Cricket and Bollywood: A mutual love affair

When cricketer S Sreesanth got involved in the murky match-fixing scandal in 2013, his future appeared grim. However, the cricketer wouldn’t have thought that just few years later, his life would become so adventurous. He is not only making his acting debut in ‘Cabaret,’ but would also be contesting elections for Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) in the upcoming Kerala elections. Coming back to his Bollywood debut, a report on Indian Express quotes director Kaustav Narayan Niyogi saying that Sreesanth would be playing a godfather and a brotherly figure to the film’s lead, Richa Chadda. Well, we are stumped.

Move on to the following slide to know more about the growing affair between Bollywood and cricket…

Indian wicketkeeper-batsman, MS Dhoni, along with wife Sakshi was spotted at Bollywood superstar Salman Khan's Bandra resident around 8 p.m. Reports state that India's T20 and One Day cricket captain, hung around Salman's house through most of the night. Apparently, the two got along very well at Anant Ambani's 21st birthday party on Saturday. The Indian skipper and his wife left Salman's house around 4 in the morning. Well, we wonder what the two discussed all night long.

Click on the next slide to read about other B-Town celebs and their cricket connection...

National award winning actress, Kangana Ranaut will be teaming up with two new co-stars and they are not from Bollywood. As per a report on Hindustan Times, the 'Tanu Weds Manu' star will be seen alongside Indian cricket superstars - MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli in an upcoming television ad which will be aired during an upcoming Cricket series. The source adds that the ad will be directed by none other than Rajkumar Hirani, who had directed the 'Queen' in another ad some time back. Though Bollywood beauties like Anushka Sharma, Piyanka Chopra and Preity Zinta have appeared in ads along with other cricket stars, this will be the first time when two of India's most beloved cricket stars will appear together with another top actress. Although none of the stars have confirmed the news, their fans definitely can’t wait to see them together.

Move on to the next slide to check out some interesting facts about Bollywood's connection with cricket...

After India's disheartening loss against the West Indies in the semi-finals of the World T20 tournament, Twitter was abuzz with opinions about the match. However, what came as a surprise that while the West Indians were happy with the victory and Indians dejected with their loss, India's neighbouring countries - Pakistan and Bangladesh were over the moon over the ouster of Team India from the tournament. While Pakistanis and Bangladeshis couldn't thank the West Indies, some of their celebs, too, jumped on the bandwagon. Bangladeshi cricketer, Mushfiqur Rahim, tweeted a taunt for the Indian cricket team which was in such bad taste that he had to delete it after being trolled on Twitter. Pakistani actress, Veena Malik, who had made a name for herself in India before getting married, too took a dig at the Indian cricket team. She tweeted, "What a match..... West Indies you done it... Dear India here is message from Pakistan... "Mouka Mouka" ������ #IndvsWI" Well Veena, you perhaps forgot that Pakistan, too, is out of the tournament and they didn't even make it to the semis.

Veena's tweet indeed comes as a surprise considering that Bollywood and cricketers have always been very supportive of each other. Read on to know why we think so...

In a country where cricket and Bollywood are as good as religions, it is hardly a surprise that cricketers and actors are considered to be God. While fans have always cheered for their favourites, cricketers and actors too find fans in each other. Cricket and Bollywood have always shared a mutual love for each other. More often than not, cricketers are avid Bollywood buffs and actors have their field favourites whom they admire. Let's take a look at actors' favourite cricketers and vice versa...

While Dabangg Khan may not be actively posting on social media about his support for the Indian cricket team, he has done something different from the rest. Salman is rooting for Team India and he apparently showed his support by posting a selfie with the World Cup heroes, Mauka Mauka guys. It turns out that while Salman was shooting for Bajrangi Bhaijaan at Filmcity, he came to know that the Mauka Mauka guys are shooting at the same studio. That is when the actor personally decided to greet them.

Alia Bhatt: After four successful films at the box-office, Alia Bhatt is on a roll. She is having a splendid inning at the ticket windows but the actress also enjoys a good game of cricket and has been keenly following all the matches of the World Cup. And while she has praised Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli's performances so far, the actress said that she especially liked Mohit Chauhan's bowling style. "Bowler Mohit is playing very well. Whenever he bowls he does this good hop. It makes me also feel like getting up and bowling,"the actress was quoted as saying in a report.

Preity Zinta: The 'pretty woman' is the co-owner of the IPL team - Kings XI Punjab and knows her cricket facts. While she is often seen biting her nails off, trying to ascertain her team's victory in the league matches, Preity is quite a sport when it comes to sharing a good laugh with her team players. She is often seen hanging out with them post their team matches and makes it a point to tweet in support of her team, both before and after a match. Preity doesn't have a favourite player. She has many. Sachin Tendulkar, Yuvraj Singh, Irrfan Pathan, Brett Lee, Virender Sehwag top the list.

Katrina Kaif: While Priyanka Chopra doesn't seem to think there is a better cricketer than Ranbir Kapoor, the actor's alleged beau, Katrina Kaif definitely knows her cricket. The girl who calls London home is expectedly interested in the game and follows the matches. And while rumours were rife that the actress likes Irrfan Pathan, she claims otherwise. "My favourite cricketer is Rahul Dravid, who I believe is a true gentleman. He never loses his temper and always keeps his cool," Katrina Kaif was quoted as saying in an interview.

Ranbir Kapoor: The Kapoor scion is an avid Sachin Tendulkar fan. While it doesn't come as a surprise since the Master Blaster enjoys immense fan-following, the fact that Ranbir acknowledged Sachin's popularity was indeed heartening. In an interview the actor was quoted as saying that his favourite cricketer is Sachin Tendulkar. He also added that he knew that Sachin had fans all over the world but he too was one of them.

Aamir Khan: Though Aamir Khan and Sachin Tendulkar are thick friends, it seems that the perfectionist is a fan of the Bengal Tiger, Sourav Ganguly. After he visited Ganguly's house in Kolkata, as a part of the promotions of 3 Idiots, Aamir was quoted as saying that, "He is not just a great cricketer, but also a great human being. The family accepted me with so much of love even as I came to their house uninvited. We felt so much at home. Kolkata's best is available at Dada's home." Reportedly, he also rued Dada's early retirement from cricket and urged him to make a comeback.

Sonam Kapoor: According to a report on Pinkvilla.com, cricketer Virat Kohli has a fan in Sonam Kapoor. The actress had apparently said that she finds him hot, states the report. Sonam, who attended Farah Khan's 50th birthday bash, was asked about about her favourite cricketer at press interaction, to which she replied saying that Virat Kohli is hot. While Virat Kohli is reportedly dating actress Anushka Sharma and referred to her as 'my love' when tweeting about her film, NH10, it seems that Sonam has a soft spot for Indian Cricket team's vice-captain.

Gulshan Grover: Bollywood baddie Gulshan Grover was seen chatting up Brett Lee in Sydney, where they were filming together. When asked how the fast bowler was doing in front of the camera, Gulshan had replied, "Brett is performing very well and he will surprise people with his acting." The Australian cricketer and Indian actor were reportedly getting ready for a heavy duty altercation scene that is to be filmed shortly. Gulshan apparently likes Brett Lee's deliveries and not just the dialogue ones.

Virat Kohli: The vice captain of the Indian cricket team is a huge movie buff. "I have always been a fan of Hindi movies and my earliest memories of films have to be of watching black and white movies with my family. As a kid, my favourite Hindi movie was Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar. Anyone who has seen the movie, will know why it was my favourite film. And it’s mainly because of this film that I idolised Aamir Khan as I was growing up. To date, I am a huge Aamir Khan fan. Among the three Khans – Shah Rukh, Aamir and Salman – Aamir is my favourite. Not only is he a brilliant actor but he also adapts well to diverse roles." While Virat chose Aamir over the other Khans, his favourite yesteryear actress is Rekha. "She was undoubtedly the sexiest. As for today’s B-town actresses, Katrina Kaif is my favourite. I also think she is the most talented actress at the moment. However, I think that Kareena Kapoor is the No. 1 heroine. She beats Katrina Kaif and Priyanka Chopra in the race," assessed Virat.

Shoaib Akhtar deletes video of kiss with SRK

Shoaib Akhtar once shared a video on Twitter where Shah Rukh Khan is seen kissing him. The pacer shares a great friendship with the actor as the former played for the latter's IPL team, Kolkata Knight Riders. However, the two apparently weren't on very friendly terms after Shoaib had alleged that SRK had not cleared his dues but the issue seems to have been resolved now. While the video shared by Shoaib had immeditely gone viral, it is now leading to an error page. Also, there is no trace of the video on Shoaib's Twitter account. It remains a mystery as to why the Rawalpindi Express deleted the video.

In a country where cricket and Bollywood are the biggest religions, it is hardly a surprise that cricketers and actors are considered to be God. While fans have always cheered for their favourites, cricketers and actors too find fans in each other. Cricket and Bollywood have always shared a mutual love for each other. More often than not, cricketers are avid Bollywood buffs and actors have their field favourites whom they admire. Let's take a look at actors' favourite cricketers and vice versa...

Gautam Gambhir: Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Gautam Gambhir chose Aamir Khan as his favourite actor over the owner of the franchise he plays for. Even though he feels fortunate to have worked with Shah Rukh Khan, the skipper of Kolkata Knight Riders maintains that he loves Aamir Khan. “My favourite actor has always been Aamir Khan. Taare Zameen Par is very close to my heart,” Gambhir was quoted as saying. However, he also admires SRK as the team owner. “He’s an unbelievable owner. I have been very fortunate to work with him. Whatever decision has been taken on the cricket field since the time I've taken over as a captain, has been taken by me. Whether we have done well or not, there’s been no interference from him,” Gambhir was quoted as saying in the Hindustan Times report.

Kumar Sangakkara: Though he belongs to Sri Lanka, the Bollywood magic has him spellbound. When it comes to the topic of Indian films and Bollywood, there is only one name that tops the list of his favourites. "Shah Rukh Khan is my favourite," says the cricketer in an interview and adds, "He is a fabulous person and is intelligent, honest and forthright. I had seen one of his interviews with BB and it struck me that how honest he is."

Brett Lee: Being in Kings XI Punjab also brought with it rumours of an affair with its co-owner, Bollywood actress Preity Zinta, but Brett Lee said that the speculation was media's imagination. "My singing fuelled media rumours that there was something going on between me and Preity. This all stemmed back to 2002 or 2003 when I presented her with 'leading actress' at a Bollywood awards night in Singapore. At the time, when the Indian media asked me who my favourite actress was, I told them 'Preity Zinta,' because she was cute and has a dimple...It was all a bit of fun but some journalists picked up on that...They simply weren't true," he was quoted as saying.