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Can’t bell this Kat

Sitting pretty The model-turned Bollywood diva has finally proved her mettle

There are worry lines gathering on her pretty forehead. Hardly something that scores of her male fans across the country would like to see. Six back-to-back hits notwithstanding, Katrina Kaif is apprehensive about her forthcoming film “Yuvvraaj ”. “I am very worried. This is just not my style — the dressing, the hairdo which defines the way your face looks, the feel of the film — everything’s different! I have just trusted Subhash Ghai and gone ahead. He is such a master director,” says Katrina, on a call from Goa where she has just finished a boat sequence for “Ajab Prem Ki Gajab Kahani”, a romantic comedy with Ranbir Kapoor directed by Rajkumar Santoshi.

Hmm. Being dressed in Grecian-style gowns with her hair pulled back is making this beautiful star nervous but that’s not the only reason. Katrina has been part of extremely successful films till date — “Partner”, “Welcome”, “Namastey London”, “Singh Is Kinng”, “Race” — but they have been formula hits. A tinge of NRI-Indianness, trendy clothes, foot-tapping dance numbers … Katrina has done things that are almost second nature to her.

But, “Yuvvraaj” is different. Mainly the story of three brothers who stand to inherit a fortune, the film portrays her as a cello player and as Salman Khan’s beloved. It is an emotional family drama. “I told Subhashji that the story rules out any item numbers or beach songs and all he kept assuring me was ‘Beta, this is not that kind of film!’” she giggles nervously.

She knows the highlight of the film is the track between the three brothers and the focus is clearly not on her alone, unlike other Subhash Ghai films where the heroine has had meaty roles. In fact, Ghai himself had told her he would not be able to give her a sizeable track, especially in the second half of the film. “My track with Salman is pivotal to the film, but I know the story revolves around Anil and him. However, I did not want to miss out on a movie being made on this scale,” she explains. By now, it is well-known that Katrina took cello lessons and actually learnt the background tune. “No other part of the movie was so challenging as to play this large instrument and make it look believable,” laughs this bathroom singer who plays no other instrument in real life. Obviously, she sounds glad that it’s over and done with.

But ask her about the Salman-Kat relationship and how it is the USP of the film, and she denies it. “The movie is much more than about us. I honestly don’t want people to go and watch the movie for us,” she says. Why? We have heard it holds a mirror to your personal chemistry. “Well, when you have been with a person for so long, there are several scenes you can relate to if you are doing a film together,” she says, with no hint of emotion.

The next question pops out uncontrollably — marriage anytime soon? “No”, she retorts as though it was a ridiculous question, “I’m too young.” Speaking of age, she seems to have done away with the ageing Bollywood types and is now paired with younger stars — John Abraham and Neil Nitin Mukesh in YashRaj Films’ “New York”, and with Ranbir Kapoor in “Ajab Prem…” and Prakash Jha’s “Rajneeti”.

Plus, there is another Priyadarshan film with her favourite actor Akshay Kumar in the offing. Katrina says 2009 will present her in a very different light. “I am happy to be working with stars my age for a change. Moreover, you will see me in such diverse roles that you will wonder if this is the same Katrina. I feel that whatever roles I have done till now were great. I stand by “Partner” or “Welcome” or “Singh Is Kinng”, but my forthcoming films have given me much more to do. It’s an exciting time and my directors are the best in the industry,” she says, sounding as excited as an artist waiting in the wings for the curtains to rise.

With reports of actors’ rates being slashed all over, does she think that actors are an overpriced lot? “Definitely not. An actor’s life is very short. I think the talent is realistically priced. More so, I don’t think anything in Bollywood is going to be affected for so long due to this (global meltdown).” Not so long ago, UTV had signed a two-film deal with her for an undisclosed amount. Have recessionary trends affected her? “My UTV deal is on,” she asserts.

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