Katrina's Cinderella moment

By: Upala KBR, Mid-Day

Wednesday, May 17, 2006

Katrina Kaif is having a bad day on the sets of Anees Bazmee's Welcome.

The heels of her gilted sandals have already broken off twice - while dancing to a song choreographed by Ahmed Khan, featuring Kat and Akshay Kumar.

While Akshay stands by patiently, checking for messages and answering calls, Katrina, wearing a lime-green strappy number, with gold embroidery, is hopping around on one foot.

Kat's wry humour bursts forth, as she tells her make-up lady, "The designer must have got these sandals at a toy shop!"

Rock star Sallu

Reports say Kat's been gifted a diamond by Salman, for her support during his days as a jailbird in Jodhpur. So where's the huge rock?

Katrina laughs, "Even I would love to see that rock. When I heard the rumours, I called Salman and asked him, 'Where is my rock? Show it to me!'"

One thing stood out recently is Katrina's public acknowledgement of her love and support for Salman and his family.

"Why shouldn't I have done that? You can't be afraid of standing up for what's right. I always feel you should do what you want to do, and shouldn't be concerned about anything else. I did what I felt was right, that's all," she says.

Family time

Katrina's mom, Sussanne, and sister Isabelle, are visiting her in the city, and her sister is down with food poisoning. "You are looking a bit pale, maybe you should go and sit in the sun," Kat teases Isabelle. "But don't eat any more outside food."

Upset at flop

Her last film with Akshay, Humko Deewana Kar Gaye, bombed. "I was totally devastated," says Kaif. "I was so disappointed, I wanted to jump off the nearest bridge! But the good thing was, that I was in London, with my family, when the film released there - in the UK, the film did better."

Her accented Hindi has come in for some flak, and dubbing artistes have synced for her in her films. "Yes, but that's the least of my concerns, as I'm improving with every film. I will dub for my films soon. Lara, Rani and Bipasha have all had their voices dubbed, for different reasons.

I would rather try to get an advanced knowledge of acting, than focus only on my accent, which can improve with time. I can understand Hindi, and speak it fluently," says the actress, defensively.

Would she call herself ambitious? "Yes, but not in terms of the numbers game. I would like to achieve recognition and respect. For me, that means true success," she signs off, tucking comfortably into the roti-sabzi-dal unit lunch.