have two things in common. They all believe they are close to Adi and try to chalk up brownie points with the Bossman (Adi) by seeking his advice on every issue. They can't seem to raise a finger without consulting their beloved Adi sir."
Word is that Sushant was asked by UTV to sign a 3-film deal. Adi advised him against it. "The ambitious Rajput had no choice but to tell UTV to sort it out with Yashraj. Earlier it was the actresses but now Yashraj become more of a boys' joint. The newbies hang out at the Yash office keeping tabs on the others," laughs the source.
None of the newbies are actually close' to Adi. But no harm in creating the impression of proximity until, like Ranveer Singh, who moved on with Balaji Motion Pictures and Sanjay Bhansali Production. Until then we'll have Ranveer feigning goodwill for Arjun Kapoor. And Ayushmann and Sushant pretending to be indifferent to the other's presence."