In Conversation with Akshay Kumar, Katrina Kaif and Farah Khan

The two headlining stars and director of Tees Maar Khan were in town today to promote their upcoming film. Much in the same way they recorded an interview with Aamir Khan, Raj and Pablo were once called upon to represent both the Asian Network and British Muslims to the visiting Bollywood stars. Sigh.

But still, I guess I'm used to Raj and Pablo's train wreck style of interviewing enough to ignore any misgivings I have - between them and the pre-fielded audience questions, the whole thing was pretty much a wasted opportunity. At this point I'll once again cast my vote for Sonia Deol to take over, well, any and all contact with the outside world. A special nod goes to the Asian audience - we represented ourselves fully in our lack of decency, respect and organisation. Forget trying to queue up or anything. Still I must admit I loved the guy in the audience who kept holding up a poster of Kaif each time her name was mentioned.

So now that I've got my various moaning about the state of the BBC Asian Network out of the way, what of Akshay, Katrina and Farah? Well first up it was clear that Farah may as well have not been there. In terms of popularity she was well in third place behind the other two, but respect to her for knowing what her place was.

Next up was Akshay, and once again I was impressed by the live appearance of a Bolywood actor. He was genuinely funny - even though ironically what he was saying wasn't. He's one of those people with the right sense of timing, voice and personality that would make even a serious point sound amusing. According to my friends he was also better looking in real life than on the big screen. Perhaps it was my cynicism (or hate, whatever), but I did detect a little chauvinism in him - he didn't let either of the other ladies complete any of their answers without having the need to cut in and elaborate on their behalf. Not cool.

Finally there was Katrina Kaif. From the distance I was seated (that was, right at the back) she looked absolutely stunning in her little black number. Quite interestingly I noticed that she kept her coat on - not only that but she was constantly adjusting it to cover up as much as possible (even as she was telling us about her concerns and with preparation for Sheila Ki Jawani). Content-wise there were no surprises here and although she was friendly and sensible I can't quite say I was amazed by what she had to say. I will admit to being interested in finding out she had sisters living in London. Still looking as she did she didn't really have to say much, although I have to admit I was slightly less impressed when I saw her a bit closer up as she left the studio.

Still, the whole thing was a lot of fun and I'm glad I had the chance to attend. It was good to see and hear both Akshay and Katrina in person, and of course for me to have the chance to publicly declare my love for Katrina during a quiet bit - her turning and waving toward me was well worth looking the fool. Swoon.