After being away from the world of showbiz for over 25 years, actor Anu Aggarwal has decided it’s time for a comeback.

Currently in search of the right script, the Aashiqui (1990) actor says, “I will be signing after decades, so it has to be a great script! Until now, I wasn’t listening to narrations at all, but now I am. I’m also interacting with people in the business. An announcement will be made as soon as I lock the project,” says Aggarwal, who even had a fashion shoot done for her comeback.

Last seen in the 1996 film Return Of Jewel Thief, the actor met with a major accident in 1999, as a result of which, she was in a coma for almost a month. After recovering, she took the spiritual route and turned into a motivational speaker, besides running her foundation for children in need. Ask what made her consider returning to films, and Aggarwal says it was the audience’s love.

When an episode of the reality show Indian Idol 13 chopped out her scenes, several internet users chimed in to show their support for the actor: “After whatever happened in the show, I voiced my opinions on the social media, and I asked people to forgive them (the makers). I started getting long messages. It was very inspiring, and I realized ki logon ke dilon main mere liye kitna prem hai! I was moved, and I decided that I needed to make a comeback. Over 80% of my Instagram followers are younger people, who have seen my films on YouTube or OTT. Along with that, they connect with my ideology.”

Content with her journey so far, the 54-year-old feels she understands life better today: “My journey has been so magical. After the accident and the new birth, I had better understanding about life. The film’s (Aashiqui) tagline was ‘love makes life live’ and today, I am spreading love and teaching people about it.”

Give Ranbir Kapoor any role, and he will slip into it with ease. But the role that he holds the closest to his heart is being a father. Actor-wife Alia Bhatt and he became proud parents to Raha last November. While shooting for a special Holi episode of Indian Idol 13 on Monday, Kapoor opened up on how his world revolves around his four-month-old daughter now.

The actor shot for an episode of the singing reality show as part of the promotions for his upcoming release, Tu Jhoothi Main Makkaar, also starring Shraddha Kapoor. On the show, contestants Ayesha and Rishi asked him about his biggest fear as a new dad.

A source from the set says, “Ranbir revealed that since late last year, he has been sporting a beard for his role in Sandeep Reddy Vanga’s Animal. Since he had a beard when Raha was born, the actor fears how she will react when he shaves it off. Ranbir added that it will break his heart if Raha doesn’t recognize him in his clean-shaven look and avoids coming to him.”

Embracing fatherhood has brought a shift in him, the actor admitted on the show. The self-confessed “lazy” guy who loved spending hours in the balcony of his Bandra apartment has now transformed into a hands-on dad.

The source adds, “RK stated that he loves to help around the house, and take on duties like diaper-changing and patting his child’s back for burps. He joked that he has become the official burping specialist for his daughter Raha.”

If you’re among those who frequent Sagar Chinese in Juhu, keep an eye out for Kartik Aaryan. He often wraps up a hectic day of shoot with a bowl of burnt garlic fried rice and Veg Manchurian from the suburban restaurant. So much so that the restaurant’s owner has now named the dishes ‘Kartik Aaryan Special’. Indian Idol 13 contestant Senjuti Das, an ardent fan of the actor, knows this all too well. On Monday, as Shehzada actors Aaryan and Kriti Sanon shot for an episode of the reality show, the contestant surprised him by offering his signature dish from the joint.

A source reveals that the development happened after Das’s performance, where she sang Deewani Mastani. While judges Himesh Reshammiya and Vishal Dadlani appreciated her act, Aaryan termed it a “shehzada performance”.

The source adds, “The conversation then veered towards street food, and Kartik said he is a big fan of it. To his surprise, Senjuti then presented him his favourite Chinese dishes from his go-to eatery. She said that she was aware that he often goes there. So, she would frequently visit the joint, hoping to meet him.”

The actor was stumped by the contestant’s thoughtful gesture. As he fed her a bite of the dishes, Aaryan said that he has been a regular at the eatery since his struggling days. “Even now, whenever my shoot wraps up post 12 am, I go to the restaurant [for dinner]. The owner has named a special dish after me,” he said.

Last year, a video of him sitting on the bonnet of his luxury car outside the popular food joint and enjoying his meal went viral.

Amid the war of words between singers Neha Kakkar and Falguni Pathak, the two were seen together in a promo of the singing reality show, Indian Idol 13, where Kakkar sits on the jury panel, leaving fans perplexed. In the promo, Pathak was seen visiting the sets as Kakkar welcomed “legendary Falguni ma’am” to the show and even danced with Himesh Reshammiya, a co-jury panel member, and host Aditya Narayan. However, a source close to the show reveals that the particular episode was shot way before the ongoing conflict between the two singers kicked off.

“This particular segment was shot during the auditions round. It was shot in August. The timing is all coincidental. They shot the chunk for Navratri. In fact, at that time, Neha and Falguni were quite cordial. Currently, Neha doesn’t even wish to talk about Falguni and was quite clear that she won’t promote the particular episode or talk about what it was like to have Falguni on the sets,” an insider close to the development says.

Pathak’s team confirmed that the particular shoot took place on “August 20”. A few days back, an online tussle kicked off between Kakkar and Pathak over a recreation of the latter’s original Maine Payal Hai Chhankai by the former. Pathak has been quite vocal about her disappointment over Kakkar’s song, O Sajna.

We reached out to the channel but they maintained a “no comments” stance. Kakkar didn’t reply till we went to the press.