No clash in this bash

No clash in this bash

OSO and Saawariya teams get equal footage at the Mumbai Police Mela, which had almost everyone who's anyone in B-Town attending
Chaitanya Padukone
hitlist@mid-day.com

Contrary to speculation, box-office rivals Shah Rukh Khan and Ranbir Kapoor avoided clashing with each other at the annual star-studded Diwali Umang Mumbai Police Mela '07 held at the Andheri Sports Complex on Sunday night. While the Saawariya jodi Ranbir and Sonam Kapoor performed during the first session of the song and dance show, SRK accompanied by Om Shanti Om co-stars Deepika Padukone, Arjun Rampal and Shreyas Talpade made an appearance in the final segment of the gala.
Though SRK did not perform this year, he had the audience in splits with his banter. "Main bahut buddah ho chuka hoon iss liye dance nahin kar sakta," he quipped. Invitees to the show meant mainly for the cops and their families were intrigued to observe that Amitabh Bachchan with his son Abhishek and wife Aishwarya made an exit soon after the arrival of SRK though they did come face-to-face for a fleeting moment. The Bachchan parivaar kept a low profile and did not make their customary appearance on stage as well.
Running fever
Mallika Sherawat was also low-key and made an early exit. She clarified, "It is not that I am acting pricey. It's because I have a fever and have to report for an early morning shoot of Maan Gaye Mughal-e-Azam. I have informed the police commissioner that I would be leaving."
Urmila Matondkar was in her element. Besides a speech in chaste Marathi, she even did an impromptu laavni. "That was a token of my appreciation for the cops who are the city's guardian angels," she exclaimed.
The stars in attendance included Rani Mukerji, Priyanka Chopra, Sridevi, Saif Ali Khan, Kareena Kapoor, Nana Patekar, Diya Mirza, Esha Deol, Geeta Basra, Aarti Chhabria, Emraan Hashmi among others who wowed the audience. There was also a sprinkling of TV stars including Smriti Iraani, Mona Singh, Raageshwari, Shveta Salve, besides Hussain Kuwajerwala and wife Tina.
"Although it's a filmi event, we decided to involve some of the TV stars as well because it's time we accepted them as an integral part of showbiz," informed filmmaker Pahlaj Nihalani, who has been co-ordinating the event every year.