Rakhi dropped from Ekta's awards function

Mumbai, Dec 31 (IANS) After the brouhaha Rakhi Sawant created about the alleged rigging of results on STAR Plus' dance show 'Nach Baliye 3' and her questioning the 'role' of Ekta Kapoor and Balaji Telefilms in the final result, Balaji has decided to drop Rakhi from their first awards function on Jan 25 that is likely to be held at Dubai.

When asked, Ekta told IANS: 'I wouldn't really know the details of the show since they are being handled by Bunty Wallia and the Moranis. But yes, if my company has taken a policy decision, I am with them.'

'Rakhi was being offered a place in our first awards function. No, she wasn't going to dance but she was going to host one segment of the show. But after she has been making wild and totally unfounded allegations against Ekta, accusing her of favouring Aamir and Sanjida, Balaji has decided to drop Rakhi from their awards function,' said a Balaji source.

Ekta's awards function is likely to be held in Dubai. According to sources, Shah Rukh Khan has finally said yes to a performance at what promises to be one of the biggest live events.

Shah Rukh will be accompanied by none other than the Balaji breakaway bahu Smriti Irani.

'The idea is to set aside all rancour, to disprove stories about the ill-will generated by our actors who move out of Balaji. So it isn't just Smriti who's being invited to perform, we're also asking Iqbal Khan and Rajiv Khandelwal to join us on Jan 25,' said the source.

While the Moranis will be organising Shah Rukh's performance, the rest of the event will be handled by Bunty Walia's company.