yesterday, an intrepid reporter told me how he caught the two travelling to the latter’s home after an event. Vidya was attending a press conference for her next film Halla Bol at a suburban Mumbai hotel. After giving out sound bytes, posing for pictures and the works, she stepped into her black Honda CRV. 50 metres away from the hotel’s main gate, the car stopped; the driver got off and started signalling furiously towards someone behind. Seconds later, a silver Toyota Innova pulled over and before you could say ‘Jack Robinson’, Vidya jumped out of her car and promptly stepped into the silver Innova. Not to be outdone, my eager beaver reporter friend decided to follow them in an auto rickshaw (oh yes, sometimes the three wheeler can work wonders in Mumbai traffic).
Apparently glasses in the Innova were so tinted that absolutely nothing was visible. In fact, a small patch close to the side-view mirror was especially left uncovered for the driver to see the oncoming traffic. While this reporter friend was not quite sure about who else was in the car with the actress, his question was answered when at a particular traffic signal he saw a silhouette (which looked like Shahid’s) changing position, from the navigator’s to the passenger’s seat.
Somewhere along, the twosome realised they were being followed and tried changing course. Of course, the measly rickshaw was no match for the mighty Innova and our friend almost lost them twice. But then again, thanks to the traffic he found himself barely inches away from the powerful machine.
The couple knew they would be on firmer grounds when they reached the area near Shahid’s home, which has a lot of by lanes and trees right in the middle of the roads. Little did they realise that manoeuvring a rickshaw is far simpler than driving an SUV. So all attempts of trying to outrun the rickshaw failed.
