Rs 10 crores for appearing together in the brand endorsement space, they have turned out to be probably the most expensive Indian celebrity couple today. When Airtel paid them this whopping amount to capture their chemistry and promote its caller tunes, the ad was an instant hit.
“Their combined value beats even that of Abhishek Bachchan and Aishwarya,” says Anirban Das Blah, CEO, Globosport India which handles Saif’s endorsements. But what draws brands to pay such huge amounts to sign them up? “It’s the ‘hey’ factor around them,” says Vivek Kamath of Matrix, Kareena’s endorsement manager. “Be it their first public appearance together, or Saif’s tattoo— they have ruled airtime and pages across media. Every fan would exclaim, ‘Hey, Saif'’s got a tattoo’ or ‘Hey, they’ve done an ad together’. This is what makes them wanted.”
Many feel that it helps that their relationship is real and not ‘rumoured’ or worse, a publicity stunt. “They were a hit ever since they were spotted together first, but the brands had not come forth at that time. Now that they have lasted a year-and-a-half, they are everywhere,” says Rohini, MD, Raindrop Media the firm that handles their public relations.
Reports of their lovers’ tiffs have only served to keep them in the public eye. Film critic Anupama Chopra says, “They are the spiciest couple — young, stylish, successful and hip. Together, they are the most saleable entities.” Then there is the lineage — the Kapoor khandan and the Pataudi royalty. “The pedigree they share is unique,” says Kamath.
Reports of their lovers’ tiffs have only served to keep them in the public eye. Film critic Anupama Chopra says, “They are the spiciest couple — young, stylish, successful and hip. Together, they are the most saleable entities.” Then there is the lineage — the Kapoor khandan and the Pataudi royalty. “The pedigree they share is unique,” says Kamath.
Predictions for the ‘it’ couple
Vedic astrologer Pt Bhanupratapnarain Mishra reads the future for Saif-Kareena. “Karina was born on 21.9.1980. She is a Capricorn with Sagittarius ascendant. Saif, born on 16.8.1970, is also a Capricorn but with Aries ascendant. In the coming months, they will announce their marriage plans due to favourable Jupiter’s transit between May to July 2009. But from Saif’s horoscope, it seems between March 10 and May 2, 2009, there will be some problems due to the malefic Mercury period. He should control his flirtatious nature.”
Love in mauritius
Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan have done their first ever fashion shoot together for the inaugural issue of the Harper’s Bazaar-India. These photographs, featured exclusively in HT City before the magazine hits the stands, were shot in gorgeous Mauritius by Suresh Natarajan. In the lead pic, (far right) Kareena is wearing a beige dress by Cue and gold bangles by Aquamarine while Saif is wearing a Zegna suit.