Sayali Bhagat: Shoaib's Affair was a Publicity Stunt

Sayali Bhagat who was supposed to having relationship with Shoaib Malik, cricketer who is controversy about his marriage to Sania Mirza, the tennis star; has come up with a shocking piece of information saying that her(Sayali)'s affair with Shoaib was just for publicity.

Dont know who is actually seeking publicity here, Sayali who wants to stay in news since she is nowhere after her Train(2007) 'derailed' (Train was a step by step copy of Derailed). Now Sayali says to a popular tabolid, " I was not dating Shoaib. My first and last association with Shoaib was when we were offered a film together by Wilson Louis. However, the makers could not market the idea of Shoaib Malik as a leading man as he was a Pakistani cricketer. Meanwhile, 26/11 happened and that further ruined the chances of casting him. I live in Mumbai and had lost some of my friends in the Taj tragedy. I was shell-shocked and I mourned for the victims. I understand the sentiments of people and chose to step down and reject that film offer, as I did not want to jeopardise my name and career.”

When enquired whether she was girlfriend of the Pakistani cricketer, the actress quips, “Woh sab film ki marketing strategy thi. You know how the film industry works. Aren’t co-stars linked up to make the films a talking point? The production house of the film was successful in getting publicity for the film, but at the end of the day, they still failed to get buyers.”

“To a certain extent, it was troublesome for me. I was in a relationship, and that hit a rough patch due to the controversy. Later, my relationship with my boyfriend fizzled out, but for another reason altogether. If my link-up with Shoaib hadn’t happened, maybe I wouldn’t have lost my boyfriend. I won’t deny that my parents were upset, but they are modern and educated people and they saw it in the right light,” the actress added.

When enquired about her take on Shoaib’s marriage with Ayesha, an irate Sayali said, “Why should I offer an opinion on anybody’s decision? But if I were ever offered marriage by Shoaib’s parents, I would have refused. I would have run away from it.”