In the run-up to the Zee Cine Awards on December 19, the media was abuzz that Priyanka Chopra, back home after months, would be paid close to Rs 5 crore for a five-minute routine. So when the desi girl made an appearance on the red carpet, the crore-a-minute payout was one of the questions tossed at her. The lady in pink arched an eyebrow and in a mock-quarrelsome tone shot back: “I never talk about remuneration and no, my act is 12 minutes. Sabse pehle toh tumhara wahin news galat hai ki paanch-chhai minute ka act hai!”

A bit earlier, she had pleased the press no end by fending off her minders who were whisking her away for her performance before the flurry of queries was over. Q&A over, she delighted the news brigade further by stepping right into their midst. Selfie time for the click brigade.

On stage, in a black-and-white corset, full-hand black gloves, black tights and boots, she would sizzle for a good 12 minutes. Crore-a-minute? We are not counting!

Clash of the evening

A sure-fire way to gauge a person’s current standing on the celebrity meter is to see if he or she gets called for questions to the lectern on the red carpet where all the microphones of the audio-visual media are stacked. Even established names fared no better if they were not in the news.

But bad timing resulted in an unintended pass-up. Sridevi, looking gorgeous in a south Indian silk, landed with husband Boney Kapoor. But just as they started posing for the shutterbugs, Priyanka Chopra arrived. As PC graciously waited at a side, the Kapoors asked her to join them. But once the pictures were done and Sridevi reached near the lectern, even those who were ready with questions on her ready-to-be-launched daughter Jahnvi, fell silent. In a clash of priorities, PC scored way over Sri.

Students of the year

Varun Dhawan was all perked up, especially after his house-warming party. “It is a very nice place,” he gushed. “It is such a nice feeling to have a house of your own. My mother has done it up according to my choices. The best thing about the house is that I am right opposite my parents’ house, so we are going to be living close to each other,” said David Dhawan’s beta who is rumoured to be moving out of his parents’ nest to spend time with girlfriend Natasha. “There are a lot of memes doing the rounds of my house and there is one made with the theme song of Kyunki Saas Bhi Bahu Thi. I like that a lot,” he grinned.

On his heels was the chirpy Alia Bhatt. So endearingly simple is Alia that when someone asked her what she was wearing, she replied: “I am wearing…umm… I will tell you in your ear. I am not sure how to pronounce it (the designer label).”

The biggest takeaway from the conversation was her film with Amitabh Bachchan. “(We are working together) In Brahmastra. I am very excited. Whenever we met, hum baat karte thhe ke hum kab saath kaam karenge. Amitji is such a warm person. He tries to make you feel comfortable. Mujhe nahin lagta woh intentionally intimidate karenge. But of course you are working with a legend. Kuch toh (nervousness) hoga.”

The third ‘Student of the year’ came soon. Sidharth Malhotra, who was to perform at the award show, was too happy to talk of Aiyaary, his upcoming film with Manoj Bajpayee. “Today we launched the trailer and response from the trade and the audience has been positive. It’s a relevant film for Republic Day.” Asked who he would spend New Year’s Eve with, he deadpanned: “With my picture Aiyaary, till January 26.”

Are the ‘students’ making a special appearance in Student of the Year 2? “Ask Mr Karan Johar,” Sidharth dimpled. KJo, the SOTY maker, was there in a milk white suit with a ladybird brooch. Though Rohit Shetty and Sunil Grover were the hosts for the evening, he joined the Golmaal man, debuting as a presenter, for a segment. “Welcome to the stage. You are doing a great job. Don’t take away all my money,” Karan, the industry’s go-to emcee, quipped on the mic.

Post-script

Ranveer Singh, described by the presenter on stage as ‘Energy ka glucose, entertainment ka double dose’, brought the curtains down on the evening with his high-octane performance. Shahid Kapoor, who was coaxed by journalists into admitting that he was set to work again with his Jab We Met director Imtiaz Ali, too shook a leg.

Sudeshna Banerjee

(Watch Zee Cine Awards tonight on Zee Cinema at 7.30pm)