Anirban Das (MID-DAY; September 11, 2015)

An overseas shoot schedule has kept Irrfan away from the promotions of Jazbaa. But when he arrived in the city on Wednesday before flying out within 24 hours, he chose to steer clear of the film’s publicity campaign, say sources. The actor, however, is believed to have met co-star Aishwarya Rai Bachchan.

A source close to Irrfan says, “He caught up with Aishwarya at an Andheri hotel on the same day, but he neither took part in the film promotions nor interacted with the media. He had come back from Lithuania for a day before heading to the Toronto International Film Festival.”

Those in the know suggest that the two actors had a two-hour discussion on taking their Hollywood connection forward. “They were heard talking about their respective agents in the US film industry. Both of them are keen to bag international projects apart from Bollywood films. Irrfan enquired about the film’s promotional activities and the buzz that the film has created. Ash mentioned that she is looking forward to promote the film with him once he is free,” adds the source.

Irrfan is busy with the overseas shooting of an Indo-Japanese TV series. The makers of Jazbaa had moved the date of the film’s trailer launch from September to August before he got busy. After the Toronto film fest, he will head back to Lithuania and be back in the city only next month.

Irrfan could not be reached for a comment.