Kat's lost without mom

After a spate of hits, Katrina Kaif may be riding high on her career front but that is in no way a compensation for leading a lonely life without family in Mumbai. Considering that the Mumbai film industry can get awfully cold for an out-of-town girl and the constant work-related travel in recent times, Katrina had begun to feel the absence of a strong support system in Mumbai.

Living alone also took its toll on her health when last month the actress was diagnosed with jaundice and a low hemoglobin count.

A close friend of the actress said, “To be alone in Mumbai where no one asks about your health seriously and neighbours don’t even know your name, is bad enough. But for a celebrity like Katrina it’s even worse. People around her presumed she wanted to be left alone when in fact she needed comfort and company during her illness.”

That’s when Katrina made up her mind to call her mother Suzanne Turquotte to Mumbai to be with her. “It wasn’t an overnight decision. She didn’t want to pull her mother away from her social work in Chennai, but being alone was getting to Katrina. Being successful is fine but unlike other actresses her age, she had no one to return home to,” added the friend.

Earlier this week, Katrina’s mom joined the actress in Mumbai. The change in her mood, attitude and lifestyle was almost immediate. She’s now eating well and runs off to work every morning knowing someone is waiting for her back home. “Yeah, my mom is with me,” said Katrina happily from the Mumbai airport yesterday morning before she headed to Dubai for a brief appearance at a live performance. “If I feel strong enough to make this trip, it’s because my mother is at home. I know I have her to go back to. I admit it can get terribly lonely in Mumbai.”

Different strokes for Kat

On the sets of Rajneeti, Prakash Jha has had to deal with much more than temper tantrums. It took Jha a lot of time to explain the concept of continuity to the film’s lead actress Katrina Kaif.

It is said that Katrina’s role is fashioned after Sonia Gandhi. Thus, a lot of effort and styling has gone into deglamourising the usually sensual actress. She has to maintain a sari-clad look sans make up, which is far from the way she has been portrayed in her past films.

Our source said, “Katrina did not seem to understand the importance of continuity. Every other day, she would turn up on the sets looking completely different. Often, Jha would be surprised to see Katrina looking like a different person altogether. He had to summon her make-up man to get her look redone; to make it match the look in the last scene on the previous day.”

The funny bit is the fact that Katrina never seemed to realise this. She would simply say, “Main to waisi hi lag rahi hoon, different nahin.”

Naturally, a lot of time was wasted while the make-up man worked on Katrina’s look. Jha denied the story saying, “What rubbish! Katrina’s character undergoes a metamorphosis in the film but I never had a continuity problem with her and didn’t lose any time either. She was perfect.”

Katrina, of course, echoed Prakash Jha’s statement.