Rumours reach us of a split between Soha Ali Khan and Southern superstar Siddharth with Siddharth moving out of Soha Ali’s home into a hotel the day after they both attended brother Saif Ali Khan’s 38th birthday party.
Soha Ali is one smart cookie, holding a Masters degree from the London School of Economics (LSE) in International Relations and having worked for the Ford Foundation before entering movies. She made a big impression, and met Siddharth, in Rang De Basanti and is currently shooting Dil Kabaddi opposite Irrfan Khan. In the recent Mumbai Meri Jaan, she played the role of a journalist, something she’d always wanted to be in real life. “At one point I wanted to be a journalist,” she explains, “Then I was at the receiving end. Now after playing a TV journalist in Mumbai Meri Jaan, I’m more sympathetic towards the media’s job. I understand why they need to ask uncomfortable questions. Of course I still won’t answer personal questions. But I understand the journalist has a right to ask what he or she wants to.”
Unlike many Southern stars, Siddharth, known as the Aamir Khan of the South, is very choosy about the films he makes. After the astonishing Rang De Basanti, he made the megahit from Tollywood, Bommarillu, but his total oeuvre amounts to little more than half a dozen movies. “When I suddenly became a screen actor,” he explains, “I took a reality check and promised myself to only commit to work that completely excited me. It isn’t really my fault that such projects were very few in number. Also, I am building a CV of serious standing.”
There are difficulties in their relationship. It’s rumoured that Soha Ali’s parents are not too keen on Siddharth and also they are said to have different personalities – Soha Ali is open and extrovert whereas Siddharth is said to be moody and introspective. We shall have to see whether they can work to bridge these differences.
