SCOOPS: Kareena Kapoor Khan charges Rs 11 crore for a brand campaign? Ajay Devgn to ring in birthday with Nysa

Kareena Kapoor Khan is not only a leading actress but also a much-coveted name in the endorsement circuit. A source says, “In the last 18 years, Kareena has been a consistent face of over 15 brands at any given point. Her brand equity has increased after marriage and motherhood.” Now, a health drink company has signed the Veere Di Wedding actress for their latest campaign. “The beverage caters to kids, so the team felt that Bebo, who is also a mom, was an apt choice. She shot for the first few television commercials and a print campaign on Saturday.”

A WHOPPING REMUNERATION

While most of the other A-list heroines, including a few of Kareena’s contemporaries, are paid about Rs 5-6 crore for each brand, the Kapoor girl is getting almost double the amount. Our source adds, “The health drink had been in talks with her for some time. They are apparently paying her Rs 11 crore to be their brand ambassador for one year. This includes promo shoots and marketing campaigns.”

— by Nayandeep Rakshit

After the stupendous success of Baaghi 2, the movie’s team is all set to kick-start the third outing of the action franchise. Coincidentally, two childhood friends, Tiger Shroff and Shraddha Kapoor, are re-uniting for Baaghi 3 and are scheduled to start their prep for the high-octane action extravaganza.  

Producer Sajid Nadiadwala’s team is leaving for a recce of the locations in four different countries. “Baaghi is one of the big  franchises, hence Sajid and director Ahmed Khan don’t want to spare any effort in ensuring that the third instalment takes thrills to a different level altogether,” says our informer, adding, “It is Tiger’s biggest hit and that’s also why it’s important for them all to ensure that they give audiences action that is a few notches higher. The team will be scouting for locations in a 15-day planned recce across Morocco, Egypt, Serbia and Turkey. They feel Turkey and Serbia suit their narrative, but they will also explore Egypt and Morocco for more options.”

Bhumi Penekar is excited about her next, Pati Patni Aur Woh, a hilarious love triangle co-starring Kartik Aaryan and Ananya Pandey. In a marked departure from her previous characters, the Sonchiriya actress plays a cool city girl in this remake of the 1978 BR Chopra-directed original by the same name.

“Pati Patni Aur Woh is fun and very different for me because I haven’t done a love triangle yet,” said Bhumi, adding, “I have played a confident girl in all my movies, but this one is super confident in a totally different way. It’s because she has got it all — she is a looker, she is like the thing in the city.”

The actress, who has essayed strong, empowered characters in her films so far, sums up, “My earlier characters didn’t really position me in a very desirable light as they were all regular people in a very world. This one is not regular, to put it in the easiest way! You have to see her to know what she is. She is fun!”

Janhvi Kapoor, who began her movie innings last year with Dhadak, has already commenced shooting for her second outing. She plays IAF pilot Gunjan Saxena, one of the first women combat aviators to enter the war zone of Kargil in 1999.  

While she’s currently filming other portions of the inspirational real-life story, the aviation sequences have been scheduled for later. “Janhvi has been training in flying a plane for sometime now. Once she can comfortably manage the feat, only then will the team film those scenes,” says a source associated with the biopic. Janhvi has been undergoing flying lessons at the Indore Flying Club, where some of the best pilots of the country have trained.

Sidharth Malhotra will don the fatigues for the second time, after Aiyaary. The actor will soon kick-start Sher Shah, the biopic on Kargil martyr Vikram Batra. Sid has an army background and hence feels a connection to the story. According to our source, “Vikram’s family members had approached Sidharth on their own for the film. It has been in the planning for over two years now and he is extremely attached to this project. The team will kick start their first schedule in Chandigarh, April onwards.” The actor and Kiara Advani, who has been signed opposite him, finished their look tests last week and have already begun prep for the movie. Sid is devoting time every day to sit with the team for narrations and workshops.

Kangana Ranaut is on a roll. The actress, who finished work on her next movie Mental Hai Kya, has no time to breathe. The Manikarnika: The Queen Of Jhansi heroine has been working round the clock to finish her work commitments. “Kangana was simultaneously training in kabaddi while filming the last schedule of Mental Hai Kya. And now, she will resume work on Ashwiny Iyer Tiwari’s Panga without a day off,” says a source close to the actress, adding, “Kangana recently took off to Kolkata to begin the next leg of the shoot for the sports drama.”  

However, the no-break motto seems to have also taken a toll on her health. Our informer reveals, “Kangana has been practically working for over 16 hours a day in the last few months. Now, she has sworn not to over commit because shooting for drastically opposite characters back to back along with the rising heat has left her exhausted.”

Disha Patani, who will be seen in Bharat next, has a personal reason for signing the Salman Khan-starrer.  While she has reportedly stated that working with the Race 3 actor so early in her career and the story revolving around India are two big reasons, the prime one is her sister Khushboo, who is in the defence forces.  

Elaborating on her hardworking and disciplined sibling being an inspiration for her to take up this film, Disha says, “I have seen my sister contribute to our country as a part of the Indian Army. I always looked up to her and Bharat is going to be very special and filled with sentiments for me.”

Ajay Devgn, who is currently working on his ambitious historical venture, Tanhaji: The Unsung Warrior, made the most of the break in-between schedules. On Friday, the actor-producer, along with wife Kajol and son Yug flew off to Singapore, where the couple’s daughter Nysa is studying.  

We hear Ajay, who turns a year older tomorrow, was keen that Nysa also be around when he rings in his 50th birthday. The Devgns are known to celebrate important occasions together and given the significance of his saalgirah, they decided to spend some of it together.  The day won’t be without work either, as Ajay is returning to the bay tomorrow morning for the trailer launch of his upcoming release, De De Pyaar De.