HIGH LIFE- Wrong number?
You have heard about the war of words. Now read about this one. It’s the war of numbers. No I am not going to start your morning reminding you of the Stock Exchange. I am talking about the numbers in numerology. And Bollywood is totally obsessed with this. I spent my Sunday afternoon giggling to myself as I witnessed a war of words and numbers on the wall of a popular social networking site. It all started with numerologist Niraj Manchanda predicting Yuvvraaj would be a flop all thanks to the extra ‘V’ that a numerologist may have added. But once the messages went back and forth between the two numerologists, the mud slinging on their walls was certainly more entertaining than Subhash Ghai’s musical bonanza. So much so that Neeraj wrote, “If you need to take sweet revenge from your foes gift them the movie’s tickets, they will kill themselves of boredom.” Mind you these are not my words or my opinion. I am no film critic. Just a mere movie buff like you guys. To be honest the filmwallas fascinate me more than their films. But two things I will say in defence of Yuvvraaj, the music is brilliant and Anil Kapoor is super brilliant. He is the true star in the film. In real life, he is an ageless wonder. I have asked him how he manages to look so youthful and unchanged over the years and he jokes, saying he will share the secret with me when I get there and need it. Nose Dive I know again that sounds like the sensex but what I am talking about is Priyanka Chopra’s nose. Journos over the past two weeks have been getting very nosey about her nose all thanks to an unethical selfproclaimed cosmetic surgeon who wickedly took the credit for doing her nose job without really saying it himself. But him posing with his laptop and talking about a similar procedure on a news channel didn’t seem so innocent after all. This is the same doctor who had earlier been accused of molestation. And to think that Priyanka’s family considered him a family friend. He will probably get business from lots of Priyanka Chopra wannabes but all at the cost of compromising morals and letting down someone as sweet as PC! Just in case the media is still curious, rumours about Priyanka’s nose have been doing the rounds since 2002. I remember her doing an interview with me where I asked her about her nose job. She had said she had suffered a bad sinus attack in London and undergone a surgery. That’s how she explained the rumours had started. I had even asked her if she would ever get implants to which she had sportingly said, “I am well endowed and don’t need implants.”
Idle worship
This brings me to Richard Branson. Of course, he must have been floored by Priyanka Chopra in Dubai. Surely, she must have looked like a Goddess but knowing Branson, he may just have pre-planned the bit where he came and fell at her feet. Remember that Branson relishes publicity gimmicks. What a frenzy he had created by riding an elephant when he visited India. What’s the big deal? Every mahout in India does that. But it worked. Then he went up in a hot air balloon. Yet another story is that when he started his airline, a lady passenger in the first class was surprised to see a pair of hands at her feet offering her a foot massage. How much of this is true I can’t say because those certainly weren’t my feet being offered the spa treatment. But he thrives on publicity gimmicks and is almost, always successful. He has once again made front-page headlines. Charming and innovative - that’s why he is Richard Branson.
POW WOWS
People of the week are without doubt, the Ambani brothers. Anil and Mukesh sharing a warm handshake was heartening. Let’s hope they graduate to a hug soon. These ‘A’ listers are the pride of India.
Simi Chandoke is the Editor-in-Chief, Lifestyle and Society, Zoom