Upala KBR (DNA; April 17, 2014)

Shah Rukh Khan is known for his killer wit and sense of humour. The actor even takes pot shots at himself, so his colleagues and co-stars usually take his punches sportingly. Many stars have found themselves being mercilessly teased on stage during award events but they all know it is in good humour. On Tuesday night India’s cricket team vice-captain Virat Kohli got the full blast of the SRK treatment at the gala dinner event for IPL 7 in Abu Dhabi, which the actor was hosting.

King Khan teased the cricketer about his actress girlfriend Anushka Sharma and even performed a mock swayamvar for him.

Says a source present, “Onlookers were amused when Shah Rukh teased Virat about Anushka. The cricketer has been getting a lot of proposals on Twitter and other social networking sites so the star conducted a mock swayamvar for Virat. The actor announced that he wanted to ‘fix a match’ for Virat and find a bride for him. SRK gave Virat eight suitable girls to choose from. The embarrassed cricketer chose Anushka (but naturally!). It was obvious that Virat was squirming on stage but SRK wouldn’t let him go without selecting his bride.”

Apart from Virat, Shah Rukh also spoke to the Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and Shane Watson on stage and he along with Deepika Padukone danced to Lungi Dance from Chennai Express

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Sonali Joshi Pitale (MID-DAY; April 17, 2014)

Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone were the star attraction at a dinner party that was hosted at the Emirates Palace to mark the opening ceremony of the seventh edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). It seems that the actor was at his wittiest best at this do and he even made Virat indirectly confess about his love. A source says, “Shah Rukh and Deepika walked the red carpet and posed for the cameras. This was a by invitation only dinner that was attended several celebs, including players belonging to all the IPL teams. SRK put on a brief show and after his performance, he even arranged for a mock swayamvar for Virat.”

A source says that the cricketer was not caught unawares by SRK’s stint. “Virat looked like he knew what was in store for him. It helped that Shah Rukh shares a good rapport with most Indian cricketers. Besides, he has always indulged in friendly banter with them. SRK called Virat on the stage and asked him to pick one of the actresses as his bride. Virat then started uncovering posters of Bollywood actresses only to zero in on Anushka Sharma. SRK then presented her poster to him and all guests were in splits.”

Shah Rukh later took to Twitter to thank Virat for putting on a brave front. He posted, “Big thanks to Shane, Virat & Dhoni for being so sporting on stage. Great sportsman & even greater sporting spirit. Thanks Abu Dhabi & IPL.” ( sic)