A sneak-peek at ‘just friends’ of filmdom!

Shivangi Singh Can a young boy and girl be just ‘good friends’? Can a relationship between a male and female strictly be platonic? This is a dicey question and has always been a cause of much debate. But what makes the question all the more intriguing is the big bad world of celebrities, who make it very difficult to decipher whether their ‘just friends’ relationship is actually restricted to being that or the tag is being used as a garb to hide a sizzling clandestine romance.‘Just Friends’ turned lovers Deepika Padukone & Ranbir Kapoor: “Deepika is a friend of mine, though I haven`t been in touch with her for some months. I`m sure she`s going to do very well for herself." This is what ‘good friend’ Ranbir Kapoor said just before the release of his debut film ‘Saawariya’. And within months, his ‘friend’ Deepika (who had been dating Yuvraj Singh) became his sweetheart and they became the ‘It’ couple of Bollywood. That was some speedy turn of status! Kareena Kapoor & Saif Ali Khan: On the sets of ‘Tashan’ and ‘Race’, they played chess, back slapped and acted as buddies. Saif Ali Khan had split with girlfriend Rosa, and was being linked with the hot Bipasha Basu. But gradually something else started cooking up between the duo, which made Bebo bid farewell to boyfriend Shahid Kapoor leading to a heart-rending ‘Jab We Split’ saga. The so called ‘friends’ turned into a ‘hot couple’, showing that ‘just friends’ is just a lexicon in Bollywood. Katrina Kaif & Salman Khan: She is the longest lasting woman in Sallu’s life and has been spotted with him all over the world. Yet, ‘the sexiest woman’ maintains in her interviews (including ‘Koffee with Karan`) that she is just a ‘good friend’ of Salman Khan. And we can’t help but just stare at this ‘friendly’ joke! Priyanka Chopra & Harman Baweja: There were speculations regarding their relationship since the time Kareena Kapoor walked out of ‘Love Story 2050’ and Priyanka Chopra took up the role. The onscreen and offscreen Love Story continued under the cloak of ‘sweet friendship’. Now, grapevine has it that all’s not well in their love nest and they may head towards splitsville. Just Friendship Continues Shahid Kapoor & Vidya Balan: Media went berserk to extract ‘more than friends’ saga from them but they stoically maintained ‘strictly friends’ story. Grapevine alleges that there is more to their story than just ‘Kismat Konnection’, but they sweet-talk about each other and end up saying ‘just friends’ with smiles and dimples. Meanwhile, tennis sensation Sania Mirza and Shahid’s bond is also much speculated but that too is given the ‘good friends’ angle. Media thinks otherwise but what can it do than just waiting and watching? Katrina Kaif & Akshay Kumar: They are the most popular onscreen ‘jodi’ in recent times. The gorgeous Kat perfectly complements the handsome Khiladi Kumar. The chemistry between the duo was so palpable during a cricket match that boyfriend Salman became miffed and jealous of their closeness. However, Akshay shows off his ‘happily married’ status with wifey Twinkle Khanna and Kat maintain ‘just friends’ and ‘wonderful co-stars’ tags, thereby dismissing double-timing rumours. Sonam Kapoor & Ranbir Kapoor: The two star kids have been childhood friends, what with their celebrity parents moving in the same circle. The two were linked-up during the making of their debut flick ‘Saawariya’ and were spotted hand in hand in a five-star hotel. Everybody wanted the sweet friends to turn into a couple, but then the diva Deepika Padukone glided into Ranbir’s life. Ranbir and Sonam’s much-awaited romance failed to take-off and they remained just ‘good friends’. Rani Mukerjee & Abhishek Bachchan: Speculation was rife regarding their relationship as well. She was his lucky charm and their ‘Yuva’ and ‘Bunty aur Bubbly’ met with great success. They shared an excellent rapport and looked like the younger version of parents Amitabh and Jaya, but fate wanted their ‘just friendship’ to continue. Abhishek fell for beauty queen Aishwarya while Aditya Chopra came in Rani’s life. She was not invited to Jr B’s wedding but later peace was restored and the duo happily completed ‘Laga Chunari Mein Daag’. Kajol & Shah Rukh Khan: They scorched the screen with their onscreen chemistry in blockbusters like ‘DDLJ’, ‘Kuch Kuch Hota Hai’ and ‘Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham’. But off-screen they maintained a close friendship. Inspite of hubby Ajay Devgan’s discomfort, SRK-Kajol continue to be friends and will be soon seen together in Karan Johar’s forthcoming ‘My Name is Khan’. Now, that the celebrity world has such criss-cross and confusing web of friendship, where the line between ‘good friends’ and ‘lovers’ often fades, it is difficult to gauge whether true friendship between opposite sex exists. There is something called platonic relationship in the real world but in filmdom, the sempiternal question continues: Can a male and female actor be just ‘good friends’? But before you start pondering over the question, we wish you a very Happy Friendship Day. Adieu!