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Face-off!!!

Have you ever given it a thought that, though they sizzled the screen in Mani Rathnam's Dil Se.., Preity Zinta and Shah Rukh Khan have never been paired together again? And it's not as if film-makers have not tried to cash in on their on-screen chemistry.

A little bit of probing revealed that many film-makers tried to pair the two, only to find that the actor did not quite agree to the idea. And the reason for Shah Rukh's apparent berukhi is a supposedly uncomplimentary comment Preity made about the star.

Though Preity is not used to going down on bended knee, she did, apparently, try to sort out the problem and clarify her stance with the Khan who accepted her apologies. But he continues to sulk and Preity refuses to bend any more. And the stalemate continues, much to the disappointment of the Shah Rukh-Preity fans!

The cola war continues

Coca Cola has not taken kindly to the Pepsi ad showing an buck-toothed Hrithik Roshan lookalike losing out to Shah Rukh. And though it was Hrithik who initially took up cudgels and dashed off letters to Pepsi and Shah Rukh, the company too has decided to fight back.

They are said to have planned a campaign featuring an obese looking Shah Rukh and the hunt is on for a suitable candidate. Even if they do, this stratagem might not quite succeed. Sources close to Rakesh Roshan insist that, no matter what Coca Cola has to say, Hrithik will not participate in any such commercial. And, hopefully, this particular battle in the cola war might just end.

Is Govinda, isn't Govinda?

Is Govinda's growing friendship with Rani Mukherji causing marital discord in his life? Yes, say his friends, who cannot believe Govinda is so smitten by Rani's charms. Even wife Sunita, it is said, is stunned that, despite her warnings and threats, her hubby continues his friendship with Rani and meets her clandestinely.

But a close source, virtually an insider, is of the opinion that the romance is nothing but a publicity stunt to boost Govinda's sagging image and keep him in the news. And that wifey Sunita is also playing her role to the hilt.

The replacement star

Is Aftab Shivdasani becoming the perfect replacement star? Looks like it! After replacing Bobby Deol in Rajiv Rai's film, he has now stepped into Anil Kapoor's shoes for Mukesh Bhatt's Vikram Bhatt-directed Mujhko Teri Kasam.

Mukesh has been silently seething over the fact that Anil has, under various pretexts, been cancelling his schedules for a long time now. The latter's favourite excuse was that extra dates were required for his home production, Pukar.

Then, a day before the unit was scheduled to leave for Switzerland, Anil dropped another bombshell -- that he would be joining the unit four days late. That was the last straw, as far as Mukesh was concerned. He sent a letter to the various associations, asking them to help him recover the signing amount of Rs 25 lakhs he had paid Anil and dropped him from the film.

Of Kishen Kumar and his come back

There seems to be some kind of a jinx around Kishen Kumar and his plans of staging a comeback with Papa The Great. When the film commenced, Naghma was definitely more popular that what she is today. Yet, the film plodded along.

And now, when the film was being readied for a grand release, Kishen has been arrested for his involvement in the betting scandal. Which only means another round of delays as the film will lie in the can until his name gets cleared. While the director has already washed his hands off the film, Kishen himself seems to have lost all interest in making his mark as an actor.

Sri wants a boy

Unconfirmed sources have it that Sridevi pregnant again. And this is supposed to be one of the reasons why the lady, who was all poised to make a comeback, has retraced her steps. Boney Kapoor who was all set to launch her, suddenly switched over to Kajol in a move that took everyone by surprise!

But her pregnancy is not the only reason for this move. Sri is keen on having a male child and their careful planning and visits to various religious sites seems to have been successful. But the couple are not willing to either confirm or deny this rumour!

Shah Rukh still sizzles

Despite the Hrithik mania, Shah Rukh continues to be a craze amongst the audiences. And this has been proved by the thunderous opening of Mansoor Khan's Josh. People in the trade who had been writing off the Khan have paused to take stock and check out the second week's collections.

But the initial has proved one thing -- Shah Rukh cannot be written off. Even the fact that Aishwarya Rai is cast as his sister was not a damper. Which means more sparks are going to fly and there will be more competition and more fireworks in the months to come!

-- The Insider